Wenatchee Gets Even against Port Angeles

Happy days are here Wenatchee! The AppleSox took down Port Angeles 5-1 tonight at Civic Field to even the series. Wenatchee scored first with back-to-back RBI singles from Dakota Duffalo and Adam Grob in the top of the third. After the Lefties scored in the bottom of the third, Wenatchee kept their 2-1 lead going strong past the seventh. Wenatchee would break through to add some insurance because of one man.

John Newman Jr. tattooed a hanger and flew it out past the left field wall for his second home run this summer. After a double steal attempt brought home Tino Bethancourt, the Sox had all they would need to finish the game. It was a wonderful night spearheaded by the best start for an AppleSox pitcher since June 24th in Cowlitz.

Rising Oregon sophomore put his stamp on this game tonight. In the fifth game where Wenatchee got a starter for five innings or more, Mercado had his best outing yet. Mercado walked just two and struck out eight Lefties to set a new benchmark for the 2021 Wenatchee AppleSox. But Mercado wasn’t the only arm to perform today. His replacement Skylar Hales continued to trend up with three shutout innings where he gave up one walk, one hit and struck out four. Then, Sox closer Chase Grillo came into the ninth to strike out two of the four he faced to give the Sox a big victory lap.

Newman’s homer helped him finish with his second two-hitter this summer. Right fielder Michael O’Hara returned from a four-game injury absence to pick up his fifth game with multiple hits in his first 12 contests as a Sox. Finally, Dakota Duffalo quietly racked up two hits. This was Duffalo’s third straight game with two hits and his eighth multi-hit game overall.

The win moves Wenatchee out of the fifth spot in the North and pushed Port Angeles back behind them by half a game. Despite the funk, Wenatchee is just one game behind Walla Walla for that first half wild card spot out of the North.

Wenatchee will focus on taking the series tomorrow night in Port Angeles. First pitch is at 6:35 p.m on Thursday.

BOX SCORE

Wenatchee Will Try to Get Even Against Port Angeles

GAME NOTES

The Wenatchee AppleSox are going to try and get even with the Port Angeles Lefties tonight at Civic Field at 6:35. The Sox came up with seven runs and 12 hits to head into the bottom of the eighth with a 7-6 lead after a four-run seventh.

Adam Grob had three hits in three tries with three RBI. It was the most RBI in a single game for Grob since he opened the Bells' visit to Wenatchee with four. Meanwhile, Cole Hatton struck out six and walked just one, both season-bests for him.

Still, the AppleSox had early opportunities that weren't capitalized on last night by leaving 12 men on base, including seven in the first three frames. Overall, the AppleSox have left 73 men on base during this losing streak for an average of over 10 men left on each game. The fifth inning has also plagued Wenatchee as they have been outscored 29-to-five in that frame this summer. But after scoring five times late yesterday, Wenatchee is outscoring foes by 13 runs in the seventh inning or later.

The AppleSox kept Port Angeles' eighth-hitting offense from using it's calling card yesterday by not giving up a long ball. Despite not hitting one yesterday, Garrett Lake remains tied for the west coast league lead with five goners this summer. Port Angeles is also fourth in the WCL with a .360 on-base percentage right behind Wenatchee.

The AppleSox look to build off their four-game offensive surge and improve their .229 team batting average. They are back in front of Ridgefield for the most walks in the WCL with 125 walks. Wenatchee is right behind Ridgefield and Bend for third-best in the WCL with a .365 on-base percentage.

Pitching wise, Wenatchee is fifth in the WCL with 92 BB allowed. On defense, the AppleSox remain in last place with a .945 fielding percentage after committing three errors in last night's game. Port Angeles, after their one mistake yesterday, is tied for eighth in fielding with a .945 mark.

The AppleSox are sending out Logan Mercado to right the ship and bring it into Port Angeles. In his 1st start on June 30th, Mercado navigated some rough patches to give Wenatchee four innings with 41 strikes thrown out of 63 pitches. The righty from Oregon walked two, struck out 3 and pitched a clean 1-2-3 third inning. In his previous two appearances out of the bullpen, Mercado managed to give the AppleSox seven and one thirds of time while he retired eight of the first 10 batters he faced on June 25th at Corvallis.

Port Angeles has not announced a starter for today’s game.

Listen live to the action on Sunny FM at kcsyfm.com on your desktop computer or by tuning in at any of the following stations below.

• Wenatchee: 93.9 FM

• East Wenatchee/Rock Island: 98.1 FM

• Lake Chelan Valley: 95.3 FM

• Brewster/Pateros: 101.3 FM

• Okanogan Valley: 101.9 FM

• Omak/Tonasket/Oroville: 97.7 FM

• Methow Valley: 106.3 FM

Pregame coverage begins at 6:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show and the broadcast wraps up with the Denny’s Late Night Postgame Show.

Live stats can be found on Pointstreak.

Wenatchee Falls in Port Angeles

The Wenatchee AppleSox battled with their bats but fell to the Port Angeles Lefties 8-7 tonight at Civic Field.

