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On Wednesday, the Desert Dogs commuted to Mesa, Arizona, for a matinee with the Solar Sox in the second game of the annual Arizona Fall League.
Desert Dogs 7, Solar Sox 1
Austin Gomber (SP): 3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 5 K
Carson Kelly (DH): 0-5, 2 K
Paul DeJong (SS): 0-4, 2 K
Austin Gomber’s solid start and Andrew Stevenson’s big day at the dish fueled the Glendale Desert Dogs to a 7-1 victory over the Mesa Solar Sox on Wednesday afternoon in the second game of the AFL.
In his Fall League debut, the 22-year-old Gomber logged three scoreless innings, during which he allowed just three baserunners and whiffed five batters. Gomber, who made it to the Double-A level this year, has posted a high strikeout-to-walk ratio -- 292:85 -- in 291 regular season innings, so seeing five punchouts through three frames is a pretty typical Gomber outing.
Stevenson, a left-handed-hitting outfielder in the Nationals’ farm system, started his AFL career out in style by going 2-for-4 with a two-run home run and a total of five RBIs. It’s worth noting that Stevenson hits for high average, which makes up for his lack of power; in 188 career minor league games, Stevenson has hit just four long balls, implying that his home run in the opening inning of Wednesday’s contest was special from several perspectives.
Stevenson did a chunk of his damage off Solar Sox starter Duane Underwood. After being tagged for four earned runs and administering close to 50 pitches, Underwood, a 23-year-old hurler in the Cubs’ system, was removed from the game.
As for the Desert Dogs that belong to the Cardinals not named Austin Gomber, Wednesday was a pretty rough day. Carson Kelly, who served as the designated hitter, and Paul DeJong, who was assigned the shortstop duties, went a combined 0-for-9 and struck out four times.
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On Thursday, the Desert Dogs will host the Surprise Saguaros at Camelback Ranch in the third game of the AFL season. In the contest, which you can follow play-by-play here starting at 7:35 p.m. CT, the Desert Dogs will send Francis Martes to the mound. This season, the 20-year-old right-handed Martes pitched at the Astros’ Double-A level, where he went 9-6 with a 3.30 ERA and whiffed 131 across 125 1/3 innings. Taking the mound opposite of Martes is slated to be Stephen Gonsalves. While managing a 2.06 ERA and winning thirteen of eighteen decisions, Gonsalves struck out 155 batters in an even 140 innings of work at the Double-A level for the Twins.