AppleSox Add Six Players From California Schools

The Wenatchee AppleSox have signed six players from California colleges to join their 2022 roster. Joichiro Oyama, Matt Halbach, Joel Tornero, Roger Thomas, Michael Davinni and Ryan Mullan will suit up for the AppleSox this summer.

Some of the best AppleSox alumni have come from California. Keston Hiura (UC Irvine) and Pat Valaika (UCLA) are just two examples of AppleSox players to come from California schools who then went on to play in MLB. 

“California undoubtedly is a hot bed for baseball talent,” Darlington said. “Having strong  connections with some of the great programs in California will be critical for our organization going forward.”

Michael Davinni becomes the second member of Saddleback College to join the AppleSox alongside returning first baseman Luc Stuka. Davinni originally committed to the University of San Diego but did not play in 2021 and transferred to Saddleback.

Through his first nine games Davinni is off to a strong start, batting .417 with one home run and 16 RBI. He also has collected at least one hit in all but one game. 

“We have big expectations for Mike Davinni,” Darlington said. “Mike brings big time juice to our lineup. He’s a Coastal Carolina commit that is just a pure hitter. We are looking for him to lock down third and be a middle of the order bat for us. 

UC San Diego outfielder Matt Halbach will join the AppleSox after his first season with the Tritons. The Los Gatos, Calif. native is hitting .254 with five multi-hit efforts through his first 17 games of the season.

Halbach recorded a phenomenal senior year of high school in 2021 after only playing five games in 2020. The outfielder hit .366 with 13 extra-base hits and 28 RBI for Archbishop Mitty High School in their second-place finish season.

“Halbach can play all three outfield spots as well as first base,” Darlington said. “His bat will be tough to keep out of the lineup.”

Ryan Mullan is the only player in this week’s roster announcements still in high school. He will graduate from Damien High School in California this spring before joining Loyola Marymount in the fall. The right-hander is hoping to wrap up his high school career on a strong note after being part of a Damien team that made it to the second round of state playoffs last year.

“Mullan is a power arm that we are really excited to have on our staff,” Darlington said. “He will be able to be used in a variety of roles for us.”

Joichiro Oyama will join UC Irvine this fall after playing for the AppleSox. Oyama is in his third year at Merced College thanks to an additional year granted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

He leads the Blue Devils with a .375 average through his first 23 games. The infielder from Okinawa, Japan, has improved his batting average each season. Oyama hit .274 in 20 games in 2020 before following up with a .327 average in 2021.  

“Joichiro brings a ton of speed to our lineup and can really defend,” Darlington said.

Joel Tornero will join his UC San Diego teammate Halbach in the Wenatchee this June. The southpaw is looking to make his debut with the Tritons this spring.

The Covina, Calif. native began his career at Northwest Nazarene in 2020 but only pitched in one game before transferring to Chaffey College in California. The Panthers did not compete in the 2021 season but Tornero did pitch in 10 games for the Ventura County Pirates in the Sunset Baseball League last summer.

“Tornero will bring an electric fastball to our staff,” Darlington said. “He can run it up to 94 miles per hour and should see a sizable workload this summer.” 

Roger Thomas is looking to make his debut with UC Irvine this season. The southpaw redshirted last year and spent the summer in the Northwoods League with the Kokomo Jackrabbits, whom he pitched in 10 games for. 

Thomas, a Rancho Mission Viejo, Calif. native, recorded a lights-out 0.28 ERA in six games as a senior at Santa Margarita High School in 2020. He also excelled at the plate, batting .382. 

“Roger Thomas will be a fantastic lefty to have in our bullpen,” Darlington said. “His slider is the type of pitch that can come in and get you out of any situation.”

Stay tuned to AppleSox social media for next week’s player announcements

AppleSox Sign Five Players With WCL Experience

Head coach Mitch Darlington announced on Wednesday the addition of five new players to the AppleSox 2022 roster. Corey Jarrell, Chase Matheny, Ezra Samperi, Quincy Vassar and Connor Wilson all played in the West Coast League last season but will now suit up for the AppleSox

All five players combined to appear in 77 WCL games last season. Three of these players have local ties to North Central Washington. 

“Having guys on our roster with previous West Coast League experience will be vital to our success this summer,” Darlington said.

Corey Jarrell, a Brewster, Wash. native, joins the AppleSox after suiting up for the Yakima Valley Pippins a year ago. Jarrell hit .255 in 16 games with the Pippins while patrolling the outfield defensively. Between July 27 and Aug. 10 he recorded a five-game hit streak and batted .380 (8-for-21) over it with 6 RBI. 

“Corey is an outfielder who can play all three outfield spots, and adds speed to our lineup,” Darlington said.

After initially committing to Washington out of high school Jarrell flipped to Yakima Valley College. He is in his sophomore season with the Yaks and is batting .353 (6-for-17) through six games. Jarrell hit .243 with a .404 on-base percentage in 13 games as a freshman in 2021. 

Jarrell graduated from Brewster High School in 2020. He batted .443 with the Bears including .468 as a junior en route to a third-place finish at state. Though he did not get to compete in his senior baseball season because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Jarrell did capture the Washington 2B Basketball State Championship that spring. Jarrell scored 1,097 points in four seasons for Brewster.

Utilityman Chase Matheny has signed to play for the AppleSox in 2022 and presents an exciting option for Wenatchee’s coaching staff. He hit .304 last season for the Bend Elks to record the fifth-best batting average on the team among players to appear in at least 20 games. He also finished second on the Elks with 27 RBI. 

Matheny did not appear on the mound last summer but has almost exclusively done so this spring with South Carolina Upstate. The right-hander from Bremerton, Wash. has a 2.45 ERA in 7.1 innings over six games in his redshirt junior season, his first season getting any collegiate work as a pitcher. 

