Ems Bullpen Dominant in 4-2 Victory
August 4, 2024 - Northwest League (NWL)
Eugene Emeralds News Release
Everett, WA - The Ems bounced back after dropping 2 straight games in Everett to defeat the AquaSox by a final score of 4-2. The Ems bullpen threw 4.2 scoreless innings to close out the game. The Emeralds will now have a chance in the series finale to leave Everett with a series split if they can win tomorrow night's game.
The Emeralds got the scoring started in the top of the 3rd inning. Vaun Brown started off the inning with a single and Cole Foster singled to put runners on the corners with nobody out. Scott Bandura came up to bat when Foster took off attempting to steal 2nd. He was safe with his 2nd stolen base of the season and as soon as the catcher Freuddy Batista threw down to 2nd Vaun Brown took off and stole home on the double steal to score the first run of the night.
The next batter Quinn McDaniel hit an RBI-Single to score Foster and extend Eugene's lead to 2-0. McDaniel now has driven in 5 runs during this series in Everett. In the top of the 5th inning Eugene was able to add one more run to their total. Cole Foster reached base to start the inning after the frogs 2nd baseman Michael Arroyo committed a throwing error to first base. Bandura singled and McDaniel hit into a popup that sent Foster to 3rd base with 1-out. Bryce Eldridge hit a sac-fly RBI to score Foster and give the Ems the 3-0 advantage. Eldridge now has 7 RBI's in 5 games this week.
The Ems starter Esmerlin Vinicio was fantastic t0night in his 2nd start with Eugene. He pitched 4.1 innings and gave up 5 hits while allowing 2 runs. The most impressive part of Vinicio's performance was he only allowed 1 walk and struck out a season-high 6 batters tonight. When he exited the game in the 5th, he hadn't given up a run but had allowed 2 base runners to reach when Tyler Vogel came into the game. Vogel was back in action for Eugene for the first time since April 25th. He had suffered an injury that placed him on the IL but he was able to rehab and work his way back to Eugene this week.
Vogel gave up a 2-out bases loaded single to Lazaro Montes that scored 2 runs. The 2 runners that scored were charged to Vinicio, since he allowed the runners to reach base. Regardless of how the final statline looked, Vinicio was dominant in his 1st road start of the season.
The only other run of the night came in the top of the 7th inning. With 2-outs and nobody on, Charlie Szykowny ripped a solo home run to extend the Ems lead to 4-2. Szykowny has been incredible this week, as he has now tallied 9 hits and reached base safely a total of 14 times in 5 games.
The Ems bullpen was dominant tonight, as Vogel earned his 3rd victory of the season. It was fantastic to see Vogel earn the victory in his first game back. Cody Tucker pitched 1.1 innings and didn't allow a hit or a run and struck out 1 batter. Hunter Dula came into the game with 1-out in the bottom of the 8th and the game-tying run on first base, but Dula struck out consecutive batters to send the game to the 9th.
In the bottom of the 9th Dula made quick work of the Everett lineup. He sent them down 1-2-3 and struck out Michael Arroyo to end the game. It was a 5 out save for Dula, and he didn't allow a single baserunner to reach while also striking out 3 batters. It was Dula's 2nd save of the season.
The Ems will now look to close out their final roadtrip in Everett with a win tomorrow. Eugene is currently 6 games out of a playoff spot, trailing the Vancouver Canadians. It's an important stretch for the Ems as the 2nd half has only 31 games remaining. Eugene will be in Vancouver next week for a 6-game road trip.
First pitch in the series finale tomorrow is at 4:05 P.M. Dylan Carmouche will be making his Emeralds debut. Carmouche was a 2023 15th round draft selection out of the University of Tulane. The Ems will look to close things down in Everett with a victory.
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Northwest League Stories from August 4, 2024
- Late Inning Rally Sinks AquaSox - Everett AquaSox
- Late Inning Rally Pushes Eugene to Victory - Eugene Emeralds
- Beautiful Day, Ugly Loss for C's Sunday - Vancouver Canadians
- Hill Homers Twice in Spokane's 9-3 Victory - Spokane Indians
- Tri-City Blanked in British Columbia - Tri-City Dust Devils
- Two Runs on Saturday Not Enough - Everett AquaSox
- Ems Bullpen Dominant in 4-2 Victory - Eugene Emeralds
- Rogers Shines in Shutout Win - Vancouver Canadians
- Indians Bounce Back with 9-3 Win Over Hops - Spokane Indians
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