9 to 5: What a Way to Lose a Ballgame
NWL Hillsboro Hops

9 to 5: What a Way to Lose a Ballgame

July 19, 2025 - Northwest League (NWL)
Hillsboro Hops News Release


EVERETT, WASH. - Dolly Parton would agree: as far as Hops fans are concerned, the last month of the season has been all takin' and no givin'.

Everett second baseman Charlie Pagliarini hit a short-porch grand slam with one out in the bottom of the ninth inning on Friday night at Everett Memorial Stadium, giving the Aquasox a 9-5 win over the Hops in the first game after the four-day all-star break.

It was Hillsboro's 22nd loss in their last 25 games. It's enough to drive you crazy if you let it.

The loss spoiled a spirited comeback by the Hops after an early deficit.

Northwest League ERA leader Daniel Eagen, coming off six no-hit innings in his last outing, got the start for Hillsboro and immediately ran into problems. Everett center fielder Cade Marlowe --- who has played 42 games in the major leagues over the past two seasons, and who is with Everett on injury rehab --- led off the bottom of the first with a single to left-center and promptly stole second. After Colt Emerson reached base on an error on Hops second baseman Jansel Luis, Freuddy Batista came to the plate.

Some homers at tiny Funko Field are cheapies. Batista's was not.

He smoked one way over the net in left field to put his team up 3-0.

Eagen settled in from there, and the first-year professional didn't allow another run until the fifth, when a leadoff walk came in to score on a base-hit by Marlowe. Left-hander Rocco Reid replaced Eagen, and Reid and righty Joangel Gonzalez combined for 2.1 scoreless innings of relief.

In the meantime, the Hops had hit the comeback trail. Angel Ortiz hit a short-porch homer of his own to right-center field leading off the fifth, the only run allowed by soft-tossing right-hander Taylor Dollard in his five innings of work.

First baseman Modeifi Marte's two-out, two-run double in the sixth off right-handed reliever Ben Hernandez cut the Hops' deficit to 4-3.

Catcher Kenny Castillo, facing another righty, Nataniel Garabitos, clouted a legit homer to left leading off the seventh to tie the game, 4-4. Junior Franco followed with a double into the right-field corner, and two batters later, Slade Caldwell singled him home. The Hops led 5-4.

Hillsboro lefty Carlos Rey, who had gotten the last out of the seventh, issued a leadoff walk to Emerson in the bottom of the eighth, and it would come back to haunt him. Emerson advanced to second on a Castillo passed ball, and to third on a ground-out. Pagliarini stepped in and, on an 0-2 pitch, muscled one into left field to tie the game.

The Hops went down in order in the top of the ninth against righty Hunter Cranton. Then, in the bottom of the ninth, Hillsboro reliever Edgar Isea got into hot water quickly. Anthony Donofrio, Everett's number-nine hitter, chopped one to the right side. Marte ill-advisedly cut in front of second baseman Jansel Luis, and neither could field it. Donofrio was at first with a single.

Isea, the flame-throwing righty whose potential is limitless (but whose command has been suspect), then walked the next two batters to load the bases with none out.

Isea struck out Batista to give the Hops some hope. Left-hander Jake Fitzgibbons, who had just joined the club from Low-A Visalia, was summoned from the bullpen to make his High-A debut against the left-handed hitting Pagliarini, with zero margin for error.

Fitzgibbons missed with his first two pitches, forcing him to groove one to Pagliarini. As soon as the ball left Pagliarini's bat, anyone watching knew that Everett had won the game, as it was plenty deep to score Donofrio from third. The only question was whether or not the ball would leave the yard. It did, just to the left of the 357-foot marker in straightaway center, and the celebration was on in front of a crowd of 2,351.

It was just the second time in the Hops' 12-year history, covering nearly 1,050 games, that they had lost via walkoff grand slam. (Leo Rojas of Salem-Keizer hit a game-ending slam against Hillsboro in 2016.)

Jansel Luis picked up where he left off prior to the all-star break, going 3-for-4. The Hops' infielder has hit in eight consecutive games, one shy of the team high for the year. Slade Caldwell, fresh off an All-Star Futures Game appearance in Atlanta last Saturday, went 2-for-5 with a double.

Hillsboro (3-19 in the second half, 36-52 overall) is 14.5 games behind first-place Eugene. Everett (7-15, 44-44) is 10.5 games out, but as the first-half champions, they have a playoff spot locked up.

Game two of the series is Saturday night at 7:05. Switch-pitcher Jurrangelo Cijntje, also coming off an All-Star Futures Game appearance, will get the start for Everett. Righty John West goes for Hillsboro. The pregame show begins at 6:50PM on Rip City Radio 620AM and www.RipCityRadio.com.

Check out the Hillsboro Hops Statistics



Northwest League Stories from July 19, 2025


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