Hops Drop Fifth Straight at Eugene
Published on June 20, 2021 under Northwest League (NWL)
Hillsboro Hops News Release
The Hillsboro Hops have had their hearts broken many times over the years by the Eugene Emeralds, particularly in the postseason, but this week in the South Willamette Valley has been one long, recurring nightmare.
After Hillsboro (16-23) scored an early run, the Emeralds (25-15) batted around in the bottom of the first inning, scoring five times on the way to a 10-5 High-A West League victory Saturday night at P.K. Park, their fifth consecutive win in the series.
With the win, Eugene maintains a half-game lead over Everett in the High-A West League standings as the Hops suffer their worst losing streak since their inaugural season in 2013.
Franklin Labour hit his fifth home run of the season, one of three on the night for the Emeralds, and drove in three runs with two runs scored. Armani Smith, promoted this week from low-A San Jose, went 3-for-4 with a double, three runs scored and an RBI for the San Francisco Giants' High-A West League affiliate.
The first inning Saturday was just the latest in a slew of big innings for the Ems this week. They responded to a 5-run Hillsboro third inning with back-to-back 4-run frames in a 10-8 loss Friday. The Hops scored five runs in the second inning Thursday only to see Eugene explode for nine runs in the sixth inning of a 10-9 loss. On Wednesday, the Hops led 4-3 until the Emeralds plated four runs in their final turn at bat to win 7-4.
Drey Jameson (0-4) suffered his worst outing as a pro, surrendering eight earned runs on eight hits and two of Eugene's three home runs in a 3 1/3 inning stint. Eugene's Aaron Phillips (2-3) survived a rocky first two innings in which he gave up four runs on five hits and three walks, facing the minimum number of batters over three scoreless innings to close out his five-inning start.
The Hops scored first on a two-out RBI single by Spencer Brickhouse in the first inning before the Emeralds' outburst in the bottom half of the frame. Hillsboro would respond quickly, closing the gap to 5-4 by plating three runs in the second inning as they batted around, but left the bases loaded when Axel Andueza drove a Phillips pitch to the right center field warning track.
Eugene made it 7-4 in the third inning on Labour's two-run bomb to right center on the first pitch he saw from Jameson. Ismael Munguia would launch a solo home run off the roof of the bullpen in right to make it 8-4 in the fourth. Will Wilson added his team-leading seventh home run of the season with a solo shot off Blake Workman in the sixth inning.
Trailing 9-4, Hops added their final run in the seventh on a two-out RBI single by Dominic Canzone, before stranding runners at second and third, leaving two more in scoring position in the eighth inning.
Buddy Kennedy extended his hit streak to nine games with a 2-for-5 night. Canzone was 2-for-4 with two runs batted in and a run scored and Tra Holmes also scored a pair of runs. The Hops stole seven bases in the game in seven attempts, but lost Ricky Martinez to an injury when he was picked off first base by Eugene catcher Rob Emery following an RBI single in the second inning.
The Hops will try to avoid the sweep when they send Kenny Hernandez to the hill for his second start of the series Sunday night. The game will air on Rip City Radio 620 AM with pregame coverage beginning at 4:50 p.m.
Northwest League Stories from June 20, 2021
- Big Inning Buoys C's to 7-1 Win - Vancouver Canadians
- Hancock and Everett on a Roll, 12-4 - Everett AquaSox
- Canadians Felled by Potent AquaSox - Vancouver Canadians
- Hops Drop Fifth Straight at Eugene - Hillsboro Hops
- Long Ball Launches Ems to Fifth Straight Win - Eugene Emeralds
- Tri-City Falls in Extra Innings - Tri-City Dust Devils
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