Swanson's First Homer Not Enough for Mavs
August 21, 2015 - Northwest League (NWL1)
Hillsboro Hops News Release
HILLSBORO, OR - If only the Hops could get a first inning mulligan. Usually sterling starter Cody Reed didn't have his best stuff Thursday and couldn't escape the first frame. It was however a noteworthy day for Dansby Swanson, the first overall selection of the 2015 MLB Draft, who crushed his first ever professional home run to left field in the eighth. It provided the only three runs Hillsboro would score, as they fell 5-3 at home against the Boise Hawks.
It was evident early that Reed was uncomfortable on the mound. He couldn't find the feel for his fastball, something he always tries to establish early and build his secondary pitches off of. After striking out the first Boise (21-39, 7-15) hitter, Reed went walk-single-walk-walk-wild pitch-single-stolen base. That would be all Shelley Duncan would need to see, as Boise jumped ahead 4-0.
Ariel Hernandez entered for Hillsboro (35-25, 13-9) and gave his team a chance to jump back into the game. His slider was devastating Thursday night, and in his 3.2 innings, he struck out 9 batters.
Brody Greer threw the next three innings and was overpowering himself, recording 7 strikeouts in his frames.
A Brian Mundell solo home run in the third inning extended the Boise lead to 5-0.
The Hops offense was dormant for most of the night, managing just two hits through the first six frames. However, they reinserted themselves back into the game in the eighth inning, courtesy of Dansby Swanson.
B.J. Lopez led off with a single and Sergio Alcantara worked a walk to put two on in front of Swanson. The shortstop launched a shot into the Picnic Pavilion in left field - a monumental blast that went foul by just a few feet. Evidently he was seeing the ball well as Swanson absolutely laced a line-drive 3-run home run to left field to reduce the deficit to 5-3.
Trailing by two entering the final frame, a rally couldn't rise. Dylan Thompson threw a scoreless inning, working around a one-out walk to put Hillsboro away.
Same time tomorrow for the Hawks and Hops. Tune into pregame radio at 6:35 PM on Rip City Radio 620 AM and at www.ripcityradio.com.
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