Oklahoma City Comets pull off a rare 7-5-3 double play to end the seventh

Sunday’s Triple-A game between the Oklahoma City Comets and the Round Rock Express ended with an improbable defensive highlight: a 7-5-3 double play that started with a routine-looking fly and finished with a throw that caught a runner off the bag. With one out in the seventh, Comets first-baser Alejandro Osuna lifted a ball into shallow left field. Oklahoma City outfielder Jack Suwinski slid for the catch, but the ball popped loose and floated up into the grass. Third baseman Noah Miller had raced into the outfield on the play, settled under the ball at the right moment, and then made a throw from the foul line all the way to first base to double off catcher Jose Herrera for the inning’s final out.

The official notation matters here because it reflects how unusual the play was. Rather than the more common double-play routes that keep fielders in their usual lanes, this one required outfield coverage and an infielder’s willingness to take ownership of a drifting, low-percentage moment. Suwinski’s initial attempt and Miller’s read of where the ball would go next set up a finish that depended on both luck and timing, with Miller converting the scramble into a catch and then delivering a throw accurate enough to end the inning.

That defensive sequence came in the same game the Comets ultimately won 7-3 at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark on June 7. Oklahoma City struck early with a pair of runs in the first inning, then added a run in the second. The Express answered, but the Comets pushed the advantage into the fifth and sixth innings before Round Rock received a solo homer to open the seventh. In other words, as the game shifted into its most urgent stretch, Oklahoma City got the kind of clean, two-out escape that prevents late innings from turning into rallies.

For a Triple-A club, plays like this also do more than fill highlights. The Comets are the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Triple-A affiliate, and the organization has said it remains tied to the Dodgers through at least 2030. That pipeline environment puts a premium on repeatable fundamentals, including tracking fly balls that fall between roles, communicating quickly when coverage overlaps, and turning transition defense into a throw that actually completes the job.

The same Sunday game featured other reminders of how Oklahoma City functions as a development stop. The Comets’ recap noted Major League rehab work by Dodgers utilityman Tommy Edman, who played seven innings at second base, and a scoreless inning by Dodgers right-hander Evan Phillips. On the other side, Round Rock’s lineup got enough traction to threaten, but Oklahoma City’s seventh-inning double play tightened the game at the exact moment it could have unraveled.

Even with the special teams work up the middle and the outfield hustle, the Comets still had the broader context of a series that didn’t fully swing their way. The club said it closed out the home series with the win, but still lost the series to Round Rock 4-2. Still, the victory marked Oklahoma City’s seventh straight day-game win and extended a run of success in series finales. In a sport built on innings and leverage, that kind of consistency is often earned by making the rare, high-stress outs when the game tightens.

Looking ahead, the Comets are scheduled to travel for a six-game interleague set against the Charlotte Knights beginning Tuesday, with first pitch listed for 5:05 p.m. CT. If Oklahoma City keeps stacking defensive reps like the 7-5-3 double play, the next stretch may hinge less on highlight plays and more on whether the same decision-making shows up when the ball is routine, not rare.