Wenatchee swung with swag and plated seven runs off 12 hits. This opener in Port Angeles was the fourth straight game that the AppleSox scored seven or more runs. Wenatchee ran in front of Port Angeles after they scored two runs in the top of the fourth to take the lead. Then, after they trailed 5-2 late, Wenatchee drove home five combined runs in the sixth and seventh innings to take the lead back. Even more impressive, Wenatchee scored all four runs in the seventh with two outs.

The big stars tonight for Wenatchee shined with some familiar faces. Adam Grob retook the team lead for hits after his perfect night with three hits, three RBI and two runs tonight. Grob was not alone though. Snuck in the last two spots of the order, Dakota Duffalo produced his own two-hit show while left fielder A.J. Guerrero picked up three knocks in five trips. Guerrero, Duffalo and leadoff hitter Enzo Apodaca all scored twice.

For Port Angeles, the go-ahead runs in the bottom of the eighth came across on an error and a passed ball before reliever Zach Thomas picked up the final three outs to earn the win.

Starting pitcher Cole Hatton turned in his finest start yet. After struggling with his control in prior performances, Hatton gave up just one walk and struck six Lefties to set a new season-best. Hatton’s improved control set the tone for Wenatchee as they gave up just three walks all night long.

Wenatchee is back again tomorrow night for game two against Port Angeles. First pitch is thrown at 6:35. Tickets are available at applesox.com/tickets.

BOX SCORE

AppleSox Look To Continue Offensive Resurgence vs Lefties

GAME NOTES

The Wenatchee AppleSox open up a three-game weekday road trip tonight against the Port Angeles Lefties at 6:35 p.m. at Civic Field.

The AppleSox return to the road after taking two-of-five games during their most recent homestand, though the two wins were both in non-league play. In West Coast League play, the AppleSox have lost six straight but will face a Port Angeles team that is in last place in the North Division.

The AppleSox struggled at driving in runs prior to this past weekend. Overall, the AppleSox have left 61 men on base during this losing streak for an average of just over 10 men left on. Considering they only averaged just under five runs a game during the streak, the men left on base were killing the AppleSox.

That theme changed once the Highline Bears visited Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium this past Friday and Saturday. The AppleSox outscored the Bears 35-9 in the two games, including a 21-1 victory on July 2 in a game called after six-and-a-half innings. Luc Stuka hit for the cycle that evening to become the first player in AppleSox history to achieve the feat. Skylar Hales also homered that night and then Enzo Apodaca and A.J. Guerrero added bombs on July 3.

The AppleSox will look to limit the long ball when they travel to Civic Field. They face a Port Angeles squad that is third in the West Coast League in home runs (13) and has two players in the top-10 in the WCL in home runs. Garrett Lake is tied for first with five home runs, although he is hitting just .200 and three of his home runs came in one game back on June 6 against the Bellingham Bells. Jack Holman is tied for seventh, along with AppleSox infielder Tino Bethancourt and three others, with three home runs. Holman is hitting just .180 and has gone deep once in his last 11 games.

The AppleSox hope to build off their strong weekend and improve their .224 team batting average. They are tied with Ridgefield for the most walks in the WCL despite not playing this past weekend. Wenatchee is also tied four fourth in WCL with 39 stolen bases.

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Listen live to the action on Sunny FM at kcsyfm.com on your desktop computer or by tuning in at any of the following stations below.

• Wenatchee: 93.9 FM

• East Wenatchee/Rock Island: 98.1 FM

• Lake Chelan Valley: 95.3 FM

• Brewster/Pateros: 101.3 FM

• Okanogan Valley: 101.9 FM

• Omak/Tonasket/Oroville: 97.7 FM

• Methow Valley: 106.3 FM

Pregame coverage begins at 6:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show and the broadcast wraps up with the Denny’s Late Night Postgame Show.

Live stats can be found on Pointstreak.

Apodaca and Guerrero Go Deep In Sox' Win Saturday

Enzo Apodaca and A.J. Guerrero launched home runs in the AppleSox’ 14-8 win over the Highline Bears in front of Saturday night’s capacity crowd at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium.

The AppleSox took both games from the Highline Bears by hitting multiple home runs in consecutive games to secure the two-game sweep. Apodaca led off the fifth with a solo shot to right and Guerrero hit a two-run blast in the sixth. Guerrero led all players with four runs driven in after adding a 2-RBI single in the eighth.

Cam Liss excelled in relief, tossing three shutout innings. He labored in the third inning by loading the bases with one out but stuck out each of the final two hitters of the inning for a scoreless first inning of work. Liss would strike out four more, including the side in order in the fourth.

Highline scored four in the top of the first to take an early lead but the Sox responded with consecutive four-run frames of their own to take a lead that they would not relinquish.

The AppleSox return to action on Tuesday night in Port Angeles for the first-of-three against the Lefties at 6:35 p.m. Listen to the action on 93.9 FM and on other translators on the AppleSox Radio Network.

