Express long balls defeat 51s

With the wind blowing out at more than 25 mph Sunday afternoon, balls were flying out of Cashman Field at a rapid rate -- for Round Rock.

The Express, in their first year as Triple-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers, clubbed five home runs, to none for the 51s, en route to a 7-4 victory over Las Vegas in front of a crowd of 7,340.

With the score tied at 4 in the eighth inning, Chad Tracy and Robinzon Diaz belted back-to-back homers off 51s reliever Wil Ledezma to give Round Rock (24-13) a 6-4 lead.

Las Vegas starter Luis Perez gave up three homers, including two to Brian Barden, who hit a solo shot to left in the first and a two-run blast to left-center in the sixth to give the Express a 4-0 lead.

"Ledezma didn't make a couple pitches and it's easy to get done in this ballpark," 51s manager Marty Brown said. "But I was glad the way the guys played. They played hard to battle back.

"Luis Perez didn't have his best stuff, but he battled. That's playing in Vegas."

Las Vegas (20-18), which has lost two of three after winning 10 of 12, rallied for two runs in the sixth and two in the seventh to tie it 4-all.

Mike McCoy, who went 3-for-5, singled to lead off the sixth, stole second and scored on an RBI double by Dewayne Wise to make it 4-1.

With two outs, Eric Thames drilled an RBI double off the left-field wall to make it 4-2. The hit, Thames' fourth double in two days, chased Express starter Neil Ramirez (3-1), who allowed two runs on six hits in 5 2/3 innings, struck out eight and walked one.

"Today was a weird day," said Thames, who ripped a walk-off RBI double off the right-field wall with two outs in the ninth inning Saturday night to lift Las Vegas to a 4-3 victory over Round Rock.

"A day game after a night game, it's always a little sluggish, and the guy they had on the bump was pretty good."

Wise, who went 3-for-5 with two doubles to raise his average to .357, hit an RBI single in the seventh to make the score 4-3. He scored on a groundout by Brett Lawrie to tie it 4-4.

Perez (2-1), who scattered six hits in eight scoreless innings in Tuesday's 7-0 win over Albuquerque, allowed four runs on eight hits in seven innings, struck out six and walked two.

Taylor Teagarden took Perez deep in the fourth to make it 2-0.

n NOTE -- 51s shortstop Jonathan Diaz was placed on the disabled list, retroactive to Saturday, and infielder Chris Woodward was activated from the DL. Diaz, 26, incurred concussionlike symptoms Friday night in a car accident. He and his girlfriend, whose name was unavailable, were passengers in a taxi that collided with another vehicle.

Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0354.