AppleSox Continue Weekend Series With Corvallis Tonight

GAME NOTES

The Wenatchee AppleSox face the Corvallis Knights again tonight at 6:35 p.m. in the second game of their three-game series at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium.

The AppleSox scored three runs in the first inning last night and tied it up with a pair of runs in the ninth inning but lost in 10 innings as the Knights scored five-of-their-seven runs with two outs. Ryan Mullan only allowed two runs over six innings on the mound but suffered a no decision in his final appearance of the summer.

Last night’s loss snapped Wenatchee’s five-game win streak (three in WCL play, two non-league victories) and was their first series-opening loss since June 24 against Edmonton. The AppleSox had won the first game of a three-game series in each of their four opportunities. The loss also was the AppleSox’ 12th in 13 games against teams with winning records.

Despite the loss, two different AppleSox hitters extended their hitting streaks. Joichiro Oyama stretched his to 12 games with a pair of base-hits and Matt Halbach extended his to eight with two hits of his own. Oyama tied Michael Davinni for the longest by an AppleSox hitter this season after Davinni collected a hit in each of the first 12 games of the summer.

Wenatchee has now dropped 12 consecutive games to Corvallis, their longest multi-year losing streak against any opponent in their history. The bulk of the Knight's damage against the AppleSox came with a six-game series sweep last year but the it has been over four years since Wenatchee last beat Corvallis, doing so on June 12, 2018, with a 4-0 win at Goss Stadium.

Riley Sinclair makes his fourth start of the summer and fifth appearance overall tonight. He is coming off his best outing of the season to date when he only allowed one run in four innings against the Kelowna Falcons on July 5 and picked up the victory. Sinclair’s only run allowed in that game came in the first inning and then he buckled down to toss fourth shutout innings afterward. The right-hander from Seattle U is 1-0 with a 5.55 ERA along with nine strikeouts, seven walks and 11 hits in 11.1 innings pitched.

Corvallis counters with Kaden Segel, a right-hander heading into his sophomore year at Linn-Benton Community College. He enters tonight 2-1 with a 2.07 ERA in seven appearances, four starts, and has struck out 16, walked 11 and allowed 16 hits in 21.2 innings. Segel faced four batters in relief on Thursday night, allowing three to reach while recording one out before being relieved. None of those inherited runners scored and Corvallis went on to win, 7-4, in the rubber match.

Tonight’s game can be listened to live on kcsyfm.com on your computer or smart phone. If you live in Washington you can listen on your radio on any of the following stations:

·      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

Coverage of tonight’s game begins at 6:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show. Stick around after the game to hear the postgame show with player and coach interviews.

Halbach’s Heroics Not Enough On Friday

Matt Halbach hit a game-tying two-run RBI single in the bottom of the ninth but the Wenatchee AppleSox fell to the Corvallis Knights, 7-5, in 10 innings on Friday night at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium.

Halbach tied it up after back-to-back one-out walks and went to second on a throwing error but was stranded at second as the potential game-winning run. Corvallis scored twice with two outs in the 10th inning before retiring the AppleSox in order in the bottom of the 10th to win the weekend opener.

Ryan Mullan struck out four and only allowed two runs over six innings in his final start of the summer and left with the AppleSox in the lead, 3-2. He picked up his final strikeout with runners at second and third in the sixth after his defense turned a couple of brilliant defensive plays in the prior two innings. Third baseman Brandham Ponce caught a liner with runners at second and third and one out and then stepped on third base for the inning-ending unassisted double play in the sixth. Mullan recorded the second out of the fourth inning with a strikeout but with a runner at first the ball got away from catcher Ezra Samperi, who calmly picked up and tossed to second base to get the inning-ending forceout.

The AppleSox scored first with three runs in the first inning. Michael Davinni hit a sacrifice fly after Joichiro Oyama led off with a single and Matt Halbach reached on an error. Adam Fahsel reached on another error to put runners at first and second and Aiva Arquette laid down a perfect suicide-squeeze bunt first-base side to sacrifice himself but score Halbach. Fahsel came all the way around for second to score on a two-out infield single by Adam Fahsel to punctuate the big inning.

