Hops Edge Devils as Tawa Continues RBI Tear
June 1, 2022 - Northwest League (NWL)
Hillsboro Hops News Release
Tim Tawa has been Hillsboro's most consistent hitter this season and a fixture in the lineup in center field or at second base. But going into the first game at Everett two weeks ago, the second-year pro from West Linn had five home runs and just six runs batted in.
The RBI drought is officially over. Tawa delivered a pair of two-out RBI hits, driving in three of the Hops' four runs, as Hillsboro (23-21) took advantage of two costly Tri-City errors in a 4-3 win over the Dust Devils (19-23) at Gesa Stadium Tuesday night.
The Hops' leader in OPS, extra-base hits and runs scored this season, Tawa has now taken over the RBI lead with 12 in the last week alone to give him 20 on the season, just outside the league's top ten. Caleb Roberts went 2-for-4 with a double and two runs scored for Hillsboro as the Hops picked up a game in the standings and trail league-leading Spokane by a single game.
All four Hillsboro runs were unearned as lefthander Andy Seminaris (2-2) suffered only his second loss of the season, despite dropping his earned run average to 0.98 with eight strikeouts and two walks in six innings. Andrew Saalfrank (2-1) earned the win in relief and Liu Fuenmayor survived the Hops' fourth error of the game to preserve a one-run lead, fanning Kyle Kasser and Gabe Matthews--Tri-City's number three and four hitters--back-to-back to close out the game in the ninth.
Hillsboro got on the board in the third inning when Channy Ortiz walked with one out, advanced on a ground out and scored on second baseman Jose Guzman's throwing error, which sent Roberts to second base. Tawa followed with a base hit to right field to plate Roberts, giving Hillsboro a 2-0 lead.
Ortiz reached on a Matthews error with one out in the fifth, then advanced to third on Roberts' bloop double down the left field line. Tawa followed with a hard ground ball under the glove of shortstop Osmy Gregorio into left field for a two-RBI single.
Hops' starting pitcher Jamieson Hill had some long at bats that raised his pitch count and with the Hops switching to a five-man rotation this week, meaning Jamieson will also pitch Sunday, he was lifted from the game with one out in the fifth inning, having allowed one unearned run on three hits with three strikeouts and two bases on balls. Tri-City took advantage of two Hillsboro infield errors in the fifth to plate a pair of unearned runs, then scored the game's only earned run on a two-out RBI single by Gregorio in the seventh off Jose Alcantara, who fanned five and walked one over his two innings.
Saalfrank pitched out of a bases-loaded jam in the sixth after two walks and an error, getting Guzman to ground out to Vukovich, who beat Mike Peabody in a race to the bag at third for the inning-ending force.
In the ninth, D'Shawn Knowles reached after his ground ball caromed off Ryan Bliss' glove, but Fuenmayor buckled down to fan Kasser, who entered the game with a strikeout rate of below 6%, far and a way the best in the league. Matthews went down swinging at a slider to end the game as Fuenmayor bounced back from Friday's blown save against Vancouver to notch his first save of the season.
Gregorio finished with two hits for Tri-City, which lost for the fourth consecutive time.
Game two of the series is at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday night with pregame coverage on Rip City Radio 620 AM beginning at 6:15 p.m.
Northwest League Stories from June 1, 2022
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- Hillsboro Hops Past Tri-City - Tri-City Dust Devils
- Big Inning Proves to be Costly for Everett - Everett AquaSox
- Mariners Assign Reliever Ken Giles to Everett - Everett AquaSox
- Don't Miss Any of the Fun at Funko Field - Everett AquaSox
- Join Us for Washington Wednesday - Tri-City Dust Devils
- Hops Edge Devils as Tawa Continues RBI Tear - Hillsboro Hops
- Early Offense, Strong 'Pen Help C's Beat Indians - Vancouver Canadians
- Emeralds Split Games against AquaSox - Eugene Emeralds
- Juan Mercedes Throws Seven Inning No Hitter - Everett AquaSox
- Hops Take Close Contest from Dust Devils - Tri-City Dust Devils
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