“Matheny has transitioned into a two-way player for USC-Upstate and is excelling on the mound,” Darlington said. 

Matheny hit .204 in 26 games last year in his first season with the Spartans. He spent two seasons at Lower Columbia College, batting a combined .284 with 34 RBI.

Ezra Samperi is entering his fourth consecutive season in the WCL and is coming off his finest year. He hit .286 in 20 games last summer with Bellingham. Samperi played the two previous seasons in Kelowna, combining to hit .206 in 26 games with the Falcons.  

“Samperi is the ultimate weapon to have as a coach,” Darlington said. “He is a quality catcher with great speed, a great approach at the plate and can play in the outfield on days he’s not catching.”

The junior at Gonzaga is batting .176 in 10 games this spring. Samperi made a fine first impression with the Zags by delivering a walk-off single on Feb. 18 in a season-opening 3-2 win over New Mexico. He hit .375 in 35 games at Mount Hood in 2021 and .288 in 44 games as a freshman in 2019. Samperi only appeared in one game in 2020. 

Quincy Vassar, like Jarrell, also graduated from Brewster High School and is set to pitch for the AppleSox this summer. Vassar pitched in one game for the Bellingham Bells last season.

Vassar pitched at Bellevue Community College in 2021 before transferring to Vanguard. He has a 6.35 ERA in 11.1 innings over his first seven games this spring after posting a 1.91 ERA and 29 strikeouts in 28.1 innings over nine games last year. He did not pitch for Bellevue in the abbreviated 2020 season.

“Quincy is a lefty who can throw five different pitches for strikes,” Darlington said, “which poses a challenge for hitters to sit on a pitch.”

Vassar shined as a two-way player at Brewster. He posted a 2.30 ERA and batted .422 in two seasons of varsity. The Bears finished second in state in 2018 and third in 2019 with Vassar. He also played varsity basketball and football while at Brewster.

Chelan High School graduate Connor Wilson joins the AppleSox this season after pitching in the WCL for the Pippins last year. The southpaw posted a 3.00 ERA in five games, two starts, with Yakima Valley. He did not allow any runs in his three relief outings, spanning five innings. Wilson also pitched in two games for the Cascade Collegiate League All-Stars and one game for the Northwest Star Academy, hurling 2.1 scoreless innings on June 2 against the AppleSox.

Wilson is in his sophomore season at Yakima Valley College and has a 3.00 ERA in nine innings over two appearances in relief. He recorded a 4.50 ERA in six innings over five games as a freshman with the Yaks. 

“Connor is your crafty lefty,” Darlington said. “Everything he throws has a ton of movement. He will be a great asset to have on our staff.” 

Wilson also has a local tie as he grew up in Lake Chelan and graduated from Chelan High School in 2020. He recorded a 1.27 ERA with 51 strikeouts over 44 innings as a junior en route to earning all-state honors as the Goats finished third in state in 2019.

AppleSox Welcome Back Four Returners For 2022 Season

Head coach Mitch Darlington announced on Wednesday that Enzo Apodaca, Tyler Chipman, Jared Engman and Luc Stuka will be the first four members of the 2022 Wenatchee AppleSox roster.

All four players spent the 2021 season with the AppleSox and contributed in different ways and return to Wenatchee to play for a new coaching staff.

“We always enjoy following the careers of our players after they leave Wenatchee,” general manager Allie Schank said, “but there is something special about those who choose to come back here. We credit that to memorable experiences on the field and with their host families. I’m excited to see Enzo, Tyler, Jared and Luc on the field again and I look forward to them watching them continue a strong tradition of excellence on and off the field while representing the AppleSox.”

The 2021 West Coast League leader in walks rejoins the AppleSox for the 2022 season. Apodaca drew 38 free passes and stole 15 bases, tied for fifth-most in the WCL. He hit .319 in his final 40 games and never went back-to-back games without reaching base during that span.

Apodaca redshirted in 2021 at Gonzaga due to a back injury but has burst onto the scene this spring in his debut with the Zags. He has collected at least one base hit in eight of his first 11 games and has recorded three multi-hit games.

Cashmere native Tyler Chipman returns to pitch for the AppleSox for a third summer. The right-hander with Seattle University began his first tenure with the AppleSox in 2018 mere weeks after graduating from Cashmere High School. The 2018 Caribou Trail League MVP started the AppleSox’ home opener that season and remained with the team all summer before heading to the Expedition League in 2019. He rejoined the AppleSox last summer and ended the summer with an incredible relief effort. He retired each of the first 13 hitters that he faced in order, nine via strikeouts, before allowing a baserunner.

Like Chipman, Darlington graduated from Cashmere and looks forward to working with another Bulldog this summer.

"Coaching Tyler this upcoming season is a special opportunity,” Darlington said. “Having won a state title with his older brother, Alex, in 2012, as well as having previously coached Tyler in 2016 at Cashmere makes this an exciting reunion."

Chipman began his college career at Gonzaga but redshirted in 2019 before transferring to Yakima Valley College for the next two seasons. He posted a 3.74 ERA with 32 strikeouts in nine games last spring and is looking to make his debut with the Redhawks this season.

No pitcher tossed more games for the AppleSox than Engman last summer and the right-hander will pitch in Wenatchee for a second consecutive season. Engman brought the heat on the mound by tossing two of the five-fastest pitches in the West Coast League in 2021 by hurling 96.2 and 96.3 mile-per hour fastballs against Bellingham on June 13. He also was the AppleSox’ Opening Day starter in their non-league season-opener against the Northwest Star Academy on June 1.

