Chad Donato Works a Gem for Space Cowboys Wednesday Afternoon 

(OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla.) – Chad Donato followed the lead of Hunter Brown on Wednesday afternoon, delivering another fine outing from a Sugar Land Space Cowboys starting pitcher.

Donato struck out a season-high nine batters through 5 1/3 innings Wednesday afternoon against the Oklahoma City Dodgers.

The Space Cowboys went on to lose 9-8 in extra innings at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark.

Donato allowed just one run on four hits while striking out nine batters. It’s the second-most strikeouts in a single game from a Space Cowboys pitcher this season, trailing only Brown’s 10 strikeouts on May 26 in El Paso.

Corey Julks and Taylor Jones pushed the Space Cowboys out to a 2-0 lead in the first, with Julks delivering an RBI single and Jones a sacrifice fly. Jones and Jake Meyers continued their MLB Rehab Assignments Wednesday. Meyers started in center field and went 2-for-4 with a double and run scored. Jones started at first base and went 1-for-2 with the sac-fly.

The Space Cowboys led by as much as 6-1 in the afternoon contest. Alex De Goti drove in a pair of runs with an RBI ground out in the sixth and RBI single in the eighth.

Pedro León drove in a pair with a two-run double in the eighth inning. León ranks second in the Pacific Coast League with 15 doubles on the year and is tied for third with 25 extra-base hits.

Oklahoma City tied the game up in the ninth on a three-run double from Jake Lamb.

The Space Cowboys scored two runs in the 10th on an RBI groundout from Cesar Salazar and a passed ball.

Oklahoma City went on to win on a walk-off two-run double from Michael Busch.

The Space Cowboys finish out their brief road trip in Oklahoma City at 6:05 p.m. on Thursday. Shawn Dubin is set to get the start for the Space Cowboys.