Lin, RockHounds blank Missions 7-0, San Antonio drops five of six

Wei-En Lin set the tone before San Antonio could breathe. The 20-year-old left-hander retired the first nine Missions he faced, struck out eight over five scoreless innings and needed only 64 pitches to put Midland in control of a 7-0 win Sunday at Momentum Bank Ballpark.

The shutout was more than a single bad afternoon for the Missions. San Antonio finished the six-game set having dropped five of six, and the final numbers from this one told the story of why: six hits, 12 strikeouts, a 1-for-9 mark with runners in scoring position and eight men left on base. For a club that entered at 4-11, the series exposed how difficult it was to create pressure once an opposing starter established the strike zone.

Lin, the Athletics’ No. 4 prospect from Taoyuen, Taiwan, worked with a fast tempo and a short leash on San Antonio’s hopes. He improved to 1-0 with a 2.25 ERA, and his command gave Midland room to play from ahead all afternoon. Jared Dickey added the first big swing, launching his second homer of the week in the third inning to make it 1-0. Dickey entered the day batting .346 with two homers and nine RBIs, and his production helped turn a tight game into one the RockHounds could dictate.

Midland broke it open in the fifth with a five-run rally that sent 11 batters to the plate against three Missions pitchers. Leo De Vries and Cameron Leary delivered RBI singles, and the inning also included a fielder’s choice plus back-to-back bases-loaded walks. By then, San Antonio was already carrying the burden of Jagger Haynes’ outing, and the right-hander took the loss after allowing four earned runs in 4.1 innings. A balk and a wild pitch only added to the strain.

The RockHounds finished with seven runs on 12 hits, then let Micah Dallas, Jared Johnson, Domingo Robles and Shohei Tomioka complete the shutout. At 12-3, Midland left the series looking like a club that controlled every phase, while San Antonio left with a clearer problem to solve: the lineup has to respond faster, and the pitching staff has to survive longer, if the Missions want their young talent to keep the season from slipping away.