Engman transferred to Washington during last summer thanks to lighting up the radar gun. He played his freshman year at Tacoma CC and recorded a 4.85 ERA and 11 strikeouts in 13 innings. The Kent, Wash. native primarily pitched as a reliever with the AppleSox last summer but has started all three games that he has appeared in with the Huskies. On March 4 he twirled six scoreless innings against Yale, striking out four and only allowing two hits.

After making history in 2021 Stuka is looking to further cement his name in AppleSox lore in 2022. He became the first player in franchise history to hit for the cycle when he did so on July 2, 2021, against the Highline Bears. Stuka had a stretch of three weekends in a row in which he hit a home run for Wenatchee beginning with that first weekend of July.

Stuka is in his third year of college baseball this spring but is still a sophomore, thanks to being granted an additional year of eligibility due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He hit .269 and tied for Cal State San Marcos’ team lead for RBI with 15 in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. Stuka transferred to Saddleback CC (CA) in 2021 and hit a pair of home runs. He is off to a torrid start in 2022 with .361 average, two home runs and 13 RBI through his first 16 games.

The first four members of the AppleSox are signed and returning to Wenatchee this summer. Stay tuned to AppleSox.com and AppleSox social media pages for future roster announcements each Wednesday until the entire roster has been revealed.

Opening Day for the 2022 season is June 3 at the Bend Elks. The AppleSox play their first home game on June 6 against the Port Angeles Lefties in the first game of a six-game homestand to open up the home schedule. Season tickets can be purchased now for as affordable as $130. Guarantee your seats to all 33 home games at applesox.com/tickets/

AppleSox Add Lydon To 2022 Coaching Staff

The Wenatchee AppleSox have hired Marcus Lydon as an assistant coaches for the 2022 staff, head coach Mitch Darlington announced on Wednesday.

Lydon joins the AppleSox amidst his second season as the Assistant Director of Player Development and Student Manager at Oregon. He played for three different schools during his playing career, including briefly with the Ducks in 2020 before the COVID-19 shutdown. The Eugene, Oregon, native began his playing career at Seattle U in 2018 before transferring to Linn-Benton in 2019.

Lydon signed to play for the AppleSox in 2020 but never got the opportunity to since the season was cancelled. He is excited to join the team two years later, albeit in a different role.

“I am very excited to join the coaching staff in Wenatchee,” Lydon said. “After losing the opportunity to play with the AppleSox due to Covid, I am eager to prepare my players in their daily training and mental preparation to get them playing at their highest level. I heard the energy Coach Darlington has for the development and success of his players after our first conversation. It made it an easy yes for me to join him this summer.”

Lydon joins Darlington and associate head coach Aaron Vaughn in preparation for the 2022 season with roster construction.

“Marcus is a huge addition to our coaching staff,” Darlington said. “His Division-I coaching experience and high expectations for the organization are a perfect fit for what we are aiming to accomplish in Wenatchee. Marcus will primarily be working with our outfielders and catchers as well as handling a portion of our analytics work.”

Now that the coaching staff is set the AppleSox will begin announcing player signings next week. Stay tuned to applesox.com for news on the newest members of the AppleSox.

AppleSox Reveal 2022 Schedule

The full schedule is set for the Wenatchee AppleSox’ 2022 season, the 22nd in team history. League and non-league opponents are locked in and the countdown to the 2022 season is on.

The AppleSox open the season on June 3 on the road against the Bend Elks. Wenatchee’s home opener will be June 6 against the Port Angeles Lefties. The AppleSox will play 31 home games in 2022 with 27 of them coming in league play. All four of Wenatchee’s non-league games against three different opponents will take place in the Apple Capital.

The 2022 season represents the 17th in West Coast League history. The AppleSox, along with the Bend Elks, Bellingham Bells, Corvallis (then Aloha) Knights, Kelowna Falcons, and the now-defunct Kitsap BlueJackets (current Port Angeles Lefties) and Spokane RiverHawks, formed the West Coast League in 2005.

The League expands to a record-high 16 teams next summer. The Kelowna Falcons and Victoria HarbourCats are poised to return after sitting out the 2021 season and the two Canadian members will be joined north of the border by the Edmonton Riverhawks, Kamloops NorthPaws, and Nanaimo NightOwls, all three of whom were set to join the WCL in 2021. The Springfield Drifters from southern Oregon will also join the League as an expansion team.

The AppleSox travel to three of the four new teams in 2022. Following a three-game series against Victoria June 21-23, Wenatchee will continue its western Canada road trip by traveling from British Columbia to Alberta to face Edmonton over the weekend of June 24-26. Two weeks after their first journey of the season to Canada the AppleSox will embark on another six-game Canadian sojourn July 5-10. It begins against Kelowna and wraps up against Nanaimo. The AppleSox’ final expansion team road series comes July 29-31 against Kamloops. The NorthPaws are the only expansion team that Wenatchee hosts and visits in 2022.

Though the AppleSox open the season on the road for the first time since 2018, they end the regular season at home Aug. 5-7 against Walla Walla. Wenatchee has three different homestands of six-or-more games beginning with their first slate of home games. The AppleSox’ first three games at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium will be June 6-8 against Port Angeles. Following a day off, Wenatchee hosts Springfield before their first non-league game of the year against the Northwest Star Academy on June 13.

The next six-game homestand stretches from the end of June into July as Kelowna and Bend visit. Finally, the soon-to-be-renamed Highline Bears visit July 12-13 and the Corvallis Knights follow in between off days on July 14 and 18. Kamloops comes to town July 19-21 to wrap up the eight-game homestand, the longest of the 2022 season.

AppleSox season tickets are on sale now for as affordable as $130. You’ll receive seats to all 31 home games as well as invites to exclusive season-ticket holder events this offseason. Season tickets are also available at no cost to AppleSox fans if they host a player in 2022.

Lock in your seats and celebrate summer with the AppleSox by calling 509-665-6900 or emailing general manager Allie Schank at allie@applesox.com.