Corvallis scored a pair of runs in the third and then two more in the seventh after Mullan had exited the game. They scored one more for insurance in the eighth before the AppleSox tied it up. Five of the Knights’ seven runs scored with two outs.

Oyama extended his hitting streak to 12 games, matching Davinni for the longest hitting streak by an AppleSox hitter this summer. He also scored two runs to move six runs away from matching the AppleSox and the West Coast League’s single-season record of 47.

Halbach also extended his hitting streak to eight games with his 13th multi-hit game of the summer. He now has the third-best batting average in the WCL with a .360 mark.

Wenatchee honored former head coach and current Corvallis associate head coach Ed Knaggs before the game as founder Jim Corcoran, general manager Allie Schank and head coach Mitch Darlington presented him with his blue no. 11 AppleSox jersey. Knaggs led the AppleSox to six league championships and 12 playoff berths in 14 seasons with the team from 2001-14.

The AppleSox look to bounce back on Saturday at 6:35 p.m. as Riley Sinclair toes the rubber in the second game of the weekend series. Tickets can be purchased at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium.

AppleSox Host Knights In Crucial Mid-July Series

GAME NOTES

The Wenatchee AppleSox face the Corvallis Knights this weekend in a pivotal series at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium beginning Friday at 6:35 p.m.

The AppleSox sit a half game back of the second-best overall record in the North Division. Wenatchee is 4-2 in the second half so far and can make the playoffs by either having the best record in the second half in the division or by earning the third or fourth seeds by virtue of having the third or fourth-best overall record in the division. 

The AppleSox swept a two-game non-league set against the DubSea Fish Sticks earlier this week with a 22-2 win on Tuesday and a 20-6 win on Wednesday. Wenatchee has now scored 60 runs in its last three games, including their 18-1 victory over Nanaimo on Sunday in Game 2 of the doubleheader. League and non-league games combined the AppleSox have won five straight and are 2-0 on this eight-game homestand.

Corvallis won the first half South Division berth to qualify for the postseason for the 15th consecutive season. The Knights opened the season with nine consecutive wins before suffering their first loss. Since winning 11-of-their-first-12 games Corvallis is 10-10 and has lost four-of-their-last-six three-game series while also splitting a two-game set with Portland.

Friday's game offers a bit of sentimental value as former AppleSox head coach Ed Knaggs returns to Wenatchee. Knaggs won six championships (2003, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2012) and guided the AppleSox to 12 consecutive playoff berths (2002-13) in 14 seasons with Wenatchee from 2001-14. He is the all-time winningest AppleSox skipper with a 493-273 record in league play. Knaggs is in his third season as the associate head coach for the Corvallis Knights. He helped them capture championships in 2018 and 2019 before taking 2021 off and then returning this summer. This will be his first time coaching in Wenatchee from the visitor's dugout.

Knaggs isn't the only former member of the AppleSox returning to Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium. Corvallis pitching coach Beau Kerns played for the AppleSox from 2012-13 and also played at Wenatchee Valley College those same two years. He recorded a 1.47 ERA in 10 games for Wenatchee Valley College in 2012 before posting a 2.58 ERA in 19 games for the AppleSox that summer. Kerns followed that up with a 1.87 ERA in 13 games in the spring of 2013 before recording a 2.82 ERA in 10 games for the AppleSox. Kerns is in his second season with the Knights coaching staff and also was the pitching coach for the Yakima Valley Pippins in 2019.

Friday’s game is Return of the Evil Empire Night. The first 100 kids to arrive to Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium will receive inflatable lightstabers. Tickets can be purchased at saferseating.com.

