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WCL Yakima Valley Pippins

Pippins Take Battle of the Basin with Dominant Offense

June 18, 2024 - West Coast League (WCL)
Yakima Valley Pippins News Release


YAKIMA, Washington - With a dominant offensive performance, the Yakima Valley Pippins earned their ninth victory of the year and captured Game 3 of the Battle of the Basin series against the Walla Walla Sweets on Monday.

Former West Valley standout Drew Johnson hit his first home run of the year, a two-run blast in YV's five-run first inning, helping power the Pippins to a 9-2 win.

YV would never relinquish the lead.

Johnson's homer followed Casey Wayne's leadoff single in the first. After the homer, Julian Angulo and Rece Scheurman both drew walks, and then Spencer Shipman ripped a double for his fifth RBI of the season. Zack Blaszak, who made his first start of the 2024 summer season, reached on a bunt. This brought Scheurman home, and runners were at the corners for Adrian Hinojosa.

He hit a single to bring Shipman across for the fifth run of the frame. Yakima Valley finished with their highest-scoring first inning of the season and took a 5-0 lead into the second.

The Pipps added two more on the scoreboard off RBI doubles from Johnson and Angulo. Both started the day with perfect on-base percentages, as Yakima Valley led 7-0 into the middle of the game.

In the fifth frame, Walla Walla scored its first run of the night, but it would not end up igniting much of a comeback. The Pipps added two more runs from Wayne and Toussaint Bythewood to take the victory. The Sweets added one last run in the top of the eighth inning, before the final score read 9-2.

Adam Brooks got the start on the mound for Yakima Valley and went for his longest outing of the season. He finished with 5.0 innings pitched, and allowed just three hits and one earned run. His high strikeout numbers did not continue in this effort, but even with one punchout to his name, the Pippins defense still dominated this game.

It only took three total pitchers for Yakima Valley to finish game three. Carl Moland-Kovash relieved Brooks in the sixth inning and delivered two scoreless innings and allowed just one hit, before Keegan Edler came in to close the deal in the eighth. The Spokane Falls Community College and former East Valley-Yakima arm allowed just one run in 2.0 IP.

Out on the field, Yakima Valley added three double plays on defense. Blaszak was a part of two of them and displayed impressive arm talent all throughout the game. Shipman was involved in all three plays where Yakima Valley retired two Sweets players.

On offense, Johnson's homer puts the total at four home runs for the Pippins heading into game 16 of the season on Tuesday night. This ties the Pipps with four other teams in the WCL who have sent four pitches over the fence so far this season, with Wenatchee pacing the rest of the league with six bombs in 15 games.

Preston Allen was not able to extend his league-leading hit total heading on Monday. He still holds on to a one-hit lead over the next closest batter, as Yakima Valley and Walla Walla played the only league game of the night.

Tuesday night's game against the Wenatchee AppleSox is set for a 6:35 p.m. start at The Orchard. The Sox have not lost a game since June 11 against Bellingham, when Wenatchee dropped the game 6-1. Since that game against the Bells, the AppleSox are riding a five-game winning streak into Yakima.

They have scored more than 10 runs in each of their last two games, including 15 runs in their last league game against Kamloops on the road on Sunday. Wenatchee leads the WCL in hits, doubles, home runs and RBIs coming into the back half of this home stretch for the Pippins.

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