AppleSox Announce 2022 Coaching Staff Additions

The Wenatchee AppleSox have hired Mitch Darlington to be their sixth head coach in team history. Wenatchee Valley College head coach Aaron Vaughn has also been hired as associate head coach.

“We’re thrilled to welcome Mitch and Aaron to the AppleSox organization,” General Manager Allie Schank said. “An obvious benefit to hiring Mitch and Aaron is that they work nearby, but they also have tremendous personalities that will benefit this organization on and off the field.”

Darlington has coached elite high school players and helped prepare them for collegiate careers at the Baseball Northwest Championships since 2018. He served as an assistant coach at Big Bend Community College from 2017-19.

Darlington graduated from Cashmere High School in 2012 and went on to play baseball at Big Bend Community College before moving on to Central Washington. He works as the athletic director and physical education teacher at Mansfield High School and resides in Chelan.

"Having grown up in the Wenatchee Valley, watching the AppleSox play as a kid and now being able to coach the team is a dream come true,” Darlington said. “I know the passion and pride that our community takes in AppleSox baseball and I look forward to the challenge of exceeding those high expectations."

Vaughn was hired by Wenatchee Valley College on Aug. 8 to head coach their baseball team and will help Darlington and the AppleSox front office recruit the 2022 team. He worked as the pitching coach and strength coach in his three seasons at Big Bend prior to joining the Knights. Vaughn played collegiately at Northwest Nazarene before signing with the Houston Astros and playing a year in their minor leagues in 2014.

Ian Sanderson head coached the AppleSox in 2021 but will not return after accepting a position as the pitching coach at Oakland University. If a summer collegiate team employs an NCAA coach, whether as the head coach or as an assistant, then the summer team is not allowed to field any junior college players due to recruiting conflicts of interest. The AppleSox thank Sanderson for his time with the team and wish him continued success in his future endeavors.

The AppleSox will look to hire one more coach to fill out the final spot of their coaching staff.

The AppleSox’ 2022 schedule will be announced later this fall. Fans can ensure their seat to every home game with season tickets by emailing allie@applesox.com. Season tickets run as affordable as $133 and include invitations to free team events in the offseason. The AppleSox are also seeking host parents to house 2022 players. Host parents receive free season tickets as a thank you from the team for their support of AppleSox baseball. To purchase season tickets or sign up to be a host parent, please email allie@applesox.com.

Three AppleSox Earn 2021 WCL Honors

The West Coast League unveiled Wednesday its 2021 All-WCL Teams. Adam Grob, Enzo Apodaca and Skylar Hales all received all-league honors for their efforts this past summer.

Grob, a junior at South Carolina Upstate, appeared on the All-WCL First Team as a utility player. He appeared in 43 games with the AppleSox and started 27 at shortstop, 10 at third base and five as a designated hitter. Grob led the AppleSox with 10 doubles, 15 extra-base hits and 32 RBI. His four home runs and 38 hits both tied for the team lead.

Apodaca, a redshirt freshman at Gonzaga, earned All-WCL Honorable Mention after leading the league in walks this summer. In addition to his 38 free passes, Apodaca stole 15 bases, tied for fifth-most in the WCL. He hit .319 in his final 40 games and never went back-to-back game without reaching base during that span.

Hales, a sophomore at Santa Clara, earned All-WCL Honorable Mention after a strong summer as a multi-inning reliever. He tossed at least two innings in all nine of his appearances and posted a 2.16 ERA and 43 strikeouts in 25 innings. Hales’ most impressive outing came on July 24 when he tossed the 4.1 shutout innings and struck out 10 in relief against the Yakima Valley Pippins.

For a full list of honorees, please visit westcoastleague.com. The WCL will announce the Coach of the Year, Top Prospect, Executive of the Year and the Team Sportsmanship Award on Tuesday.

AppleSox Defeat Pippins To End 2021 Season

Jack Lee dominated on the mound and the bats backed him early as the Wenatchee AppleSox concluded their 2021 season with a 9-2 win over the Yakima Valley Pippins on Thursday night at Yakima County Stadium. 

The AppleSox split the season series with the Pippins, 3-3, by taking the final two games of the season. Each of the first two games this week were decided by one run, but the AppleSox put this game away early by taking a 7-0 lead into the bottom of the third. 

Lee (2-2) picked up his second consecutive win after tossing six shutout innings. In addition to tossing a season-high 96 pitches, Lee struck out a personal-best nine hitters. 

Enzo Apodaca singled three times, drew a walk and scored two runs. Apodaca led the West Coast League with 38 walks this summer.

Jackson Van De Brake scored three runs, tripled and walked twice. Ethan Stacy drove in three runs with two singles by plating Van De Brake and Guerrero in the third and then Van De Brake again in the seventh. Van De Brake single-handedly manufactured a run in the fifth by stealing second after drawing a free pass and eventually scoring on a wild pitch.

Each of the first five AppleSox hitters reached base to begin the game and four of them scored. Apodaca, Tino Bethancourt and A.J. Guerrero picked up RBI singles before Van De Brake hit into a fielder’s choice to bring in another run.

Jeffrey Heinrich tossed a 1-2-3 seventh before Connor Schlect retired the side in the eighth with two strikeouts. The Pippins scored two in the ninth to break up the shutout bid.

The AppleSox end the season 20-28 in WCL games and 7-2 in non-league games. They went 10-14 in the first half and then 10-14 in the second half. The AppleSox also were 10-14 at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium and 10-14 on the road. They won seven series and lost nine. The AppleSox started the season 8-12 in June, went 6-13 in July and finished 6-3 in August.

