Baseball Recap: Melrose Wins Going Away Against Tucumcari

Melrose made up a huge gap compared to their last game against Tucumcari, but they still couldn't quite topple them. The Buffaloes blew past the Rattlers 17-3 on Thursday. Considering the Buffaloes have won three matches by more than 13 runs this season, Thursday's blowout was nothing new.

Josiah Roybal

Batters Struck Out (Career)

04/03/25 vs Tucumcari	9
03/27/25 vs Dora	8
04/05/24 vs Tularosa	5
03/30/24 vs Capitan	5
04/19/24 vs Cimarron	4

Josiah Roybal was a major factor while hitting and pitching. He struck out nine batters over five innings while giving up just one earned (and two unearned) runs off four hits (and only one walk). Those nine strikeouts gave him a new career-high. He was also stellar in the batter's box, scoring three runs and stealing a base while going 4-for-4. He is becoming a predictor of Melrose's success: when he posts at least two runs the team is 4-1 (and 0-3 when he doesn't).

In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Cy Draper, who scored three runs while going 3-for-3. That's the most hits he has posted since back in April of 2024. Jaxon Odom also deserves some recognition as he snagged his first stolen base of the season.

Melrose was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .519. That was just more of the same: they've now posted a batting average of .344 or higher in six consecutive games.

Melrose is on a roll lately: they've won three of their last four contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 4-4 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 16.3 runs over those games. As for Tucumcari, they moved to 3-4 with that defeat, which also ended their three-game winning streak.

Both teams are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. Melrose will challenge Floyd at 2:00 p.m. on Monday. The Broncos have struggled to contain batters this season (they've allowed 16.5 runs per game on average), something the Buffaloes will no doubt try to take advantage of. As for Tucumcari, they will be playing at home against Raton at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday. The Rattlers are facing the Tigers at the right time seeing as the Tigers are stuck on a five-game losing streak.