Misiewicz’s effort goes for naught
Anthony Misiewicz recorded the Texas League’s first complete game of the season Tuesday night, and all the Arkansas Travelers’ left-hander got to show for it was a loss.
Four Frisco pitchers limited Arkansas to three hits, and the RoughRiders posted their second shutout in as many nights in a 1-0 victory over the Travelers in front of an announced crowd of 2,314 fans at Dickey-Stephens Park in North Little Rock.
Frisco starter Pedro Payano (2-0) struck out eight of the first nine batters he faced, and Andretty Cordero drove in the game’s only run with a first-inning single to extend the RoughRiders’ winning streak to four games.
Making his fourth start of the season, Misiewicz (02) threw 109 pitches, 78 for strikes. He gave up 6 hits, walked none and struck out 9, including all 3 batters he faced in the ninth inning.
“He did a phenomenal job,” Travs Manager Mitch Canham said of Misiewicz. “Throwing a CG [complete game] doesn’t come often. He started off great, and just continued to get better and better.”
It was the second night in a row the Travelers squandered a quality start. Ricardo Sanchez went 62/3 innings with six strikeouts on Monday, giving up one run in a 4-0 loss to the RoughRiders. It was the first time this season the Travelers have suffered consecutive losses.
“We’ve faced a couple of really good starters,” Frisco Manager Joe Mikulik said. “[Misiewicz and Sanchez] were great with their fastballs, and they’ve mixed in their breaking balls. It’s been tough for us, a challenge for us, but we’ve done enough to win games.”
Despite the loss, Misiewicz lowered his ERA from 2.40 to 1.88.
“Even when he hasn’t quite had his best stuff, he’s been able to make great adjustments,” Canham said. “He’s learned how to get back into a rhythm with what he has on that day.”
Misiewicz used only four pitches to retire the game’s first two batters, but Frisco’s Juremi Profar doubled to right field and scored on Cordero’s line-drive single. The RoughRiders had only one more baserunner to advance past second base.
Payano was dominate, giving up no hits in his five innings. He struck out nine, walked two and hit a batter. He left after throwing 89 pitches, 54 of them for strikes. With one out in the fifth inning, Jordan Cowan and Donnie Walton reached on a walk and hit batter, but back-to-back fielder’s choice groundballs ended the Travelers’ threat.
The best hit ball the Travelers could muster off Payano was Dom Thompson-Williams’ line drive that center fielder Eliezer Alvarez chased down and caught in front of the wall.
“He had command of his fastball from the get-go,” Mikulik said of Payano. “His fastball command sets everything else up. Everything out of his hand looked like a strike.”
Arkansas did not collect its first hit until Jake Fraley’s one-out single in the sixth off of reliever Blake Bass, who went two innings.
Emmanuel Clase pitched a perfect eighth. Jairo Beras gave up a bloop double to Fraley to start the ninth, but two strikeouts and a groundball ended the inning.
“We had a great chance right there,” Canham said of the Travelers’ ninth inning. “All it takes is one spark at any point.”