Spokane Squeezes Past Tri-City to Take Series
June 25, 2023 - Northwest League (NWL)
Tri-City Dust Devils News Release
Tri-City Dust Devils shortstop Werner Blakely celebrates with teammates
(Tri-City Dust Devils, Credit: James Snook/Spokane Indians)
A successful 7th inning squeeze play proved the difference Sunday afternoon for the Spokane Indians (3-0 2H, 36-32), who grabbed a 4-3 win over the Tri-City Dust Devils (0-3 2H, 34-35) at Avista Stadium to take the series four games to two.
The squeeze bunt, laid down by Spokane SS Nic Kent with one out in the bottom of the 7th, scored CF Jordan Beck, who walked, stole second and moved to third on a groundout to get in position. Tri-City reliever Jared Southard (0-1) was left with no play but to go to first for the out, with the only baserunner he allowed scoring the run that proved to be the difference.
Moments before, the Dust Devils had tied the game with two runs in the top of the 7th. C Gustavo Campero led off the inning with a single and stole second before moving to third on a groundout. CF Joe Stewart then came up with two out and the first pitch from Indians reliever Brayan Castillo (2-4) went to the backstop for a wild pitch, with Campero scoring to make it a 3-2 game. Stewart and 2B Adrian Placencia then walked, allowing 1B Matt Coutney a two-out opportunity. The lefty hitter seized it, driving a grounder through the right side for an RBI single to score Stewart and tie the game at 3-3.
Early on, it seemed Sunday's contest would be a pitcher's duel, with southpaws Sammy Natera, Jr. and Colten Schmidt pitching well for their respective teams. Natera, Jr., blazed through the bottom of the 1st inning, striking out the side, and faced no major threats until the bottom of the 4th. There he faced a bases-loaded, one-out jam via two walks and a single but Natera, Jr., induced a 6-4-3 double play to get keep trouble at bay and protect Tri-City's 1-0 lead through four innings.
Spokane made sure the trouble found the Dust Devils in the 5th. RF Robby Martin, Jr. led off the inning with a home run to right field, tying the game at 1-1. A walk to 2B Braiden Ward proved costly later in the frame, after he stole second and scored on a double to left by DH Ronaiker Palma to give the Indians a 2-1 advantage. That left Schmidt in line to win after going five innings, with the lefty giving up only one run on an RBI double down the right field line by Tri-City DH Werner Blakely in the 2nd inning. The two-bagger scored LF Alexander Ramirez, who singled to start the frame.
Flamethrower Angel Chivilli pitched the final two innings for Spokane, giving up an infield single to 3B Osmy Gregorio in the 9th inning. Placencia, who had homered off Chivilli as part of the 9th inning rally by the Dust Devils on June 4, came up again but the righty struck him out to end the game, giving Chivilli his eighth save.
At the plate Tri-City had nine hits, including multi-hit games from Joe Stewart (2-3, BB, R) and Alexander Ramirez (2-4, 2B, R). Sammy Natera, Jr., ended up going 4.1 innings on the mound, striking out four and getting a no-decision.
The Dust Devils will take two days off at home, beginning a six-game series with the Hillsboro Hops at 7:05 p.m. Wednesday night at Gesa Stadium. It'll be 80s Night at the ballpark, with fans encouraged to dress accordingly and enjoy a rad and totally tubular night of baseball and 80s music. Broadcast coverage will begin with the pregame show at 6:45 p.m. both here and at the MiLB First Pitch app.
Gates will open at 6:05 p.m. with game times staying at 7:05 p.m. throughout the series, which culminates with patriotic postgame fireworks presented by UScellular to celebrate Independence Day. Tickets for the series, including Marvel's Defenders of the Diamond Night on Friday, June 30, are on sale now with special ticket rates available for groups of 20 or more. For more information on Dust Devils single game, season, mini-plan (11, 22, 33) and group tickets, visit dustdevilsbaseball.com, call the team office at (509) 544-8789, or visit the team office (10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on game nights, or Monday-Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. otherwise).
Images from this story
 Tri-City Dust Devils shortstop Werner Blakely celebrates with teammates (James Snook/Spokane Indians) |
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