BOX SCORE

AppleSox Face Highline On Fireworks Night

The Wenatchee AppleSox will face the Highline Bears at 7:35 this evening on Fireworks Night at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium.

Before the AppleSox hold a postgame fireworks show they’ll look to take both games of this weekend’s non-league set against Highline after opening the weekend with a 21-1 win last night. Luc Stuka hit for the first cycle in AppleSox history, Skylar Hales homered and Trey Miller tossed five solid innings to give Wenatchee the win.

The AppleSox scored 20-or-more runs in a game last night for the first time since a 25-8 win over Yakima Valley back on June 12, 2017. The 21 runs last night marked their most in a non-league game since July 9, 2014, when they defeated the Northwest Star Academy 22-0.

Now, the AppleSox look to head into a pair of off days starting tomorrow on a high-note. They’ll send Jack Lee to the rubber for his first start of the summer tonight. Lee has pitched in one game since joining the AppleSox just before their six-game road trip from June 22-27 and it came on June 26 against Corvallis. The incoming sophomore at UC Santa Barbara allowed three runs and struck out two in 4.1 innings.

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Fans can purchase tickets for tonight’s game and all remaining AppleSox home games by visiting applesox.com/tickets.

Tonight’s game will be broadcast live on video with a synced-up radio feed. It can be seen on playsight.com

Listen live to the action on Sunny FM at kcsyfm.com on your desktop computer or by tuning in at any of the following stations below.

• Wenatchee: 93.9 FM

• East Wenatchee/Rock Island: 98.1 FM

• Lake Chelan Valley: 95.3 FM

• Brewster/Pateros: 101.3 FM

• Okanogan Valley: 101.9 FM

• Omak/Tonasket/Oroville: 97.7 FM

• Methow Valley: 106.3 FM

Pregame coverage begins at 7:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show and the broadcast wraps up with the Denny’s Late Night Postgame Show.

Live stats can be found on Pointstreak.

Stuka Hits For First Cycle in AppleSox History

Luc Stuka singled, doubled, tripled and homered to give the Wenatchee AppleSox a 21-1 win over the Highline Bears in a game called after six-and-a-half innings on Friday night at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium.

Skylar Hales homered in his first plate appearance this summer and Jackson Van De Brake collected as the AppleSox put together their most impressive offensive display of the 2021 season. The AppleSox collected six extra-base hits and 15 hits all in all to pick up the big victory.

Stuka started the big night with an RBI double in the first, a home run to lead off the third, an infield single in the fourth and then a triple later in the fourth inning.

The AppleSox only used two pitchers on the mound in the shortened game. Trey Miller tossed five innings, only allowing one run in that time. Martin Haswell pitched the final two innings and did not allow any runs.

The AppleSox wrap up their homestand with Fireworks Night on Saturday against the Highline Bears at 7:35 p.m. Tickets are limited but still available at applesox.com/tickets.

BOX SCORE

Stuka poses with his home run ball that he hit in the third inning during Friday night’s game.

Watch each of Stuka’s hits from Friday night below and listen to his discussion with Joel Norman during the seventh inning.

Luc Stuka 7.3.21

Fourth of July Weekend Kicks Off Tonight Against Highline

The Wenatchee AppleSox open up the holiday weekend tonight against the Highline Bears at 7:35 p.m. at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium.

The AppleSox look to pick up their first non-league victory of the season after falling on June 1-2 in a pair of games against the Northwest Star Academy. The AppleSox only had 19 players in those two games but now boast a full roster of 35 players.

The AppleSox will play their fourth-ever game against the HIghline Bears tonight. Wenatchee is 3-1 in previous meetings, with the only loss coming on July 18, 2017; the first ever meeting between the two teams.

There is an interesting history of former Bears coming to play for the AppleSox. In 2017, Johnny Sage and Nolan McCafferty suited up for Highline in their 8-5 win over the AppleSox before both went on to play for the AppleSox in 2018 with Sage also playing for the Sox in 2019 and winning their second annual Tommy Watanabe Award. Cole Connolly tossed a scoreless inning of relief in that game and would go on to pitch two games for the AppleSox in 2019.

The connection doesn’t end there. In 2018, Cody Simmons suited up for the Bears against the AppleSox in between years that he played for the Sox. The Wenatchee native played in 15 games for his hometown team in 2017 and then in nine for the AppleSox in 2019, including catching all three postseason games against Victoria. Simmons also played for Highline in 2019 but did not suit up in either game against the AppleSox.

Fans can purchase tickets for tonight’s game and all remaining AppleSox home games by visiting applesox.com/tickets.

Tonight’s game will be broadcast live on video with a synced-up radio feed. It can be seen on playsight.com

Listen live to the action on Sunny FM at kcsyfm.com on your desktop computer or by tuning in at any of the following stations below.

• Wenatchee: 93.9 FM

• East Wenatchee/Rock Island: 98.1 FM

• Lake Chelan Valley: 95.3 FM

• Brewster/Pateros: 101.3 FM

• Okanogan Valley: 101.9 FM

• Omak/Tonasket/Oroville: 97.7 FM

• Methow Valley: 106.3 FM

Pregame coverage begins at 7:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show and the broadcast wraps up with the Denny’s Late Night Postgame Show.

