Agustin Murillo drives in five runs to lead Hermosillo Naranjeros to a 9-3 victory over Monterrey Sultanes

Agustín Murillo drove in five runs to lead the Hermosillo Naranjeros to a 9-3 victory over the Monterrey Sultanes in the first game of the series at Estadio Fernando Valenzuela.

Murillo went 3-for-3 with a walk and now has 11 RBIs, leading a 12-hit offensive performance by the Naranjeros (7-8).

Monterrey (5-8) continues to struggle on the road, with six consecutive losses in away games in the 2023-24 season of the Liga Mexicana del Pacífico.

Left-handed pitcher Juan Pablo Oramas (3-1) was the winning pitcher, working six innings, allowing only four hits and one run, with four strikeouts and one walk. Raúl Barrón, Aníbal Cervantes, and José Manuel López also pitched in relief.

The loss was credited to Cristian Castillo (0-2) who allowed six hits and five runs in one and two-thirds innings. Manager Vinicio Castilla used seven pitchers in total.

The team from the capital of Sonora scored two runs in the first inning, three runs in the second inning, and four runs in the sixth inning.

All nine players for the Naranjeros came to bat in both the second and sixth inning.

Hermosillo successfully executed three stolen bases, while the Sultanes committed three errors, totaling five mistakes in the last two games.

The defensive play of the night was made by Monterrey right fielder Brandon Villarreal, who threw out Alfonso Rivas at home to complete a double play.

All three runs for the Fantasmas Grises were driven in with home runs. Grant Witherspoon hit a solo home run in the fourth inning, and Fernando Pérez hit his first home run of the season in the seventh inning with Michael Toglia on base.

The series continues on Wednesday at 8:30 PM with Francisco Ríos (1-1) announced as the starting pitcher for the Monterrey team.

Sultanes 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 0 0 3 8 3

Naranjeros 2 3 0 0 0 4 0 0 X 9 12 1