Tonight’s game can be listened to live on kcsyfm.com on your computer or smart phone. If you live in Washington you can listen on your radio on any of the following stations:

·      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

Coverage of tonight’s game begins at 6:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show. Stick around after the game to hear the postgame show with player and coach interviews.

Offense Rules the Day, AppleSox Complete Sweep of Fish Sticks

After putting up more than 20 runs a night ago, the Wenatchee AppleSox pull off another 20 plus run game against the DubSea Fish Sticks with the scoreboard reading 20-6 as Connor Wilson recorded the final out of the game.

A fairly pedestrian first inning from both sides opened the game as both pitchers worked efficiently to get back in the dugout and give their side a chance at bat. It was a completely different story once the second inning rolled around after starting pitcher Tyler Chipman tossed a scoreless top half.

Twelve AppleSox batters would score in the bottom half of the second frame. The scoring began with an Enzo Apodaca solo blast to right field, his first of the summer, to plate the game’s first run. The Sox would continue to get runners on base throughout the inning and knock the ball around the ballpark as they continued to drive in run after run. Joichiro Oyama had another big hit in the inning with a bases-clearing triple that brought the AppleSox lead to 12-0 with plenty of ballgame left to play.

Tyler Chipman would get into some trouble in the third and the Fish Sticks would score their first run of the game. With the bases loaded and only one out, Chipman escaped the jam by striking out the next batter he faced and then was able to induce a fly ball out to left field. This would end Chipman’s night giving him three innings on work, allowing one run on three hits, and two strikeouts.

The AppleSox would score another eight runs over the course of three innings started in the bottom of the fifth when Xander Orejudos scored Oyama on a triple in the gap. Orejudos would later score on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Michael Davinni to score the second and final run of the inning. Three more AppleSox batters would come around to score in the sixth as well as in the seventh. As part of the seventh inning scoring, Grant Sherrod launched a two-run home run to left field, his second of the season, to bring the score to a 19-6 AppleSox lead. By the end of the inning, the Sox would score their 20th run of the ballgame.

The winning decision went to Will Jacobson who pitched three innings in relief from the fifth to the seventh. The seven-footer allowed three hits and one run during his outing and punched out two batters. Connor Wilson would enter the game in the eighth inning and was lights out in the final two frames as he went six-up, six-down to finish the game.

Before the final out was recorded, AppleSox fans got to witness a couple of new batters take their swings in the batter’s box. The pitching staff got in on the fun with Reese Ligtenberg, Jake Putnam, and Mason Philley getting their chances to take some cuts in the eighth inning. Quincy Vassar also got an at-bat in the inning, the second night in a row he has stepped up to the plate.

Tonight’s game ended at a final score of 20-6, the second night in a row that the AppleSox have hit the 20-run mark. They have now scored 60 total runs in their last three games while allowing only nine.  

The AppleSox hope to carry their offensive firepower into the weekend as they take on the Corvallis Knights for a three-game series that begins on Friday. An off-day tomorrow gives pitchers time to rest and refresh while the team prepares for a formidable opponent in a Knights team that currently sits in second place in the WCL South Division. Tickets are available at saferseating.com.

AppleSox Look to Complete Two-Game Series Sweep of DubSea

After a thumping of the DubSea Fish Sticks a night ago, the Wenatchee AppleSox look to continue their hot streak by winning their fifth consecutive game tonight. The Sox have done a superb job on the mound and at the plate and appear to have found their groove over the last week dating back to their victory last Friday night over Nanaimo.

It was a hot one last night with temperatures rising to 97 degrees during the day and cooling off only a tad by gametime. The Sox were able to adapt to the heat and propel themselves to a 22-2 win over DubSea. As a team, the AppleSox collected 19 hits with four going for extra bases and they also stole a total of five bags. By the end of the game, pitchers Quincy Vassar and Riley Sinclair both made appearances, but not on the mound. They both pinch-hit in the bottom of the eighth in a game that by that point was well out of reach for the visitors.

