Brent Honeywell inherited a 1-1 game in the fifth inning Friday night and never found a way out of the traffic. Four walks crowded the bases, Matt Gorski cleared two of them with the game’s biggest hit, and an El Paso comeback fell one swing short in a 4-3, seven-inning loss to the Oklahoma City Comets at Southwest University Park.
Alek Thomas opened the fifth by driving a line drive into the right-field corner for his second double of the game. Honeywell retired James Tibbs III, but Ryan Fitzgerald reached on a walk after a challenge overturned the original call. Walks to Hyeseong Kim and Chris Newell followed, with Kim’s pushing Thomas home with the go-ahead run.
Gorski supplied the damage that lasted. His drive carried over Bryce Johnson’s jump in left and reached the fence, bringing Kim and Newell around for a 4-1 Oklahoma City lead. Honeywell issued another walk before escaping the inning, finishing with three earned runs and four walks in his lone inning.
That collapse spoiled the work of Jhony Brito, who opened the game with two scoreless innings, two strikeouts and no walks. Evan Fitterer followed with two innings without an earned run, though Oklahoma City tied the game against him in the third when Nick Pratto’s fielding error allowed Zach Ehrhard to score.
El Paso had struck first behind Mason McCoy, whose night repeatedly gave the Chihuahuas a chance. McCoy singled to open the bottom of the first, advanced on a sacrifice bunt and a groundout, then scored when Nick Solak lined a two-out single into left field.
McCoy finished 3-for-3 with a walk, two runs and two stolen bases. He reached in all four of his plate appearances, including during both of El Paso’s late threats.
The Chihuahuas answered Honeywell’s inning immediately. Victor Duarte and McCoy walked in the fifth before Johnson sent a low changeup back through the middle, scoring Duarte. McCoy later came home on a passed ball, cutting the deficit to 4-3, and Solak reached on Kim’s throwing error to keep the inning alive.
El Paso still had runners at the corners when Christian Romero struck out Pratto. Romero earned the win after allowing two earned runs in five innings, striking out six and walking two.
Hunter Stratton kept the deficit at one with two scoreless innings. He worked around Zach Ehrhard’s leadoff single in the sixth with a lineout and an unassisted double play by Pratto, then stranded Newell’s double in the seventh. Stratton allowed no runs or walks and struck out one.
That gave El Paso one final opening. McCoy singled to center to start the seventh, Johnson walked and, after Carlos Rodríguez struck out, Garrett McDaniels intentionally walked Solak to load the bases.
The Chihuahuas could not push home the tying run. McDaniels struck out Pratto and retired Gage Workman on a fly ball to left, recording his third save by getting the final two outs with the bases loaded.
El Paso finished with seven hits but stranded its best chances in the fifth and seventh. Johnson went 1-for-2 with a walk and an RBI, while Solak went 1-for-3 with a walk and an RBI. Gorski’s two-run double separated the teams; he finished 2-for-4 with two RBIs.
For all the pressure McCoy created and all the ground the Chihuahuas recovered, Honeywell’s four-walk inning left them chasing one run they never found.