Tribe Tattoos Hops, Ending Three-Game Win Streak
June 7, 2025 - Northwest League (NWL)
Hillsboro Hops News Release
SPOKANE VALLEY, Wash. -- The Hillsboro Hops continued to clobber the baseball up and down the lineup Saturday night, but Spokane was up to the challenge and how!
The Indians (28-28) surged ahead with six runs in the fourth inning and added four more in the fifth on the way to a 15-8 win over Hillsboro (30-26) at Avista Stadium.
The win trimmed Hillsboro's lead in the Northwest League down to a game and a half over the Everett AquaSox, who defeated Eugene for the fourth time in five games. Spokane remains in a tie for third place with Vancouver, two games back of Hillsboro.
The Hops took a 2-1 lead into the fourth inning, but the Tribe batted around against starting pitcher Lorenzo Encarnacion (3-3), who surrendered a season-high seven runs on six hits in his High-A debut. The 23-year-old Dominican righthander struck out six, walked four and hit one.
Spokane got a pair of three-run homers from Aidan Longwell and Braylen Wimmer. Longwell's shot off the top of the right field foul pole capped a six-run fourth. Wimmer's bomb to right came off reliever Liam Norris in the seventh inning with the Indians already comfortably in front.
The 15 runs matched a season-high for a Hops opponent (Vancouver twice). The eight Hillsboro runs were the second-most in a losing cause this year.
Hillsboro had chances to put big numbers on the board in the early innings against Tribe starter Albert Pacheco (5-3), but despite loading the bases twice with nobody out, they had to settle for one run in both the second and fourth innings, scoring on a double play grounder and a sacrifice fly.
The first five Indinans reached base against Encarnacion in the fourth. A bunt single by Skyler Messinger plated the tying run, then Jesus Bugarin drove in two more two batters later with a single past the diving second baseman Jean Walters. Two outs later, Longwell, in only his second game back after a short stint on the IL, hit his team-leading eighth home run of the season to make it 7-2 Indians.
The Hops came back with two runs in the fifth, leading off the inning with singles by Ryan Waldschmidt and Kenny Castillo. One out later, Ben McLaughlin hit an RBI ground rule double into the left field corner. Drew Jones hit a grounder that pulled first baseman Charlie Condon off the bag. Pacheco failed to cover as Castillo raced home to make it a 7-4 Spokane lead. With Angel Ortiz at the plate, Jones took off for second. Ortiz hit a hot smash that ricocheted off Jones for an automatic out before Kevin Sim flied out to end the inning.
The Indians nearly batted around again in the fifth inning, collecting five hits and four runs against beleaguered reliever Alexis Liebano, who had retired all five batters to face him in Tuesday's series opener.
Leading 11-4 after six innings, Spokane tacked on one more run off Liebano in the sixth before Wimmer's seventh inning bomb, also his eighth homer.
The Hops got a pair of taters late from Ryan Waldschmidt and McLaughlin, who reached base four times on the night with two walks, two extra base hits, two RBI's and five more outs on the mound to close out the game as Hillsboro preserved hits bullpen for Sunday's crucial series finale.
Waldschmidt and Jones each had three hits on the night, with Waldschmidt scoring twice and driving in two. Jackson Feltner continued his productive run from the cleanup spot with a single, double and two runs scored. Jones had three of Hillsboro's 14 hits, driving in a run. The 14 hits were the most in a Hillsboro loss this season.
NWL batting leader Jared Thomas continued to torch Hillsboro pitching, going 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles, three runs scored and two RBI. Cole Messina reached base five times, drawing four walks, including one with the bases loaded in the first inning, and scored three runs. Every Indians batter had a hit and either scored or drove in a run.
The teams wrap up the series on Sunday afternoon. The winner will have the tiebreaker advantage in case of a tie after 66 games. Pregame airtime is at 12:50 with first pitch at 1:05 p.m. on Rip City Radio 620 AM.
Northwest League Stories from June 7, 2025
- Indians Explode for 15 Runs in Big Win Over Hops - Spokane Indians
- C's Homer Their Way to Series Win - Vancouver Canadians
- Tribe Tattoos Hops, Ending Three-Game Win Streak - Hillsboro Hops
- AquaSox Defeat Exploding Whales, 6-4 - Everett AquaSox
- Everett Clinches Series Victory with Game 5 Win - Eugene Emeralds
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