On the mound, Felix Schlede, Davis Spencer, and Anthony Sendejas shut down the opposing bats by only allowing three hits and combining for ten strikeouts on the night. Schlede did not allow a hit in 4.1 innings of work, Spencer was credited with the win, and Sendejas earned the save.

Looking back since Friday, July 8th at Nanaimo, the AppleSox have an absurd run differential of +51 in which they have scored 58 runs while only allowing seven. In that same stretch, Matt Halbach has recorded four consecutive multi-hit games, adding on to an already impressive summer at the plate.

With the momentum on their side, the AppleSox go into tonight’s game with a full head of steam and look to replicate their recent successes. While tonight’s result will not count towards league standings and the AppleSox’ pursuit of the playoffs, there is still meaning in tonight’s game as it allows the hitters to get their reps at the dish to further build confidence in the batter’s box. A tough stretch of games lies ahead with the Corvallis Knights coming into town for a three-game set this weekend, so taking advantage of opportunities now to prepare for the upcoming series is essential to the future success of the ballclub as the regular season winds down.

Taking the hill tonight to try and complete the two-game series sweep is Tyler Chipman, a junior at Seattle University. The sidewinder from Cashmere, Wash. is looking to get back on track after his most recent performance at home against the Bend Elks. Chipman is playing in his second year with the AppleSox and will look to shut down the Fish Sticks this evening.

We’ve reached the halfway point of the week, and that means tonight is WINatchee Wednesday. All fans in attendance tonight are eligible to win prizes from local Wenatchee businesses from the third-through-sixth innings. Tickets are available at saferseating.com and gates open at 5:30 p.m.

Tonight’s game can be listened to live on kcsyfm.com on your computer or smart phone. If you live in Washington you can listen on your radio on any of the following stations:

·      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

Coverage of tonight’s game begins at 6:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show. Stick around after the game to hear the postgame show with player and coach interviews.

Hot Bats Lead the Way for AppleSox in Victory Over Fish Sticks

The bats continue to stay red hot for the AppleSox as they blow the DubSea Fish Sticks out of the water with a 22-2 victory on Tuesday night.

While the Fish Sticks scratched the first run of the game, their lead would not last as a three-run second inning by the AppleSox gave them a lead they would not surrender for the rest of the night. Corey Jarrell got the scoring started with an RBI single to get Wenatchee on the board and it would also kick off an excellent night at the dish for the center fielder. He would go on to reach base five times in six plate appearances and drove in two runs in the win.

The Sox would strike again in the third inning by plating another three runs to take a 6-1 lead, allowing Felix Schlede, tonight’s starting pitcher, to settle in on the mound. The righty from Seattle, Wash. would toss a scoreless fourth inning with the end of his outing coming an inning later in the top of the fifth. Schlede’s final line would read 4.1 innings pitched, two runs allowed, and four strikeouts.

Davis Spencer and Anthony Sendejas were both brilliant out of the pen as they each recorded three strikeouts and combined for only three hits allowed down the stretch. Sendejas would toss three innings and would go on to earn the save, while Spencer was credited with the win.

The bulk of the AppleSox’ runs came later in the game as they put up a seven-spot in both the fifth and seventh innings while adding another two in the sixth. Xander Orejudos led the way through the onslaught as he cleared the bases with a three-run triple in the fifth. On the night, he tallied three total hits and drove in five runs out of the leadoff spot.

With the game well out of reach in the bottom of the eighth inning, Quincy Vassar and Riley Sinclair, both pitchers for the AppleSox, picked up a bat and entered the game as pinch-hitters. Vassar reached base on a four-pitch walk and was shortly after called out at second as part of a double play that Sinclair would ground into.

As Sendejas closed out the game on a pop-out to Vassar at first base, the AppleSox emerged victorious to the tune of a 22-2 victory over the Fish Sticks. The offensive firepower tonight gives the AppleSox a total of 40 runs scored in their last two games.

