Ivey Stars In Return To Mound, But Space Cowboys Fall On Wednesday Night

A fifth-inning grand slam was enough for the Durham Bulls (3-2) to take down the Sugar Land Space Cowboys (2-3) 6-1 on Wednesday night at Durham Bulls Athletic Park.

On the mound for Sugar Land, RHP Tyler Ivey (L, 0-1) made his first appearance for the Space Cowboys in 1,060 days. He induced a 3-6-1 double play to face the minimum in the first and stranded runners on the corners with a strikeout of Tres Barrera in the second. Ivey once again stranded a runner in scoring position in the third when he got Bob Seymour to strike out swinging for the final out, and the right-hander spun a 1-2-3 fourth.

Welcome back Tyler Ivey! The righty covers first to turn a double play and throw a scoreless first inning in his return for the Space Cowboys! pic.twitter.com/6oGYdyRk0a

— Sugar Land Space Cowboys (@SLSpaceCowboys) April 2, 2025

Offensively, the Space Cowboys were held hitless against Durham RHP Connor Seabold through his 4.0 innings of work. Tommy Sacco Jr. collected the first hit of the night with a two-out single in the fifth off RHP Antonio Menendez (W, 1-0) but was left at first base on a flyout.

Ivey came back out for the fifth for Sugar Land, and after walking the first batter collected his second double play of the evening. Dru Baker hit a slow grounder to short that was bobbled for an error, extending the inning while ending Ivey’s evening. A single and a walk loaded the bases for Seymour, who snuck a grand slam inside of the left-field foul pole to put Durham up 4-0. The Bulls added on two more in the eighth on a two-RBI triple from Chandler Simpson.

For the Space Cowboys, Kenedy Corona provided the only run of the night, hitting an eighth inning solo homer to left center, his first home run of 2025.

It's gone for Corona!!! Kenedy Corona hits his first homer of the year to get Sugar Land on the board! #Ascend pic.twitter.com/nC69W11R3A

— Sugar Land Space Cowboys (@SLSpaceCowboys) April 3, 2025

NOTABLE:

• Tyler Ivey did not allow an earned run in his first start of 2025, throwing 4.2 innings with two hits, a run, three walks and three strikeouts. Ivey fired 75 pitches, 43 strikes, on Wednesday night.
• Sugar Land was limited to two hits for a second consecutive game.
• RHP Misael Tamarez hurled a scoreless inning of relief, stranding an inherited runner in the process. He has made two scoreless appearances to begin the year.
• INF Luis Guillorme walked in the first inning, extending his on-base streak to four game to begin the year.

The Space Cowboys continue their six-game series with the Bulls on Thursday night. LHP Colton Gordon (0-0, 1.80) is scheduled to start for Sugar Land opposite Durham LHP Ian Seymour (1-0, 0.00) for a 5:35 pm CT first pitch. The game can be seen live on the Bally Sports Live App or MLB.TV and can be heard anywhere at SLSpaceCowboys.com. Season Memberships for the 2025 Space Cowboy season, including Full and Partial Season membership plans, can be purchased online here.

ABOUT THE SUGAR LAND SPACE COWBOYS:

The Sugar Land Space Cowboys are the Triple-A affiliate of the Houston Astros and compete in the Pacific Coast League. They are the reigning Pacific Coast League Champions and Triple-A National Champions. They began play as the Astros’ Triple-A affiliate in 2021 and began playing under the Space Cowboys brand in 2022. The Space Cowboys play at Constellation Field, located at the corner of Hwy-6 and US-90 Alternate in Sugar Land, Texas. Follow the team on Twitter (@SLSpaceCowboys), Instagram (@slspacecowboys), Facebook (SLSpaceCowboys) and their official website (slspacecowboys.com). Fans can purchase full-season and partial-season plans for 2025 by visiting slspacecowboys.com/tickets.