Now, the AppleSox begin preparations for the 2022 season. Fans who had season tickets in 2021 are encouraged to reach out to the AppleSox to notify the team on if they will be purchasing season tickets again in 2022. The sooner that you renew or purchase your season tickets, the more season-ticket holder privileges you will receive. Please email allie@applesox.com to renew or purchase 2022 season tickets. 

BOX SCORE

AppleSox Play Final 2021 Game Tonight

GAME NOTES

The Wenatchee AppleSox conclude their 2021 season with tonight’s 7:05 game against the Yakima Valley Pippins at Yakima County Stadium.

The AppleSox even up their season-ending series with a 5-4 win last night. Cole Hatton only allowed two earned runs and struck out five in five innings to pick up his second win of the season. Skylar Hales allowed one run in three innings before Chase Grillo fired a scoreless ninth for his fifth save of the summer.

Collin Villegas gave the AppleSox an early lead with a bases-clearing double in the third inning. Villegas did not have any RBI through his first 16 games of the summer but has driven in all nine of his RBI in the last six games. Three times in that span he has recorded multi-RBI efforts.

Garrett Cutting moved two triples away from tying Keston Hiura (2015) for the AppleSox single-season record of six with a fourth-inning 2-RBI triple to give the AppleSox the lead for good. Cutting recorded his fourth multi-hit game of the summer. All of them have come in the month of August spanning his last seven games. Cutting is hitting .360 (9-for-25) this month.

The AppleSox are out of playoff contention and will wrap up the 2021 season with tonight’s game. Bellingham hosts Yakima Valley for Game 1 of the West Coast League North Division Series on Saturday before the series shifts to Yakima for Game 2 on Sunday and, if necessary, Game 3 on Monday.

The South Division’s second-half playoff spot is still up for grabs. According to the West Coast League’s website, Portland earns it with a win or with a loss and a Bend loss. Bend claims the spot if the win and both Portland and Ridgefield lose. Ridgefield earns its first-ever playoff berth if it wins, Portland loses, and Bend wins. The winner of the second-half playoff spot will host Corvallis on Saturday before the series heads to Corvallis for Game 2 on Sunday and, if necessary, Game 3 on Monday.

The AppleSox send Jack Lee to the rubber for Thursday night’s game. He started last Friday at home and posted season highs for innings, strikeouts and pitches. He is 1-2 with an 8.10 ERA in four games, three starts, in league actions. Lee has also started two non-league games and posted a 4.50 ERA with nine strikeouts over six innings.

Payton Childers makes his first start in his first West Coast League game for the Yakima Valley Pippins. He had no record and a 1.76 ERA over 15.1 innings nine games (one start) for Yakima Valley College this spring.

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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 6:40 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show and the broadcast wraps up with the Denny’s Late Night Postgame Show. Joel Norman will provide play-by-play coverage.

Live stats can be found on Pointstreak.

AppleSox Even Up Series vs Pippins

Two big swings of the bat gave the Wenatchee AppleSox a 5-4 win over the Yakima Valley Pippins on Wednesday night at Yakima County Stadium. 

Collin Villegas cleared the bases with a two-out 3-RBI double in the second and Garrett Cutting plated a pair with a two-run triple the next inning. 

Villegas has now recorded all of his 9 RBI this season in the last six games. Cutting picked up  his fourth triple of the summer, all of which have come in the last six games. He is now two   triples away from tying Keston Hiura’s franchise record of six in 2015. 

Cole Hatton (2-2) struck out five over five innings in his final appearance of the summer. Skylar Hales followed with three strikeouts in three innings before Chase Grillo tossed a scoreless ninth to pick up his fifth save of the summer. Grillo is tied for third in the West Coast League in saves and is one off being tied for the lead.

The AppleSox wrap up their season on Thursday night when they face the Pippins at 7:05. Jack Lee gets the start in the final game of the 2021 summer.

BOX SCORE

AppleSox Send Hatton to Mound to Face Yakima Valley

GAME NOTES

The Wenatchee AppleSox look to even up their season-ending series tonight when they face the Yakima Valley Pippins at 6:35 p.m. at Yakima County Stadium.

The AppleSox rallied from two runs down entering the ninth inning to tie the game but surrendered the lead as the Pippins walked them off in the bottom half of the inning.

The AppleSox trailed 5-1 entering the fifth innings but Garrett Cutting hit a home run and A.J. Guerrero and TIno Bethancourt hit RBI singles for a three-run rally over two innings.

In the ninth, the AppleSox scored two runs without collecting a hit. Collin Villegas reached on a one-out error before Bethnacourt and Guerrero drew back-to-back walks to load up the bases. A wild pitch brought in one run and then Jackson Van De Brake hit a sacrifice fly to tie the game up in the ninth. It wasn't enough as three consecutive Pippins hitters reached base in the bottom of the ninth to walk off the AppleSox for the first time this summer.

Tyler Chipman suffered the tough-luck less after one of the best, if not the best, relief performances from an AppleSox pitcher this summer. Chipman entered the game in the fifth inning with runners at first and third and only one out. He went on to not only strand those two runners but also retired each of the first 13 hitters that he faced, nine via strikeouts. With two outs in the ninth, Chipman issued a full-count walk, allowed a soft infield single and then an error scored the game-winning run.

With his effort, Chipman became the second AppleSox pitcher to strike out at least nine in a game this summer, joining Skylar Hales, who also did it against the Pippins in a relief appearance back on July 24.

The Pippins enter tonight’s game rolling, winners of four straight after sweeping the Lefties prior to last night’s series-opening win. They are outscoring opponents 35-18 during this four-game streak, which comes on the heels of four straight losses prior to this surge.

Cole Hatton toes the rubber for the final time this summer tonight. He leads the AppleSox eight games started and 37.2 innings. Hatton is three strikeouts away from tying Skylar Hales (40) for the team lead. He has tossed at least five innings in two-of-his-last-three starts, including tossing a season-high six innings against Port Angeles last Wednesday.