Live stats can be found on Pointstreak.

Portland Sweeps Wenatchee Thursday Night

The Portland Pickles got the road sweep after defeating the AppleSox, 17-8, on Thursday night at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium.

The Sox offense broke out and scored eight runs off 13 hits. Wenatchee scored all its runs in the seventh and eighth innings, including scoring five times in the seventh. Zach Toglia and A.J. Guerrero both entered the game midway through and impressed with their performances. Toglia went 2-for-2 to collect at least one hit in all seven games that he has played in this summer. Guerrero made his debut by collecting a double in his first at-at in an AppleSox uniform and then by adding two walks and a single off the bench.

Portland hit two homers for the third straight night and cashed in on a nine-run fourth inning to hand the AppleSox their sixth straight loss.

On the bump, Gavin Gorrell delivered in his first action out of the bullpen. Gorrell pitched two clean frames with only one walk and three punchouts. Sox pitchers struck out 14 Pickles on Thursday night, the second time they got the Pickles to whiff at least 14 times during their trip to Wenatchee.

Looking ahead, Wenatchee takes a break from WCL action as they welcome the Highline Bears. The Bears and AppleSox will play Friday and Saturday night at 7:35 p.m. Tickets are available at applesox.com/tickets.

BOX SCORE

Salinas Makes First Start Since WCL Honor Tonight vs Portland

GAME NOTES

The Wenatchee AppleSox open up a new month against the Portland Pickles tonight at 7:35 PM at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium. Reigning WCL Pitcher of the Week Hunter Salinas gets the nod for this evening's series-finale. Salinas leads the West Coast League with a 0.58 ERA and will make his fourth start of the summer tonight.

The Pickles took the series by winning each of the first two games, including last night's 7-2 win. The AppleSox drew nine walks but struck out 15 times and only collected two hits. Zach Toglia and Dakota Duffalo came through with the knocks. Toglia made just his sixth appearance of the summer for the AppleSox, but has at least one hit in all six games and his fifth-inning double was his second extra-base hit of the summer. Duffalo has now collected a hit in six-of-his-last-seven games and is batting .476 (10-for-21) in that span. Michael DeFelippi excelled on the mound, tossing two shutout innings in his first outing in which he entered a game without any runners on base.

The AppleSox look to limit the long ball tonight. Portland has gone deep twice in back-to-back games and six-of-their-eight home runs have come in five games against the AppleSox. Pickles pitching continues to stymie the AppleSox as Wenatchee has a .135 team batting average against the Pickles this summer.

The AppleSox look to Salinas to salvage the series finale against the Pickles. He was dazzling in six shutout innings against the Cowlitz Black Bears last week. He only allowed three baserunners, with one of them only reaching due to an error. Salinas previously faced Portland on June 4 in his season-debut. The right-hander from Colorado State-Pueblo walked one and struck out three in two scoreless and hitless innings on June 4. Since then, Salinas has only appeared in games as a starter. He has tossed two-of-the-AppleSox-four five-or-more inning efforts from starting pitchers. He first tossed five scoreless innings against Walla Walla on June 8 and his six innings against Cowlitz marked the most innings tossed by a Sox starter this summer.

Salinas is opposed by Chase Giroux from the University of San Diego. He’s also making his fourth start this summer and his second against the AppleSox. He began the season with four shutout innings against Wenatchee on June 4 and enters tonight with a 2.07 ERA.

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Fans can purchase tickets for tonight’s game and all remaining AppleSox home games by visiting applesox.com/tickets.

Tonight’s game will be broadcast live on video with a synced-up radio feed. It can be seen on playsight.com

Listen live to the action on Sunny FM at kcsyfm.com on your desktop computer or by tuning in at any of the following stations below.

• Wenatchee: 93.9 FM

• East Wenatchee/Rock Island: 98.1 FM

• Lake Chelan Valley: 95.3 FM

• Brewster/Pateros: 101.3 FM

• Okanogan Valley: 101.9 FM

• Omak/Tonasket/Oroville: 97.7 FM

• Methow Valley: 106.3 FM

Pregame coverage begins at 7:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show and the broadcast wraps up with the Denny’s Late Night Postgame Show.

Live stats can be found on Pointstreak.

Pickles Stymie AppleSox On Wednesday Night

The Portland Pickles picked up the series victory over the Wenatchee AppleSox with a 7-2 win on Wednesday night at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium.

The AppleSox drew nine walks but struck out 15 times and collected two hits in their fifth straight loss. The Pickles hit two home runs for the second straight night and scored a run in five-of-nine innings.

Michael DeFelippi tossed two scoreless innings in relief, marking the second consecutive evening that an AppleSox reliever tossed multiple shutout innings.

The AppleSox look to salvage the series tomorrow night as their five-game homestand hits its mid-point. Tickets for Thursday and all remaining home games are available at applesox.com/tickets.

