Grant Holmes beats Drillers to force a Game 5

Everything will be up for grabs today as both the Texas League and Pioneer League Championship Series will have a winner at the end of play. The Drillers and RockHounds are tied 2-2 with Game 5 looming while the Raptors lead 1-0 in their best-of-three series as they will try to win one of the possible two games they could play today.

Player of the day

Blake Gailen went 2-for-3 with a run scored for the Drillers.

Double-A Tulsa

Tulsa might have had their best look at the game with two on and no out in the bottom of the ninth. Keibert Ruiz, top catching prospect, hit a line drive that looked like it was going be base hit, instead it was caught and turned into a double play.

The Midland RockHounds (Athletics) would go on to get the last out and beat the Drillers 6-3. Both teams have now won twice on the road and they will now settle the Championship with Game 5 tonight at Tulsa.

Grant Holmes won the game for the RockHounds, the No. 1 draft pick for the Dodgers in 2014, pitched very well. He threw 6⅓ innings and gave up three runs (two earned) , four hits and walked three. Holmes, who led the Texas League in strikeouts, had six strikeouts against the Drillers.

Yadier Alvarez started for the Drillers, he had command issues for most of his outing. He pitched 4⅓ innings and gave up four runs, five hits and walked three. He only had one strikeout. Two of his runs scored on the Sheldon Neuse three-run homer that Tim Shibuya gave up when he relieved Alvarez.

It was the second straight tough night at the plate for Tulsa, they were 2-for-9 with runners in scoring position, they only had five singles. Tulsa has yet to hit a home run in the Texas League Championship Series.

One thing you might see today is both DJ Peters and Keibert Ruiz in the lineup for the Drillers, Peters, who played for Great Lakes in their run for the 2016 Midwest League Championship, started on Saturday. Ruiz lined into a tough double play in the ninth inning but he did look comfortable at the plate.

Ruiz has now appeared this season in games for the Great Lake Loons, Rancho Cucamonga Quakes and Tulsa Drillers.

Rookie Pioneer - Ogden

Game 2 of the Pioneer League Championship Series was postponed due to bad weather. The series is still scheduled to be completed today with both Game 2 and if necessary, Game 3, scheduled as seven-inning games.

Transactions

Class-A: Rancho Cucamonga released right-handed pitcher Kevin Brown.

Saturday box score

Game 4: Midland 6, Tulsa 3 (Series tied 2-2)

Sunday schedule

Game 2 - 2:00 p.m. PT: Ogden (Osiris Ramirez) at Great Falls (Lincoln Henzman)

Game 3 (if necessary): Ogden (Edwin Uceta) at (Brandon Agar)

Game 5 - 4:05 p.m.: Tulsa (Dennis Santana) vs. Midland (TBD)