Sheffield’s gem shines in Travs’ victory

TRAVELERS 6, NATURALS 1

Tuesday night’s Texas League North game between the Arkansas Travelers and the Northwest Arkansas Naturals played true to form at Dickey-Stephens Park.

The Travelers, the firsthalf champion who possess the league’s best overall record, defeated the Naturals 6-1 in front of 2,674 fans on a steamy night in North Little Rock.

The Travelers lead the season series 16-7 with another game remaining tonight in North Little Rock. The teams will meet four more times later this month at Dickey-Stephens Park.

The Travs got six scoreless innings from left-hander Justus Sheffield (5-2), who was lifted after 73 pitches with Arkansas leading 4-0.

Arkansas lowered its league-leading team ERA to 2.99, a number that has not been matched by a Texas League pitching staff in 27 years.

“To be honest, every time we go out there, we feel like we’re not going to give up many runs,” first baseman Evan White said. “It’s definitely a comforting thing from the defensive and offensive side.”

Northwest Arkansas, the team with the league’s worst record, stole two bases to increase its season total to 180, 82 more than any other Texas League team.

The stolen bases came in the top of the fourth inning of a 0-0 game after DJ Burt singled to right off Sheffield.

Burt, who has 23 stolen bases, advanced to second when Sheffield picked Burt off first, but he outran the throw from White to second base.

Burt stole third without a throw on the next pitch, but that was as far as he would go.

“That’s what they do,” Arkansas catcher Joseph Odom said. “We focus on the hitters. They can’t steal home.”

Sheffield, who has not allowed more than 2 runs in any of his 10 starts with the Travelers, struck out Gabriel Cancel on a 3-2 pitch and got Emmanuel Rivera to ground out to shortstop Utah Jones to end the threat in the fourth. Sheffield allowed four hits, walked none and struck out six.

“Aw man, he was lights out,” Odom said.

Pitching coach Pete Woodworth said the plan was to shorten Sheffield’s outing because he has gone deep so often in recent starts.

“Really sharp,” Woodworth said. “Especially against a 100% right-handed lineup. That’s really tough to do.”

Sheffield said he didn’t know he would be lifted after six innings, but he said he understood the logic.

“It’s kind of late in the year, so you’ll take those,” said Sheffield, who arrived in Arkansas in June after going 2-6 with a 6.87 ERA at Class AAA Tacoma. “I’ve never doubted myself when people doubt me. Confidence has always been through the roof. I’ve always wanted to compete every time I take the mound. Just a few things in my delivery I ironed out and kept the ball rolling.”

Arkansas got all the runs it needed in the bottom of the fourth, scoring three times on three walks, a passed ball, an infield RBI single by Luis Liberato and an RBI single to right by Logan Taylor off Northwest Arkansas starter Dan Tillo.

Tillo (0-1) yielded 4 runs on 4 hits while walking 5 in 4 innings.

Northwest Arkansas scored in the top of the eighth on an RBI triple by Blake Perkins off Jake Haberer, the third of four Travelers pitchers.

“To be honest, every time we go out there, we feel like we’re not going to give up many runs.”

Arkansas Travelers first baseman Evan White