AppleSox Look To Even Up Series With Portland

GAME NOTES

The Wenatchee AppleSox continue their mid-week series against the Portland Pickles tonight 7:35 PM at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium. The Pickles took the series-opener last night with a 17-3 victory thanks to a seven-run second inning and a five-run fifth. John Newman Jr. homered and Skylar Hales tossed three scoreless innings of relief for the AppleSox.

The Sox' offense had an off night as they only collected five hits in the loss. For the third straight game Wenatchee had a golden opportunity to strike first in the first inning, but stranded two runners on the basepaths for the third consecutive first inning. The AppleSox' five hits were their fewest in a game since only collecting four over six-and-a-half innings in a rain-shorted 12-3 loss to the Bellingham Bells on June 13. Portland Pitching has stymied the AppleSox through three games this summer, limiting them to a .150 team average (18-for-120).

The second inning has proven problematic for the AppleSox over their four-game losing streak. They have been outscored 42-19 in the last four games, though last night was the first time that the AppleSox did not score at least four runs in that span. They Sox have surrendered 17 runs in the second, the most given up in any inning during this futile stretch. The AppleSox have struggled to avoid big innings this season. They have given up four-or-more runs in an inning 12 times through their first 19 games of the season.

Portland looks to improve off a historic night offensively. Their 17 runs last night matched a franchise record, previously set on June 26, 2018, when they defeated the eventual WCL Champion Corvallis Knights, 17-2. Only one player from that team also took part in last night's thumping. Gabe Skoro, in his fourth consecutive summer with the Pickles, only went 1-for-1 in the 2018 game, but was one of five Pickles who scored multiple runs in last night's win as he reached base three times and scored a pair of runs.

The AppleSox have not announced a probable starter for tonight’s game. Portland sends lefty Bradley McVay to the rubber for his fifth start of the summer. In five previous appearances he has a 2-13 record and a 4.15 ERA over 17.1 innings. He has already faced the AppleSox twice this summer. He struck out the Sox in order in a scoreless inning on June 4 then only allowed one run in four innings to earn the win on June 6.

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Fans can purchase tickets for tonight’s game and any other remaining AppleSox home game by visiting applesox.com/tickets.

Tonight’s game will be broadcast live on video with a synced-up radio feed. It can be seen on playsight.com

Listen live to the action on Sunny FM at kcsyfm.com on your desktop computer or by tuning in at any of the following stations below.

• Wenatchee: 93.9 FM

• East Wenatchee/Rock Island: 98.1 FM

• Lake Chelan Valley: 95.3 FM

• Brewster/Pateros: 101.3 FM

• Okanogan Valley: 101.9 FM

• Omak/Tonasket/Oroville: 97.7 FM

• Methow Valley: 106.3 FM

Pregame coverage begins at 7:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show and the broadcast wraps up with the Denny’s Late Night Postgame Show.

Live stats can be found on Pointstreak.

AppleSox Get Pickled by Portland

The Wenatchee AppleSox stumbled in their series-opener against the Portland Pickles, 17-3, on Tuesday night at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium.

In a game moved to 7:35 p.m. after a record-breaking heat wave continued to grip the Pacific Northwest, it was Portland that got hot at the plate. Temperatures hit 111 degrees at first pitch and the Pickles, who came in with the league’s worst batting average, struck while the iron was hot by plating seven runs in the second inning and five more in the fifth inning.

John Newman Jr. cleared the left-center field wall for a 404-foot solo home run to lead off the bottom of the second inning for his first home run of the season. Skylar Hales tossed three scoreless innings of relief in his first appearance at home.

Though Newman hit the first home run of the night, it wouldn’t be the games’ last. Pickles’ shortstop Jacob Jablonski cracked a grand slam in the fifth and Matt Jew followed with a two-out solo shot in the sixth.

The Sox got a sacrifice fly from Dakota Duffalo in the bottom of the seventh to plate Newman for his first two-run game. Then, one frame later, Zach Toglia drove in Michael O’Hara after O’Hara hit a double to begin the Sox’ eighth inning.

With the loss, Wenatchee drops to 8-11 with losses in seven-of-their-last-nine. Despite the funk, Wenatchee still sits just three-and-a-half games behind Yakima Valley for first place in the North Division. The AppleSox will be back for another 7:35 p.m. game against the Pickles on Wednesday night. Tickets are available at applesox.com/tickets.

BOX SCORE

AppleSox Return Home To Face Pickles

GAME NOTES

The Wenatchee AppleSox are back home after a six-game road trip to face the Portland Pickles for the fourth time this summer starting at 7:35 PM tonight at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium.

The Sox are coming off their longest road trip of 2021 featuring a series win in Cowlitz and a sweep at the hands of the Corvallis Knights. Despite the setback at Goss Stadium, Dakota Duffalo bounced back by leading the entire WCL with a .529 average over the past week. Duffalo and Luc Stuka's .381 average over the stretch away from home helped Wenatchee score five-or-more runs in four-of-their-last-six games. However, Sox pitching gave up nearly seven runs per game over the road trip and the Sox' defense committed eight errors during their time away from Wenatchee.