Hatton will face Connor Wilson, a 2020 Chelan High School graduate. This is the third time that the AppleSox will face Wilson this summer. He picked up the win against the Sox on June 2 as a member of the Northwest Star Academy. He tossed 2.1 scoreless innings and struck out two in the Nighthawks’ 7-6 win. Wilson faced the AppleSox a second time on July 23 and struck out two in a scoreless ninth inning to wrap up the Pippins’ series-opening win over the AppleSox.

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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. Joel Norman will provide play-by-play coverage.

Live stats can be found on Pointstreak.

AppleSox Late Rally Not Enough vs Pippins

The Wenatchee AppleSox scored two runs in the top of the ninth to tie the game up but were walked off by the Yakima Valley Pippins, 7-6, on Tuesday night at Yakima County Stadium. 

Tino Bethancourt, A.J. Guerrero and Luc Stuka all recorded two-hit games and Garrett Cutting hit his first home run of the season. The real story of the night was Tyler Chipman. The 2018 Cashmere High School graduate came on with one out and two men on in the fifth and retired each of the next 13 hitters in order with nine via strikeouts. 

Remarkably, Chipman’s Herculean effort was not enough to send the game to extras. The Pippins drew a two-out rally in the ninth with a full-count walk, an infield single and an error to walk off the AppleSox. 

Before the Pippins won the game, the AppleSox tied it up without collecting a hit. Collin Villegas reached on an error and Bethancourt and Guerrero followed with walks to load up the bases. A wild pitch scored Villegas and Jackson Van De Brake hit a sacrifice fly with one out.

The AppleSox trailed 5-1 entering the fifth inning but rallied back to eventually tie it up. Cutting homered to lead off the inning and Guerrero singled in one for a two-run inning. After the Pippins got the run back in the bottom of the inning, Enzo Apodaca hit a two-out RBI single in the sixth.

Cole Hatton toes the rubber for the AppleSox in game two of the three-game series on Wednesday night at 6:36 p.m.

FULL SCORE

Final Road Trip of 2021 Starts Tonight

GAME NOTES

The Wenatchee AppleSox travel to the “Palm Springs of Washington” to face the Yakima Valley Pippins for their final three-game series of the season beginning tonight at 6:35.

The AppleSox are fresh off taking six-of-eight games on their most recent homestand. They took both games against the Northwest Star Academy, swept the Port Angeles Lefties and then won the first game against the Cowlitz Black Bears for six consecutive wins before losing on Saturday and Sunday.

Wenatchee faces the Yakima Valley Pippins for the second series this summer. The AppleSox defeated the Pippins, 15-7, on July 23 for their largest margin of victory this summer at the time and their most runs scored in a game this summer to that point. The Pippins opened the series with a 15-5 win and bookended it with a 5-1 triumph.

Yakima Valley clinched the North Division first-half postseason spot record with a 15-9 record. It marked the second season that Head Coach Kyle Krustangel made the playoffs after leading the AppleSox to the postseason in 2019. They currently lead the second half by two games over Bellingham, who has already clinched the second-half playoff berth.

This is the first time since 2016 that the AppleSox enter the final weekend of the season out of playoff contention. This comes despite the AppleSox soaring offensively. The AppleSox outscored opponents 83-60 during their eight game homestand in which they won each of the first six games. The AppleSox are averaging 10.6 runs per game over their last eight and have scored 10-or-more runs four times since July 30.

The AppleSox have also hit the long ball plenty as of late. The Sox have homered in a season-best nine consecutive West Coast League games. Their 11 home runs in that span of their 24 this summer represents 46-percent of their season total. During the lengthy homestand the AppleSox hit their first three home runs of the season that were three-run shots or grand slams. Ethan Stacy connected on a three-shot on Saturday after Jackson Van De Brake and Michael O'Hara hit grand slams earlier in the week. Including non-league games the AppleSox have hit 33 home runs in 2021.

Tonight’s starting pitcher is Cam Liss. He has tossed five-or-more innings four times this season, including non-league games. His most recent start came on Aug. 3 when he tossed a season-high six innings against Port Angeles, but allowed a season-high six runs. Liss has struck out at least five in four-of-six games in WCL games and in both of his non-league starts.

The Pippins send Kirby Robertson to the mound for his sixth start of the summer. He is 2-1 with a 3.90 ERA and 19 strikeouts in 30 innings. Robertson has tossed at least five innings in every start and has allowed three-runs-or-less in four of them.

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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. Joel Norman will provide play-by-play coverage.

Live stats can be found on Pointstreak.

AppleSox Host Movie Night Tonight

The Wenatchee AppleSox will have one more summer night at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium.

Come out tonight to watch the original Angels In The Outfield movie at 6 p.m. Admission is free and food and drink will be available for purchase at discounted prices. The souvenir stand will be open as well with 25% off all items. Gates open at 5:30.

The AppleSox are off tonight but will face the Yakima Valley Pippins at 6:35 p.m. Tuesday night for the first of a three-game series to wrap up the 2021 season. All three games can be heard at 93.9 FM in Wenatchee, 98.1 FM in East Wenatchee and on your computer worldwide at kcsyfm.com.

Wenatchee Loses in Final Home Game of the Season

Wenatchee fell in the final game at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium this summer to Cowlitz 13-8. With the offense flying high once again, Wenatchee and Cowlitz traded back-to-back two-run innings in the first and second to head into the third inning tied at four. The Black Bears exploded with five runs in the top of the third to stretch their lead past the point of no return. But the ‘Sox certainly gave it their best try.

