The Round Rock Express outlasted the Nashville Sounds and came away with a pair of wins Monday afternoon at First Tennessee Park. The Express got a dominant performance from pitcher Cy Sneed to earn a 2-0 win in game one and got a clutch two-run double from Anibal Sierra to help grab game two, 8-4.
Game one of the doubleheader was a continuation of the suspended contest between the two teams on April 18. Nashville reliever Tim Dillard put forth a tremendous effort with seven innings in relief, but the offense went silent with only two hits.
Yordan Alvarez’s monster season continued when he hit a solo homer to give the Express a 1-0 lead. It was the 20th home run of the season for Alvarez who got a ball up into the wind and watched it sail over the wall in left-center.
Round Rock got a sacrifice fly from catcher Jamie Ritchie in the top of the fourth to make it a 2-0 game. From there, Dillard allowed only four baserunners the rest of the way. He was tagged with a tough loss after allowing two runs on six hits in seven innings. He struck out six and didn’t walk any batters.
Game two was a back-and-forth affair until the ninth inning when Round Rock plated five. Nashville jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the second thanks to back-to-back doubles by Andy Ibanez and Hunter Cole, and a run-scoring groundout by Adam Moore.
Round Rock evened the game at 2-2 in the third and then took a 3-2 lead in the fifth on an RBI double by Alvarez. Nashville came right back with a run of their own in the bottom of the inning to even the game at 3-3.
It stayed tied until Round Rock erupted for five runs in the top of the ninth inning.
Game five of the six-game series is scheduled for Tuesday night at First Tennessee Park. Right-hander Seth Maness (2-1, 4.50) starts for the Sounds. The Express have not announced a starter. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m.
Post-Game Notes
– With today’s 2-0 loss and 8-4 loss, the Sounds are now 20-32 on the season.
– Pitcher Tim Dillard struck out Kyle Tucker in the second inning of game one to set the all-time strikeouts record by a Nashville Sounds pitcher. It was Dillard’s 533rd strikeout as a member of the Sounds.
– Dillard threw 7.0 innings in relief – the longest outing by a Nashville reliever in 2019.
– Hunter Cole extended his season-long hitting streak to 11 games with an RBI double. He is hitting .512 (22-for-43) with 14 runs scored, 4 doubles, 4 home runs, 13 RBI and 4 walks during the streak.
The 2019 season is the 42nd in Nashville Sounds franchise history and first as the Triple-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers. Single-game tickets are available now by calling (615) 690-4487 or by visiting www.nashvillesounds.com.
