Hops Walk Tightrope, Beat Vancouver 3-2 in 11
July 1, 2015 - Northwest League (NWL1)
Hillsboro Hops News Release
VANCOUVER, B.C. --- It wasn't pretty. But it was enough.
Hillsboro pitching issued 10 walks on Tuesday in Vancouver (two intentional), but only one of the walks scored. Vancouver left 15 men on base --- 10 in scoring position --- and Hillsboro escaped with a 3-2 win in 11 innings. The Hops won the final two games of the series after dropping the first three.
Luis Veras led off the top of the 11th for Hillsboro by singling up the middle off Vancouver lefty Michael Kraft. Trevor Mitsui drew a five-pitch walk, and Andrew Case came out of the bullpen to face the Hops' Dane McFarland. The Canadians turned McFarland's bunt into a force-out at third base, but Zach Nehrir followed with a single to right-center to load the bases.
Nate Robertson hit a high chopper to third, and Vancouver had to settle for a force-out at third base as Mitsui scored the go-ahead run.
Ariel Hernandez came out of the Hops' pen to protect the 3-2 lead in the bottom of the 11th, looking to make amends for his blown save on Saturday. He immediately walked Vancouver leadoff man J.C. Cardenas --- the fourth leadoff walk drawn by Cardenas in the game. Hernandez then induced a popout off the bat of Gunnar Heidt, and a come-backer off the bat of Lane Thomas for what should have been a game-ending double play. Hernandez, though, was unsure which middle infielder was covering second, and he threw the ball away. A subsequent wild pitch put the tying run on third and the winning run on second with one out.
Canadians cleanup hitter Juan Kelly worked the count to 3-1, took a strike, and fouled off two 97-MPH fastballs. Hernandez then broke off a wicked 3-2 slider, freezing Kelly for strike three. Two outs.
Designated hitter James Lynch then sent a 1-1 pitch to deep right-center, but Hops right fielder Zach Nehrir caught it for the final out of the game.
Hillsboro had struck first in the top of the second inning. Mitsui and McFarland hit back-to-back doubles to make it 1-0 Hops. Gerard Hernandez singled to put runners and the corners with nobody out, and when Robertson grounded into a 1-6-3 double play, Hillsboro led 2-0.
Joe Donino --- making a spot start because the scheduled Hops' starter, Cody Reed, lacked the proper paperwork to get into Canada --- threw four shutout innings. Two walks and a single loaded the bases for Vancouver in the third, but Donino struck out Gabriel Cenas and Kevin Garcia to end the threat.
Will Landsheft tossed a scoreless fifth for Hillsboro, working around a single and a walk, but Vancouver tied the game against Kevin Simmons in the sixth. Juan Tejada's sacrifice fly scored Austin Davis, who had drawn a one-out walk. Cardenas' double to right scored Sean Hurley to tie the game 2-2, but Cardenas was thrown out by relay man Fernery Ozuna trying to stretch it into a triple. The pair of runs broke a streak of 15 consecutive scoreless innings for Hops pitching.
After Simmons worked a scoreless seventh, the Hops' Brody Greer worked two shutout innings, despite a single and three walks (one intentional). Lawrence Pardo (1-0) worked a scoreless tenth to earn the win.
Hillsboro (7-6) remains in a first-place tie in the South Division with Eugene, which comes to Ron Tonkin Field in Hillsboro on Wednesday night at 7:05 to open a three-game series. Boise and Salem-Keizer are two games out.
Northwest League Stories from July 1, 2015
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- 2015 All-Star Game Tickets Available for Pick up Today - Spokane Indians
- Hops Walk Tightrope, Beat Vancouver 3-2 in 11 - Hillsboro Hops
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- Emeralds Wear Throwbacks to Honor Civic Stadium, Beat Tri-City 9-4 - Eugene Emeralds
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