Enzo Apodaca, Adam Grob and Tino Bethancourt all had multi-hit nights right on top of each other in the higher part of the batting order. Grob, in his final game of the summer, collected three hits in his first three at-bats to finish the night with two runs and two runs batted in. Apodaca powered the offense tonight with a season-high four hits in four trips with a walk thrown into the mix. Apodaca even finished his night with his third home run of the season in league play in the bottom of the eighth.

Finally, Tino Bethancourt continued to dazzle the home fans with one last performance tonight. Bethancourt had two hits in five at-bats. Even more fitting, in his final game of the summer playing third base at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium, Bethancourt defined tough with a charging throw across the diamond for an out just a few hours after he got hit in the cheek by a batting practice ground ball.

Gavin Gorrell took the loss after going two and two-thirds in his last start of the summer. The AppleSox enjoyed fine relief outings from Cole Bertram and Jared Engman as both tossed a combined three innings without any runs making it home.

Now officially out of the playoff picture, the AppleSox will play three more games next week when they wrap up the 2021 season by visiting the Yakima Valley Pippins. Game one on Tuesday will begin at 6:35 p.m. from Yakima County Stadium. Be sure to tune into the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show at 6:10 on kcsyfm.com.

We hope you enjoyed the return of Wenatchee AppleSox baseball this summer! We couldn’t have done it without your support and we look forward to more of it next summer in the Wenatchee Valley!

BOX SCORE

AppleSox Conclude 2021 Home Schedule Tonight

The Wenatchee AppleSox play their final home game of the 2021 season tonight against the Cowlitz Black Bears at 5:35 at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium.

The AppleSox wrap up the home slate this evening looking to take two-of-three against the Black Bears. Wenatchee won, 19-9, Friday before falling, 11-5, last night. It’s been an impressive homestand so far as the AppleSox won the first six games before losing the second game of this series against Cowlitz.

Despite the loss, the AppleSox continued their power surge at the plate. Ethan Stacy, an incoming sophomore at Lower Columbia, hit a three-run home run in the ninth last night to give the AppleSox their eighth consecutive West Coast League game with a home run and his first long ball of the summer.

The AppleSox have an opportunity tonight to win their seventh series of the summer and are playing their ninth rubber match of the summer. Wenatchee has split all eight of their previous winner-take-the-series games.

Batting with the bases-loaded has been a regular theme for the AppleSox this week. 2021 Tommy Watanabe Award Winner Michael O'Hara hit a grand slam on Friday and Jackson Van De Brake hit the team's first grand slam on Tuesday against Port Angeles.

Last night, it was what the AppleSox didn't do with the bases-loaded that hurt them. They batted with the bases-loaded and no outs but could not score any runs in the first inning. All five of their runs came in the final two innings. Wenatchee is outscoring opponents 46-15 from the fifth inning on in their last five games.

Gavin Gorrell gets the start for the AppleSox for his final game of the summer. It will be his fifth start of the season but his first since June 25. Gorrell started each of the first four games that he pitched in this season before moving to the bullpen. In nine games (four starts) he has a 5.91 ERA and has struck out 30 in 24.1 innings.

Cowlitz counters with Michael Benz. He is 2-3 with a 2.20 ERA with 22 strikeouts over 32.2 innings in 17 games. Benz allowed two unearned runs on one hit and three walks against the AppleSox in four innings on June 22. Tonight will be his first start of the summer.

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Tonight is the final home game of the 2021 season and is also Host Family Appreciation Night. Those who have housed AppleSox players this summer will be honored on-field prior to tonight’s game. If you are interested in housing a player in 2019 or would like more information about hosting an AppleSox player, please call 509-665-6900 and speak with AppleSox general manager Allie Schank.

Gates open at 4:30 tonight and tickets can be purchased at the ballpark. Fans are encouraged to stop by the third-base souvenir stand and pick a signed AppleSox team photo.

If you can’t make it to the ballpark, the AppleSox will provide a live video broadcast with a synced-up radio feed. It can be seen on playsight.com. Joel Norman and Reily Chestnut will provide play-by-play coverage.

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.

Michael O'Hara Wins 2021 Tommy Watanabe Award

Michael O’Hara, an outfielder from the Santa Clara University, received the 2021 Tommy Watanabe Award prior to Saturday night’s Wenatchee AppleSox game against the Cowlitz Black Bears.

O’Hara has collected nine multi-hit games this summer and leads the AppleSox with five three-hit nights. Friday night he hit his first home run of the season with a fifth-inning grand slam. Michael is not only a fan-favorite for his work with the bat. Whether he’s celebrating with a young fan after winning the Wenatchee World Newspaper Delivery Race or trading his bat to a youngster in exchange for his grand slam ball last night, Michael has made fans smile all summer long.

“This summer, there are so many deserving players,” AppleSox general manager Allie Schank said. “Michael stood out to us because of the effect he had on his teammates, his presence with kids at the youth camps and his love of the game.”

O’Hara becomes the third different played to earn the honor joining Jacob Prater in 2018 and Johnny Sage in 2019.

To learn more about Tommy Watanabe and the Award, please visit applesox.com/tommy-watanabe-award

Mistakes Halt Wenatchee's Hot Streak Against Cowlitz

The Wenatchee AppleSox’s winning streak ended tonight as Cowlitz evened the series up with an 11-5 victory. Cowlitz jumped out to an early 4-0 lead in the second after the ‘Sox committed two errors in the frame. From there Cowlitz scored in their next two innings to add to their lead. With three more runs in the ninth, Cowlitz rode that offensive surge to victory. That doesn’t mean the AppleSox gave in.

In their last two innings, Wenatchee scored all five of their runs. Right fielder Enzo Apodaca got back into the hit column and managed to drive in new ‘Sox infielder Ethan Stacy home with an exciting play at the plate. Stacy didn’t beat the throw, but he beat the tag by catcher Jacob Burley. Two batters later, Adam Grob hit a grounder that third baseman Dawson Martin threw too low to first base and gave Apodaca a free pass to home plate. But the fun wasn’t done.

