The Albuquerque Isotopes opened the home portion of the schedule Tuesday night with a 7-3 win over the Las Vegas 51s. It's the third straight year that the Isotopes have opened the home half of their schedule with a victory.
In place of the injured Yency Almonte, David Holmberg got the start on the mound, his first appearance in the Rockies organization and his first day officially on the Isotopes roster.
Las Vegas opened the scoring right away with three runs in the top of the first inning, before Holmberg was able to settle in. His new manager, Glenallen Hill, didn’t think that was due as much to the 51s bats as it was an internal struggle.
“I think he got to himself, it took him a while to settle down and have his stuff play in the strike zone,” Hill said. “Once he found the strike zone, we saw what he is able to do.”
After that first inning, he was able to settle in and hold the Las Vegas bats in check for the rest of his outing, which lasted four innings due to a pitch count. In total, he allowed four hits, three runs, walked two and struckout one.
The Isotopes got on the board for the first time in the third inning, as Anthony Bemboom led off with a double and advanced to third on a double from shortstop Daniel Castro, before coming around to score on a ground ball out to first base from Raimel Tapia. Drew Weeks was the next man up and struck out to strand Castro at third.
The Isotopes added one more in the fifth inning, as Castro came around to score on a Tapia single and bring the Isotopes within one run heading into the sixth.
Jordan Patterson lead off the sixth for the ‘Topes with a single and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Noel Cuevas followed Patterson with another single, before Derrik Gibson stepped up to the plate. Gibson launched a 3-run home run into the Isotopes dugout in left field to give Albuquerque its first lead of the night, 5-3.
The Isotopes added their sixth and seventh runs later in the inning, as third baseman Josh Fuentes and Castro came around to score on a pinch hit double from Tom Murphy, who was thrown out trying to slide into third.
Behind Holmberg, the Isotopes’ bullpen was too much for the 51s to overcome. The four relievers used by Albuquerque allowed only two hits and two walks, striking out seven en route to the victory.
Shane Broyles, who followed Holmberg, pitched two scoreless innings, striking out three, and got credit for the win. Albuquerque native Austin House closed out the game for Albuquerque, pitching a scoreless ninth inning.
A crowd of 9,104 was on hand for the victory, and created a favorable atmosphere for the home team, something that Hill, in his fourth season managing the Isotopes, was not surprised by.
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“It’s what I expected. The fans here love baseball, they love baseball, they always come out here and support the Isotopes. It’s how it’s supposed to be,” Hill said.
The Isotopes and 51s will square off again Wednesday night, with first pitch scheduled for 6:35.
Cameron Goeldner is a sports beat reporter and photographer for the Daily Lobo. He primarily covers men’s soccer and softball, but also contributes content for baseball, basketball, football and track and field. He can be contacted at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @goeldfinger.