Wenatchee lost two-out-of-three in Walker Stadium to the Pickles when they opened WCL play. The Pickles outscored the AppleSox 19-5 during the series with all 19 of their runs being plated by the sixth inning. Wenatchee's one win came in game two of that series 4-2 with Gauge Lockhart starting four innings before Cole Hatton pitched five shutout innings of relief to earn the save. Hatton's incredible effort is still the longest by a Sox reliever this summer. Offensively, the Sox stole six bags in the win, including home twice, while Duffalo recorded the first three-hit game of five for Wenatchee this summer.

Entering tonight, Wenatchee and Portland are both in the lower half of the 10-team WCL for team batting average. The Pickles have the lowest average in the league (.202) while the Sox are 6th (.227). Another key similarity is that both teams collect a ton of walks. Portland ranks second with 97 free passes while Wenatchee is right behind them with 95. Pitching-wise, the Pickles have the third-lowest ERA (3.67), second-fewest hits (113), second-fewest walks (67) & are tied for the-fewest home runs allowed (2) while backing up their impressive pitching talent with the second highest fielding percentage in the WCL (.967). The first of the two home runs that they allowed this summer came against the AppleSox in June 6 when Ben Leid hit a solo home run to open up the third inning.

The Sox and Pickles both enter tonight third in the North and South divisions, respectively. Portland is 5.5 games behind the Corvallis Knights. Wenatchee is only 3.5 games behind first place Yakima Valley as the month of June wraps up around the WCL.

Cole Hatton will start tonight’s game for the AppleSox for his third start of the summer. Hatton hasn’t earned a decision yet through his first two starts and has not pitched past the fourth inning. He lasted four innings last Tuesday to help Wenatchee open their road trip with an 8-5 win over Cowlitz. Hatton worked around a home run and three walks by striking out two Black Bears and hurling 78 pitches. The Black Bears collected just four hits off him, but all four came with two outs in each of the four innings. Hatton’s first start came in the Friday opener vs Bellingham. Hatton struggled in the second inning of that 13-8 win for the Sox but still managed to work three innings with three walks and two strikeouts. Hatton’s debut helped the Sox beat the Pickles after he tossed five innings out of the bullpen without allowing a run to earn the first save of the season.

Ian Lawson will go out for his 1st start tonight as a Pickle. He is the 10th different arm to start a game for Portland pitching coach Brian Grant this summer. Lawson, a sophomore from Oregon State, debuted 5 days ago against Corvallis. Lawson finished off the eighth and ninth innings to last 1.1 IP and did not allow any hits or runs allowed while he struck out three and walked one off 26 pitches.

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Fans can purchase tickets for tonight’s game and any other remaining AppleSox home game by visiting applesox.com/tickets.

Tonight’s game will be broadcast live on video with a synced-up radio feed. It can be seen on playsight.com

Listen live to the action on Sunny FM at kcsyfm.com on your desktop computer or by tuning in at any of the following stations below.

• Wenatchee: 93.9 FM

• East Wenatchee/Rock Island: 98.1 FM

• Lake Chelan Valley: 95.3 FM

• Brewster/Pateros: 101.3 FM

• Okanogan Valley: 101.9 FM

• Omak/Tonasket/Oroville: 97.7 FM

• Methow Valley: 106.3 FM

Pregame coverage begins at 7:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show and the broadcast wraps up with the Denny’s Late Night Postgame Show.

Live stats can be found on Pointstreak.

Salinas Honored With WCL Pitcher Of The Week

AppleSox right-hander Hunter Salinas has been named the West Coast League’s Pitcher Of The Week for the week of June 22-27. Salinas is the first AppleSox player to earn Pitcher or Player Of The Week honors this summer.

Salinas, an incoming sophomore at Colorado State-Pueblo, pitched once last week but dazzled in his only outing. He fired six shutout innings and struck out four in a 4-3 win over the Cowlitz Black Bears on June 24. Salinas only allowed three baserunners on one hit, one walk and a defensive error.

The win tied him for second on the AppleSox in victories with reliever Jared Engman. Salinas leads the AppleSox in strikeouts with 15 in 15.1 innings and leads the WCL with a 0.59 ERA through four games. His effort against Cowlitz was also crucial because it helped secure a series victory in the rubber match against the Black Bears.

The AppleSox return to action on Tuesday night against the Portland Pickles at home. First pitch for all five home games this week, including Saturday’s Fireworks Night, is at 7:35 p.m. Tickets for all remaining AppleSox home games are available now at applesox.com/tickets.

June 29 - July 3 Game Times Pushed to 7:35

Due to higher temperatures expected in the Wenatchee Valley this week the Wenatchee AppleSox are moving their games from June 29 - July 3 to 7:35 p.m. start times.

To help combat the heat, the AppleSox' are offering free water refills for those who purchase an AppleSox souvenir cup and $1 soda refills instead of the normal $3.50 for game June 29-July 1.

