Early wins contribute to fourth straight series win for Aviators

Early success in a recent six-game home series with Sugar Land pushed Las Vegas to a fourth straight series win.

The four games won this week came in an early test against last year’s best team in the Pacific Coast League. Through the first 50 games played all-time in the series between the Aviators and Space Cowboys, the latter has won 26 of those games.

This season’s Las Vegas team still leads the PCL West with a 14-7 overall record. Moreover, the team is tied with Oklahoma City for the best record in all of the PCL.

Now, the Aviators go back to the road for a six-game series with the Round Rock Express of the Texas Rangers organization. That series is set to begin Tuesday, April 22 with first pitch set for just after 5 p.m.

Tuesday, W, 6-5

Back-to-back wins turned into three straight wins for Las Vegas on the heels of a walk-off win on Tuesday afternoon.

Home runs in the eighth and ninth innings helped the home team climb back and secure the series-opening victory.

Shortstop Darell Hernaiz smacked a solo home run with one out tallied in the eighth inning to tie the game at five apiece. Seven of the last eight hits for the Aviators went for extra bases.

An inning later, catcher Daniel Susac connected on another home run, this time in walk-off fashion on the second pitch he saw.

Susac recorded his first multi-hit game since the season opener and had gone two for his last 14 against El Paso. He went 4-for-4 with a single, two doubles, a home run, two RBI and a run scored.

Third baseman CJ Alexander also tallied a two-run home run in the bottom of the second as part of his first three-hit game of the year. He now has two homers in his last four games played.

Pitcher Jack Cushing got his second start of the season and entered play with three appearances to his credit with a 1-0 overall record coupled with a 2.00 earned run average. Additionally, he struck out nine in his nine total innings on the mound.

Cushing gave up a two-run home run to tie the game at three apiece with one out recorded in the top of the third. Sugar Land grabbed its first lead of the game on a two-run dinger to go up, 5-4.

Following Cushing, the Las Vegas bullpen hurled five innings of two-hit ball with three strikeouts versus two walks. Reliever Grant Holman (1-0) got the win after securing two strikeouts in two scoreless innings.

Wednesday, W, 12-4

Four straight wins for the Aviators following a second straight win in a scheduled six-game series with the Space Cowboys. The offense began to pour it on as pitcher Mason Barnett got his first win of the season.

Left fielder Logan Davidson homered in each of his first two at-bats, both of which went for two runs. Both blasts were his first longballs of the season.

Davidson went 2-for-3 with two home runs, four RBI, three runs scored, two walks and a strikeout.

From there, Las Vegas began to pour it on. First baseman Brett Harris went yard in the fifth inning as part of a two-run frame for the home team to run its lead to 6-1.

Center fielder Drew Avans hit two doubles on the night including an RBI double in the latter showing. Teammate Cooper Bowman plated three runs in the eighth on his second triple of the season.

Bowman played in his second outing of the year for the Aviators with Wednesday being his first start.

For Barnett, he entered Wednesday’s game following three straight no-decisions. By the time he was pulled, he had chomped five innings on the mound with one run allowed on five hits with three strikeouts and a walk. The five innings pitched ties his longest outing of the year.

Barnett would eventually get the win in his fourth appearance of the season.

Thursday, L, 7-6

The win streak is now over for Las Vegas following its first loss of a scheduled six-game series against Sugar Land. The loss keeps a key pitcher on the staff winless in the early going of the season.

Pitcher Gunnar Hoglund made his fourth start of the season with two no-decisions and a loss in his first three. Even still, he had not given up more than two runs and five hits in any singular start this season.

The Space Cowboys jumped on Hoglund right away with a leadoff homer to start the game. It appeared he had settled in by the end of the second inning, where he struck out the side for five total strikeouts to that point.

Hoglund reached a season-high seven strikeouts in the fourth inning on his way to a five-inning outing with three runs (two earned) allowed on seven hits. Those seven strikeouts also came without a single walk.

After leaving the mound, the Aviators’ bullpen was kicked around. Relievers Ryan Cusick and Matt Krook were taxed for four runs on three hits in two total innings to go along with two walks.

Las Vegas was nearing a potential comeback but it had the help of Sugar Land. The visitors walked four straight batters in the seventh inning to bring across a run. Soon after, third baseman Brett Harris drove in two more on a single. He went 2-for-4 with a single, double and three RBI.

