This Week in AppleSox Baseball: Blowouts, Fireworks, and All-Stars!

Week six brought the start of the second half, and the ‘Sox started it right! Two series wins, 59 combined runs, and a growing lead in the North Division capped off their first week in the second half of summer.

They began with a reprieve from the conference schedule, playing two non-league games against the DubSea Fishsticks. Wenatchee cooked DubSea to a crisp, beating them 24-2 in game one, and then 9-6 in game two.

University of Portland commit Tyler Jones joined the team for the first time in that initial DubSea game, and he got right to work. Jones was a double away from the cycle, going 5-for-6 with two RBIs and a home run.

Jones was not the only face making his AppleSox debut. Assistant coach Ian Sagdal shook off the rust and donned the ‘Sox jersey for the first time ever in game one. He took over at third base about halfway through the game, and he entertained. Sagdal recorded his first-ever hit and RBI for Wenatchee, while locking down the hot corner in the field.

While neither games counted for the stat sheet nor the standings, they were both wildly entertaining.

Now with the vibes high and the Fourth of July just around the corner, the ‘Sox welcomed the Edmonton Riverhawks to the valley for the second time this year. Game one was fireworks night at the ballpark, where the home crowd ballooned to a season-high 2,180 fans. In front of their largest crowd of the year, the ‘Sox unloaded some serious fireworks.

Wenatchee scored in five straight innings to start the game, giving them a 14-run cushion to coast their way to the win. The cherry on top was Raphael Dunne, who got his first home run and first grand slam as a ‘Sox, yanking a ball over the right field fence in the fifth inning.

On the mound, the ‘Sox locked it down. 2026 WCL All-Star Joe Thornton started the game and went four innings of one-run ball. After him, the relief staff combined for 10 strikeouts, one walk, and only one run.  

In game two, the ‘Sox did not let up. They smoked 15 hits at the plate and struck out 15 batters on the mound. Mitch Haythorn was the starting face, and mimicked exactly what Thornton did, spinning four innings with only one run.

Immediately after Haythorn, ‘Sox fans were treated to an unexpected surprise. Starting right-hander Nicho Crowley trotted out from the bullpen and made his first relief outing of the summer.

Rocking the knee-highs and stirrups for the first time, Crowley shoved in relief. He spun three scoreless frames with a whopping seven strikeouts in his wake. With that being his last appearance at Paul Thomas this year, he could not have picked a better way to say goodbye.

Now with the sweep teed up, the ‘Sox just needed one win to get their third of the season. However, the wheels fell off in game three.

The Riverhawks flipped the script on Wenatchee, doing to them what the ‘Sox had done in the previous two blowouts. Edmonton slapped 14 hits and two home runs in their 12-2 win to dodge the sweep. Meanwhile, the ‘Sox only managed five hits, walked five batters, and made five errors in the field.

While they missed the sweep, the series win does continue to grow Wenatchee’s dominance in the North. After their opening win against Port Angeles last night, they now sit at 22-9 overall, two games in front of second place.

To make the deal even sweeter, ‘Sox fans got some exciting news after the Edmonton series! Thornton, Kainoa Santiago, Clint Beck, and Landon White were all selected as WCL All-Stars for 2026.

All four have been immensely impressive thus far, and each dominates in their own side of the game. Whether that’s Thornton leading the team for punchouts, Santiago launching home runs, White climbing the stat sheet, or Beck saving the day game after game.

It truly has been an All-Star-caliber week for the ‘Sox. The second half is looking promising, and it has only just begun.