Tuesday’s series-opener against the Portland Pickles is a $2 Off Tuesday. Tickets, hot dogs, hamburgers and Coors Light are all $2 off and AppleSox merchandise is 10-percent off at the Team Shop.

Fireworks Night is Saturday against the Highline Bears. Fans are encouraged to purchase tickets in advance on Safer Seating and arrive early to avoid lines entering the ballpark that evening.

Tickets for all remaining games are now on sale at applesox.com/tickets at full capacity. Sections A and B will still have one seat in between different seating groups but all other seating is 100-percent open for all remaining AppleSox games.

Ninth Inning Rally Not Enough As AppleSox Lose to Knights

The Wenatchee AppleSox scored four runs in the top of the ninth inning but lost to the Corvallis Knights, 7-6, on Sunday afternoon at Goss Stadium.

In a game moved up to a 10 a.m. start time in hopes of beating the heat, the AppleSox nearly beat the Knights thanks to their late rally. Michael O’Hara cleared the bases with an RBI triple and Adam Grob scored him with his team-leading 15th RBI.

O’Hara led the offense by going 3-for-4 for his fourth multi-hit game in just nine games played for the AppleSox. Dakota Duffalo and Tino Bethancourt also extended their hitting streaks to five and six games, respectively.

The Knights stole nine bases, including eight in a four-run fourth inning. The AppleSox entered Sunday leading the West Coast League in stolen bases but Corvallis lapped them with their remarkable performance.

The AppleSox had a golden opportunity to open the scoring in the first inning when they loaded up the bases with one walk, but Bethancourt was picked off and John Newman Jr. struck out to end the inning. The Knights loaded the bases on three straight walks in the bottom of the first and then opened the scoring with an infield single.

Cam Liss (0-1) suffered the loss after a tough couple innings. He got the first two outs in the first inning before tossing 14 straight balls but got out of the inning with the Sox only down one. He left with two outs in the fourth inning. Jared Engman got the final out of the inning and then tossed two more scoreless innings after that. He made his team-high sixth appearance of the summer on the mound.

Enzo Apodaca tied the game with an RBI single in the fourth to score Luc Stuka from second. Stuka got the rally started with a one-out single, his first of two hits. He is batting .346 (9-for-26) over the last six games.

After the Knights erupted in the fourth, neither team scored again until the eighth when the AppleSox got a run back when O’Hara led off with his second hit of the game and scored on a fielder’s choice. Corvallis answered again with two in the bottom of the eighth.

The AppleSox are now tied with the Ridgefield Raptors for the West Coast League with 97 walks drawn, prior to game action Sunday evening. The AppleSox are off Monday before hosting the Portland Pickles for three games beginning on Tuesday night at 7:35 p.m. The game was originally scheduled for 6:35 but has been moved to 7:35 in hopes of cooler temperatures at first pitch. Tickets are available at applesox.com/tickets.

FULL BOXSCORE

AppleSox Wrap Up Road Trip This Morning

GAME NOTES

The Wenatchee AppleSox aim to salvage their series with the Corvallis Knights this morning at 10 a.m. According to longtime AppleSox statistician Bruce Bennett, this is the first league game to start in the morning in the 21-year history of the AppleSox. The Sox have dropped the first two games of this series.

The AppleSox enter this morning's game in the middle of a rough stretch on the mound. they have given up 49 runs over the last seven games, good for a 7.23 ERA. The AppleSox have lost five-of-their-last-seven, four of which have come on this six-game road trip. However, the AppleSox have scored four runs in each of their last eight games, something that they only did in four of the season's first nine games.

The AppleSox are looking to claim their first win against the Knights today since June 12, 2018. Last night, they fell 9-6. Dakota Duffalo went 3-for-4 but the AppleSox only collected three other hits, with Michael O'Hara, Adam Grob and Tino Bethancourt also notching hits. the AppleSox struck out 12 times, four off their season-high. If the Sox are to homer today, it will be the first time on this road trip and the first since Bethancourt's two-out, two-run shot on June 20 against Bend at home. The AppleSox took two-of-three from Cowlitz to open this road trip, but currently sit 2-3 on the season-long venture from home.

Corvallis looks to continue to hold its South Division lead and add to its season-best six-game winning streak. Five Knights collected multiple hits last night including Travis Bazzana and Nate Nankil both recording three-hit efforts. The Knights have scored four-or-more runs in the second inning in both games of this series and are outscoring the AppleSox 10-0 in the second inning through two games. The only lead the AppleSox have held in this series was for the first inning-and-a-half of Friday's series opener.

Cam Liss toes the rubber for the AppleSox this morning. He is making his second start of the summer and his third appearance overall. Liss made his first start a week ago against the Bend Elks and struck out the most batters by an AppleSox starter this summer with seven punchouts in 4.1 innings. He picked up a save in his AppleSox debut by tossing two scoreless inning against the Walla Walla Sweets on June 10.

Brock Townsend starts for Corvallis just three days after tossing a scoreless inning of relief. He is 1-0 with a 6.42 ERA through three games and is making his second start of the summer today. His first came on June 20 when he allowed four runs over five innings against Cowlitz to earn a no decision in the eventual 6-4 win.