With two runners on, Stacy was back and with one swing he brought the boom! Stacy slugged a high fly ball just over the right field foul pole to give the home crowd a little jolt. Wenatchee has now homered in eight straight games, the most games in a row this summer!

Skylar Hales took the loss but showed just how talented he was on the bump. Hales struck out seven in just three innings in his first ‘Sox start. The AppleSox even witnessed a new face on the hill. Incoming CWU freshman Connor Schlect entered the game in the fourth inning and settled in for the rest of the game. Schlect struck out three hitters and retired ten straight batters at one point in his first game.

The AppleSox will return for their final home game of the regular season tomorrow. First pitch against Cowlitz will be at 5:35! Tickets are available at www.applesox.com/tickets.

BOX SCORE

Wenatchee Looks to Extend Season-Best Winning Streak against Cowlitz

GAME NOTES

Tonight at 6:35 in Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium, Wenatchee will play round two against the Cowlitz Black Bears hoping to capture the series. To say the ‘Sox are hot would be an understatement.

The AppleSox overcame early struggles once again to pound the Cowlitz Black Bears 19-9 last night. Wenatchee fell behind 5-1 due to a performance that saw Wenatchee commit a season-high seven errors in a WCL contest. But, the Sox never failed to get runners on base. After leaving nine men on base through four frames, Wenatchee exploded. The Sox got 12 runs in the fifth with only two hits in the frame. Both just happened to leave the yard.

Michael O'Hara's grand slam was the first big fly and then Adam Grob hit his fifth home run overall and fourth in league play. Even with nine runs off the Sox, the deficit was too much to overcome for Cowlitz. Along with O'Hara and Grob, shortstop Garrett Cutting collected his third straight two-hit start. One of those hits happened to be Cutting's third triple in as many games. Every Sox starter got on base at least once against the Black Bears in last night's series opener. The Sox drew 15 walks and eight hit-by-pitches in the batter's box.

This win moved the AppleSox within two games of Bellingham in the second half standings for second place. Overall, Wenatchee is three games behind Bellingham as the Bells host Highline for a non-league weekend set. This four-game winning streak is incredible just because the Sox have trailed in all four games by at least three runs before storming back.

Diving into the numbers, Wenatchee is seventh in batting average with a .232 mark. Don't be fooled though. The Sox are hitting .299 in their last four games with an average of nearly 13 runs per game. The big difference has played into the team’s biggest strength this summer. Wenatchee has earned 38 walks and struck out just 26 times in the past week over 127 at-bats. In the four games against Cowlitz's top-three pitching staff (3.66 ERA - third in WCL), the Sox have scored five or more runs in three out of four games.

Standing tall for the AppleSox today is starter Skylar Hales. The incoming sophomore out of Santa Clara has been dazzling this summer. Entering his first start, Hales leads the team with a 1.42 earned run average over seven appearances. Hales, who is second in team strikeouts (33), delivered the most dominant pitching performance of the summer his last outing in Wenatchee. The Reno, Nevada native struck out ten Pippins over four-and-a-third innings pitched without giving up a run back on July 24th.

Cowlitz has not announced their starter for tonight’s game.

Tickets are available for tonight’s game as well as the final home game tomorrow and can be purchased on your computer at applesox.com/tickets or at the ballpark. Gates open at 5:30 tonight.

If you cannot make it over to Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium tonight, the AppleSox will provide a live video broadcast with a synced-up radio feed. It can be seen on playsight.com. Joel Norman and Reily Chestnut will provide play-by-play coverage.

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.

Twelve-Run Fifth Buoys AppleSox Past Black Bears

For the fourth consecutive night the Wenatchee AppleSox trailed halfway though a game and rallied to win. They scored 12 runs in the fifth inning to defeat the Cowlitz Black Bears, 19-9, on Friday night at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium.

Michael O’Hara hit a grand slam and Adam Grob smacked a two-run homer in that long bottom of the fifth as the AppleSox scored 12 runs in an inning for the second time this week. The AppleSox set new offensive single-game highs in the 2021 season for runs scored and batters hit by pitch (eight). They drew more walks (13) than they collected base-hits (12).

O’Hara and Grob were the two most impressive contributors of the dynamite offensive effort from the AppleSox. O’Hara collected his ninth multi-hit game and second three-hit performance of 2021 while also reaching base in all but one of his six plate appearances. Grob drove in three runs and also reached base in five-of-six plate appearances. He

Trailing 6-4 entering the bottom of the fifth, the AppleSox sent 15 men to the plate and only collected two hits in the inning thanks to the two aforementioned home runs. Eleven hitters batted before O’Hara’s slam and nine of them reached base either via a walk or hit by pitch. The Black Bears used three different pitchers in the fifth, including the first of four position players on the evening.

Jack Lee (1-2) earned his first win of the season in his longest effort of the summer. He struck out seven in five innings and received his best run support of the summer.

Garrett Cutting continued his torrid stretch at the plate. He tripled for the third consecutive game and drove in three runs. He has recorded three consecutive three-hit games, has collected at least one hit in six-of-his-last-seven games and is batting .500 in his last 12 at-bats.

Ethan Stacy, signed a day prior, made his AppleSox debut in the sixth and remained in the game to play shortstop. He pinch-hit for Jackson Van De Brake and drove in a run with a groundout then singled in the eighth.

The AppleSox look to take the series and win their seventh consecutive game in this homestand on Saturday night when they face the Black Bears again at 6:35. Neither team has announced a probable pitcher for the game.

BOX SCORE

Listen to postgame interviews with O’Hara and Grob below.