As a team, the Aviators struck out 14 times including two times in the ninth inning while trailing by a run.

Friday, W, 5-3

Las Vegas has claimed at least a series split after collecting three of the first four games of a scheduled six against Sugar Land. The team still has a chance at winning its fourth straight series to start the season.

Typical-reliever Tanner Dodson made a spot start in the eventual win. It started rough, resulting in three straight run-producing at-bats in the second inning to go up, 3-1.

Almost immediate after, the Space Cowboys’ offense went silent. By the end of the sixth inning, 12 straight batters were retired including 10 by reliever Jake Walkinshaw.

An inning later, fellow reliever Anthony Maldonado struck out the side to push that number to 15 straight turned away. The game ended with 20 straight retired batters with 19 coming from the bullpen.

In totality, the Las Vegas pen worked 6.1 innings pitched of scoreless ball with eight strikeouts tallied. Sugar Land only recorded three hits in the losing effort.

Three of the four relief pitchers used still have a 0.00 ERA. Lefty Angel Perdomo made his debut for Las Vegas after compiling a 5.40 ERA in four major league games this year.

Right-hander Grant Holman got his fourth save of the season to secure the win while Walkinshaw got the win and Maldonado and Perdomo clinched holds.

Four of the five runs for the home team came in the first two innings. The scoring opened with an RBI single by right fielder Colby Thomas. Things really came to fruition in the second inning behind run-producing at-bats by catcher Willie MacIver, third baseman Alejo Lopez and shortstop Darell Hernaiz.

The last of the three was one of three players with two hits, going 2-for-4 with a single, double, RBI and a strikeout.

The aforementioned Thomas went 2-for-4 with two singles, a RBI and a strikeout while MacIver adding two hits in three at-bats with a single, triple, RBI, two runs scored and a walk.

Saturday, W, 9-3

Five games into a six-game home series against Sugar Land and Las Vegas will be celebrating a fourth straight series win to open the year.

A five-run third inning led to the eventual win after the first two innings were contested in back-and-forth fashion.

Right fielder Colby Thomas tied the game at three apiece behind an RBI single on the heels of a leadoff walk.

Thomas was followed up by a two-run double by teammate CJ Alexander and a two-run single by designated hitter Willie MacIver.

The Aviators batted around in the third inning.

Catcher Daniel Susac has continued to swing a hot bat featuring a two-run home run in the second inning to put the home team on the board. Later in the game, he drove in two more runs on a double in the seventh inning.

Susac went 3-for-4 with a single, double, home run, four RBI and a run scored.

Pitcher Joey Estes got his first win in his second appearance of the year. He ran into trouble with an RBI double in the game’s opening inning. Two frames later, he coughed up two more runs on a leadoff dinger and an RBI double.

Estes recorded his first 1-2-3 inning in the fourth frame on his way to eight straight outs to end his outing. In total, Las Vegas retired 13 straight batters before ending the game on with four consecutive outs.

After 5.2 innings, Estes (1-0) got the win after giving up three runs on five hits with six strikeouts and two walks.

Sunday, L, 8-4 F/11 innings

Las Vegas lost the series finale at home with a chance to secure its first five-win series of the year. Even still, the club’s performance this week has thrust the team into the top spot in all of the Pacific Coast League.

Self-inflicted wounds in the 11th inning led the demise of the Aviators. Four straight balls to the Space Cowboys No. 9 hitter Quincy Hamilton. Pitcher Matt Krook (2-1) served up a three-run home run to the next batter on his way to the loss.

In the 10th inning, Sugar Land scored the first run for either team since the fifth inning. Second baseman Logan Davidson tied the game at four behind a two-run double in the bottom half of the frame.

Las Vegas’ bullpen had a rough day to the tune of seven runs (five earned) on six hits in seven total innings of work.

Righty Jack Cushing gave up a solo home run on the second pitch he hurled after entering the game in the fifth inning. Soon after, he sat down nine straight batters before leaving the game.

Starting pitcher Jason Alexander made his second start of the season after being saddled with the no-decision in his first. In this one, he gave up a run on four hits in four innings of work with five strikeouts and a walk.

Catcher Willie MacIver pushed his hit streak to 12 games with a solo home run in the fifth inning. It was his lone hit during a 1-for-4 day with a walk, a run scored and a strikeout in addition to the dinger.

On the basepads, the Aviators were caught stealing to end two separate innings including one time to end the ninth.