The AppleSox will battle the Fish Sticks again tomorrow night at 6:35 p.m. in another non-league matchup. It is also WINatchee Wednesday meaning that all fans in attendance are eligible to win prizes from local Wenatchee businesses from the third-through-sixth innings. Tickets are available at saferseating.com.

AppleSox Take On Fish Sticks Tonight in Non-League Matchup

The Wenatchee AppleSox are riding high coming into Tuesday’s action as they are coming off a series sweep of the Nanaimo NightOwls over the weekend. Their win on Sunday concluded a six-game road trip that took place in Canada with the ball club starting in Kelowna and finishing in Nanaimo. An off-day on Monday allows the team some rest before getting back into it this evening with the Dub Sea Fish Sticks coming to town this evening for a two-game non-league series with first pitch tonight scheduled for 6:35 p.m.

It was a great weekend for the AppleSox as they took all three games in the series against the NightOwls and capped it off with a commanding 18-1 victory in the nightcap of Sunday’s doubleheader. Seven Wenatchee bats collected multi-hit games in the win, and Riley Sinclair who has largely been a pitcher for the AppleSox this season recorded his first hit in his first at-bat this season. Pitching was extraordinary in the series as the staff combined for only five runs allowed in three games. It was a series to be proud of and the AppleSox showed resiliency by taking both games of the doubleheader on Sunday to put themselves in playoff contention as they sit in third in the North Division in the WCL standings.

Tonight’s game against the Dub Sea Fish Sticks is the first of a two-game set that will not count towards league standings. It will be a good opportunity for the AppleSox to give some of their players some rest as they need it as well as giving reps to those looking to get more at-bats or innings on the mound as this team strives towards the postseason over the last month of the season. The Fish Sticks have played one non-league game this year against a WCL team in which they defeated the Bellingham Bells by a score of 8-4 on July 3rd. Their best offensive performance came from the right-handed hitting shortstop, DJ Massey as he went 3-for-5 out of the leadoff spot with a double and an RBI. They also got a noteworthy performance out of their starting pitcher, Davis Franklin, who tossed seven innings of shutout baseball while only allowing four hits and walking one.

The bats will look to stay hot tonight after plating 36 runs against Nanaimo in the weekend slate. That number also marks the most runs they have scored in a single series this season. After not having played a game since the opening series on the road at the beginning of June, Corey Jarrell made his return from injury over the road trip and logged two hits over four total plate appearances in the doubleheader on Sunday while also knocking in two runs. Joichiro Oyama extended his hit streak to 11 games, the longest he has this year. Adam Fahsel had a fantastic series as he recorded three multi-hit games and added a homerun to his stat sheet with a solo blast on Friday night. Speaking of home runs, Cole Miller hit his first tater of the year in his 4-for-5 performance on Sunday night.

Traditionally, a good offense will make life easier for the pitching staff and that was certainly the case this weekend. Quincy Vassar had the highlight performance of the series with a seven-inning, three-hit performance where he did not allow any runs in the 12-1 win over Nanaimo on Friday night. Jake Putnam, a native of Danville, Cali. attending Santa Clara University, tossed three scoreless innings of relief on Sunday where he allowed only one hit and struck out four batters. The pitching staff will look to stay locked in over the coming weeks starting tonight in Wenatchee.

With the offense firing on all cylinders, Felix Schlede should be able to take the mound with ease as tonight’s starting pitcher. He is coming off a relief performance where he logged 2.2 innings and allowing only one run and one hit in the AppleSox’ 9-5 loss to the Bend Elks on July 3rd. Schlede, an incoming freshman at Central Arizona College, is looking to keep the AppleSox in the win column to further build momentum going into a big weekend series against the Corvallis Knights.

It certainly will feel like summer tonight, so make sure to take advantage of that summertime feeling with great food and great baseball on another $2 off Tuesday at the ballpark. We have $2 off general admission and premium tickets, $2 off hot dogs, burgers, and Coors Light draft pours! Tonight is also a Taco Tuesday where you can get three tacos for $7.

