Emeralds Win 5th Straight Game to Start 2026 Season
Published on April 9, 2026 under Northwest League (NWL)
Eugene Emeralds News Release
VANCOUVER, BC - The Ems defeated the Vancouver Canadians by a final score of 5-2 to move to a record of 5-0 to start the season. With Tri-City losing against Everett earlier today, the Ems are now the last unbeaten team in the Northwest League and have sole possession of 1st place in the standings.
Eugene got the scoring started in the 1st inning for the 2nd straight night courtesy of Gavin Kilen. Trevor Cohen started the game off with a single and picked up his 4th stolen base of the year. Gavin Kilen ripped a double to bring home Cohen and give the Ems the 1-0 lead.
In the 2nd inning they added onto their lead and for the 2nd straight night it was Kilen who drove home the 1st and 2nd runs of the game. He had runners on the corners with 1-out and hit one to deep center field that allowed Diego Cartaya plenty of time to come home and score to give the Ems the 2-0 lead through 2 innings.
The Ems added on another run in the 4th inning to extend their lead out to 3. Diego Cartaya crushed an absolute no-doubt home run to left field. It cleared the bullpen, the bleachers and the sign above the bleachers to give the Ems a 3-0 lead.
Things got quiet after that for the two teams until the 8th inning. In the home half of the 8th the C's were able to finally get on the board with a run. After a leadoff single and an error Alexis Hernandez hit a sac-fly RBI to center field to cut the deficit to just 2 runs for Vancouver heading into the 9th inning.
It was a wild top of the 9th for the Ems. Zander Darby led off with a single and Trevor Cohen reached on a fielder's choice. He ended up getting thrown at 2nd base after attempting his 2nd steal of the game. With 2 outs and nobody on, Kilen singled and Dakota Jordan hit his 3rd double of the game. The Ems had a ton of base runners in scoring position all game but couldn't find a hit in those spots other than the first inning, but Gutierrez changed that with a 2 strike single to extend the Ems lead out to 4.
In the bottom of the 9th the C's pushed home a run after the first 3 base runners reached but Gerelmi Maldonado was able to settle in and record 3 straight strikeouts to close out the game to extend the Ems winning streak to 5.
The Ems got another incredible pitching performance today from Tyler Switalski. He spun 4.1 innings on the mound and allowed just 2 hits, no runs, 1 walk and a career high 9 strikeouts from Switalski. He handed the keys over to Esmerlin Vinicio who qualified for the win after throwing 1.2 hitless innings with 3 strikeouts. Ryan Slater made his Ems debut tonight with 2 innings of 1 run ball to earn the hold before Maldonado closed it out.
Eugene has started this season by finding so many different ways to win. They'll now have a chance to clinch a series split tomorrow night which would set them up for a chance to get their 2nd straight series victory. Niko Mazza will be on the mound for the Ems with first pitch at 7:05 PM.
The Eugene Emeralds are the High-A affiliate of Major League Baseball's San Francisco Giants. The Eugene Emeralds are dedicated to providing the best in family entertainment and creating a fun, safe environment for everyone to enjoy watching a baseball game. For more information, please visit our website at www.EmeraldsBaseball.com or call the Emeralds front office at 541-342-5367.
Northwest League Stories from April 9, 2026
- C's Skid Continues to Open Season - Vancouver Canadians
- Frogs Deal Dust Devils First Loss Of 2026 - Everett AquaSox
- Emeralds Win 5th Straight Game to Start 2026 Season - Eugene Emeralds
- Hops Get First Win at New Ballpark in Pitchers' Duel - Hillsboro Hops
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