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Listen live to the action on Sunny FM at kcsyfm.com on your desktop computer or by tuning in at any of the following stations below.

• Wenatchee: 93.9 FM

• East Wenatchee/Rock Island: 98.1 FM

• Lake Chelan Valley: 95.3 FM

• Brewster/Pateros: 101.3 FM

• Okanogan Valley: 101.9 FM

• Omak/Tonasket/Oroville: 97.7 FM

• Methow Valley: 106.3 FM

Pregame coverage begins at 9:35 a.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show and the broadcast wraps up with the Denny’s Late Night Postgame Show.

Live stats can be found on Pointstreak.

Duffalo's Big Night Not Enough As Sox Lose To Knights

Dakota Duffalo recorded three hits but the AppleSox fell to the Corvallis Knights, 9-6, on Saturday night at Goss Stadium.

Duffalo went 3-for-4 with two runs and 1 RBI, but the AppleSox fell to the Knights for the second straight game. The effort was Duffalo’s fourth multi-hit and second three-hit game this summer.

The Knights scored four runs in the bottom of the second inning marking the second straight day that the put together a crooked inning in the second frame. They have now scored 10 runs in the second inning against the AppleSox over the first two games of this series.

Wenatchee countered with three in the top of the third and tied it on Duffalo’s RBI single in the fourth, but Corvallis took control from there, scoring twice in the bottom of the inning to take a lead that it would not relinquish.

The loss marks just the second time this season that the AppleSox have lost back-to-back games, with the other time coming last Saturday and Sunday against the Bend Elks.

The series wraps up Sunday morning at 10 a.m. as the AppleSox send Cam Liss to the mound in hopes of salvaging the series.

FULL BOXSCORE

AppleSox Send Hughes To Face Corvallis Tonight

GAME NOTES

The Wenatchee AppleSox look to even up their weekend series tonight against the Corvallis Knights at 6:35 p.m. at Goss Stadium. The AppleSox fell in a series-opener last night for just the second time after winning each of the last four games they played to open up a series against a new West Coast League opponent.

The loss continued a middling stretch for the AppleSox. They've alternated wins and losses in each of their last five games and are now 2-4 in their last six games. The AppleSox have not lost more than two games in a row nor won more than three consecutive this summer. They dropped the first game of a three-game series last night for just the second time in six attempts.

Michael O'Hara recorded his third multi-hit game in just six starts for Wenatchee last night but the offense stalled with the regular No. 3 and 4 hitters (Adam Grob and Tino Bethancourt) given rare nights off. The fourth inning continues to be the AppleSox most productive inning after plating three in it last night. They have now scored 16 runs in the fourth inning through their first 16 games.

The Knights were buoyed by a six-run second inning to pick up their fifth consecutive victory. Their nine runs scored tied for their third-most this summer and was only four off their season-high set on June 7 in a 13-10 win over Port Angeles. The Knights' 99 runs scored are second-most in the WCL, but their .255 team batting average is fourth. Their 4.77 ERA is down the 2.93 ERA that led the WCL in 2019.

Three different Knights recorded multi-hit efforts in the victory last night. Nate Nankil went 3-for-4 with 2 RBI and two runs and Spencer Scott went 2-for-5 with a bases-clearing 3-RBI double in the second inning. Jackson Arnsdorf tossed 3.2 scoreless innings of relief and struck out three to earn the win.

Tonight’s starting pitcher is Jacob Hughes. He’s making his third start of the summer and is an incoming freshman at Oregon. He is second on the AppleSox with 12 strikeouts and tossed one of the four games this summer (June 10) in which an AppleSox starter tossed at least five innings. He struck out six Walla Walla Sweets that night but earned a no-decision in a 3-1 win.

The last time Hughes pitched he got off to a rough start, allowing three runs on six hits in the first two innings. Hughes buckled down to retire seven of the final eight hitters that he faced before exiting after the fourth inning against the Bend Elks.

Corvallis counters with Ben Kibbe. The incoming sophomore at Utah is 0-1 with a 15.63 ERA in two games, both starts. He has allowed at least six runs in both outings, including surrendering seven runs in 3.1 innings in a 10-1 loss to Cowlitz on June 19. He has struck out five, walked three and allowed 13 hits in 6.1 innings.

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Though the AppleSox are on the road, you can still listen live to the action on Sunny FM. Listeners can tune in at kcsyfm.com on their desktop computer or by tuning in at any of the following stations below.

• Wenatchee: 93.9 FM

• East Wenatchee/Rock Island: 98.1 FM

• Lake Chelan Valley: 95.3 FM

• Brewster/Pateros: 101.3 FM

• Okanogan Valley: 101.9 FM

• Omak/Tonasket/Oroville: 97.7 FM

• Methow Valley: 106.3 FM

Pregame coverage begins at 6:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show and the broadcast wraps up each night with the Denny’s Late Night Postgame Show.

Live stats can be found on Pointstreak.