Drew Avans extends on-base streak to 43 consecutive games for Oklahoma City

Saturday’s trip around the Dodgers minors includes the four affiliates splitting their games, a walk-off loss and a streak continued.

Player of the day

Drew Avans extended his on-base streak to 43 games by going 2-for-3 with a triple, a walk and two runs scored. the longest on-base streak by an Oklahoma City player during the team’s affiliation with the Los Angeles Dodgers (2015-present) and the longest active on-base streak in the Minors.

Avans has now reached base in 57 of his last 58 games and hit safely in 26 of the last 30 games. Avans’ triple was his eighth of the season, pulling him into a tie for the league lead.

Triple-A Oklahoma City

With two outs in the bottom of the ninth, Jake Gatewood sent a ball over the wall for a solo homer to walk it off for Salt Lake (Angels), sending Oklahoma City to a 4-3 loss.

Reliever Mark Washington had retired all five batters he faced, striking out three in the process leading up to the final at-bat. Gatewood took a 2-2 fastball and hit it on a line to right center onto the berm for the winner.

The Dodgers had a one-run lead three separate times Saturday, scoring one in each of the first third and fourth innings. An error by Gatewood with two outs in the first allowed Avans to score the first run of the game. Avans would score again in the third when he tripled and Edwin Ríos brought him in on a sacrifice fly.

Ryan Noda hit his 18th homer of the year to once again give OKC an advantage before the Bees responded. The Dodgers only had one hit after Noda’s home run, a leadoff double by Ríos in the sixth. But Ríos was caught stealing at third base.

Salt Lake matched each run to tie it with a solo homer in each of the second and third innings and a run-scoring double in the sixth.

Michael Grove allowed two runs on two hits over five innings on the mound for OKC, striking out seven and walking none. Both hits were solo home runs.

Double-A Tulsa

Tulsa took an early lead and kept Northwest Arkansas (Royals) off the board until late, winning 9-2 on the road in Springdale, Arkansas.

The Drillers had already scored two in the first and one in the second to take a 3-0 lead but the game was put out of reach when they hung six runs on the Naturals in the sixth inning.

Four of the first five batters in the sixth drew a walk to make it 4-0, Abiatal Avelino was hit by the pitch with the bases loaded to bring home another run and Buddy Reed made the Naturals pay with a three-run double to left. Reed would score on a Ryan Ward single to cap the big inning.

Justin Yurchak hit a two-run homer in the first and is now 5-for-8 with two homers over his last three games. Avelino launched a solo blast in the second and finished 1-for-3 with two runs scored and two runs driven in.

The Drillers only needed six hits to score the nine runs, taking advantage of all the free passes along the way.

Starter Gavin Stone tossed four scoreless innings for Tulsa, scattering four hits and two walks while striking out seven of the 18 batters he faced. Lefty Lael Lockhart — who went to college in Arkansas — nearly pitched the last five innings to go the rest of the way in his Double-A debut.

Lockhart allowed two runs on seven hits and a walk in 4 ²⁄₃ innings and was lifted with two outs and two on in the ninth. Gus Varland came on to get the final out and secure the win for the Drillers.

High-A Great Lakes

The Loons scored three in the eighth inning to make things interesting but it was too little too late for them, dropping a 6-3 game to Lake County (Guardians).

Down 5-0 in the eighth, the first two men reached for Great Lakes on an Eddys Leonard single and Diego Cartaya walk. Jorbit Vivas grounded into what could’ve been a double play but a throwing error on the attempt allowed Leonard to come in to score. Jose Ramos followed with a two-run homer to make it 5-3.

After the Captains scored a run in the home half of the eighth, Great Lakes loaded the bases in the ninth. The Loons had a chance but Vivas made out on a fly ball to end the threat and the game.

Starter Ben Casparius had a shaky start, allowing a double and a walk before giving up a three-run homer in the first before ever recording an out. The right-hander would be charged with seven hits and four runs in four innings.

Low-A Rancho Cucamonga

The Quakes got steady production from the top of their lineup all night long with 10 of their 13 hits coming from hitters 1-4. That set the table for Rancho to cruise to a 9-4 victory at home over Inland Empire (Angels).

Chris Alleyne (2022 19th-round pick) was 3-for-5 out of the leadoff spot and scored four runs. Dalton Rushing (2022 2nd-round pick) reached base four times, going 3-for-4 with a walk to drive in two runs. Alleyne is 6-for-13 (.462) in three games for Rancho and Rushing is 5-for-7 (.714) in his two games since joining the team.

Rancho immediately got on the board in the first when Alleyne smacked a leadoff double and Rushing followed with a single to put runners at the corners. Yeiner Fernandez ripped an RBI-double, Yunior Garcia singled in Rushing and Luis Fernandez brought the third run in on one of his two sacrifice flys.

Kyle Nevin (2022 11th-round) doubled in two runs during a three-run fifth that helped the Quakes to a 6-1 lead and Rushing singled in two runs in the sixth to put the game out of reach.

Six different pitchers combined for Rancho to allow just three hits but they also had to work around 14 walks.

Transactions

Double-A: Tulsa Drillers transferred RHP Landon Knack to the Development List. RHP Adolfo Ramirez assigned to Tulsa Drillers from Rancho Cucamonga Quakes.

Low-A: RHP Jimmy Lewis assigned to Rancho Cucamonga Quakes from ACL Dodgers.

Saturday scores

• Salt Lake 4, Oklahoma City 3
• Tulsa 9, NW Arkansas 2
• Lake County 6, Great Lakes 3
• Rancho Cucamonga 9, Inland Empire 4

Sunday schedule

• 12:05 p.m. PT: Oklahoma City (Andre Jackson) at Salt Lake (Cesar Valdez)
• 12:05 p.m.: Tulsa (John Rooney) at NW Arkansas (Andrew Hoffman)
• 4:00 p.m.: Great Lakes (Kendall Williams) at Lake County (Tommy Mace)
• 5:00 p.m.: Rancho Cucamonga (Maddux Bruns) vs. Inland Empire (Julio Goff)