Tickets are still available to be purchased for today’s game and fans can do so by heading to saferseating.com or by purchasing their tickets in-person at the gate.

Tonight’s game can be listened to live on kcsyfm.com on your computer or smart phone. If you live in Washington you can listen on your radio on any of the following stations:

·      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

Coverage of today’s game begins at 6:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show. Stick around after the game to hear the postgame show with player and coach interviews.

AppleSox Sweep Doubleheader, NightOwls

The Wenatchee AppleSox swept Sunday’s doubleheader with 6-3 and 18-1 wins to take all three games against the NightOwls this weekend at Serauxmen Stadium. 

The AppleSox never trailed in either game or in any of the three games of their second sweep of the summer. After scoring five runs in three games against Kelowna to open the trip they bounced back to score 32 runs in 23 innings over three games against Nanaimo.

Cole Miller led the offense by reaching base a combined eight times in the two games Sunday. He hit his first home run of the season with a solo shot to lead off the fourth inning of Game 2 in a four-hit effort. 

Mason Philley struck out four in four innings of relief in Game 1 to help pick up the win and record his first save of the summer. He allowed one inherited runner to score to tie the game up in the fourth inning but Adam Fahsel doubled in Aiva Arquette with two outs in the fifth to regain the lead for Wenatchee before they added three runs of insurance in the sixth thanks to an RBI single by Matt Halbach and then a double steal where Joichiro Oyama came home with his fourth stolen base of the game. Oyama’s four stolen-base performance was the first by an AppleSox player in a single game since Zach Mandleblatt swiped four bags against Kelowna on July 6, 2007.

The AppleSox led Game 2 4-1 after four innings thanks to a pair of two-out RBI singles from Enzo Apodaca and Ezra Samperi in the second inning before adding two more runs over the next two innings. Wenatchee then sent 19 men to the plate and scored 13 runs in the sixth inning for their highest-scoring inning of the season. Wenatchee’s 18 runs and 23 hits also represented single-game highs for the 2022 season. The 23 hits were one off tying the team’s single-game record set five years ago, despite this only being a seven-inning game. Every AppleSox hitter who batted collected at least one hit and four different players recorded at least three hits. 

The AppleSox return home to begin an eight-game homestand, their longest of the summer, on Tuesday night at 6:35 p.m. against the Dub Sea Fish Sticks. It’s a $2 Off Tuesday with tickets, hot dogs, burgers and Coors draft pours all $2 off. Tickets can be purchased at saferseating.com

AppleSox Continue Road Trip, Face NightOwls

UPDATE: Tonight’s game has been rained out and will be made up on Sunday as the two teams will play a pair of seven-inning games beginning at noon.

The Wenatchee AppleSox play the fifth game of their six-game road trip tonight at 6:35 p.m. against the Nanaimo NightOwls at Serauxmen Stadium.

Wenatchee opened up the weekend with a 12-1 victory last night to improve to 2-2 on the road trip. It marked the AppleSox’ fifth win by a margin of 10-or-more runs this summer and the seventh time that Wenatchee scored double-digit runs.

Four different AppleSox hitters recorded multi-hit games and two different batters scored three times. Wenatchee bounced back after scoring five runs in the previous three games combined to win a series opener for the seventh time in 11 opportunities this summer.

Quincy Vassar tossed seven shutout innings to deliver the AppleSox 10th five-or-more innings start and his fourth of the summer. He was aided by the offensive outburst that included a five-run seventh inning and a three-run ninth.

Now the AppleSox look to win their second-game of the series and pick up their sixth series victory in their 11th series of the summer. Wenatchee has dropped the last two series in part to not winning the second-game of a three-game set. After winning seven-of-11 games in the first-game of a series the AppleSox are 3-7 in the second game against an opponent.

Reese Ligtenberg starts for the AppleSox today for the first time since June 8. He allowed two runs in two innings that day but bounced back to not allow any runs in his next three games spanning 10.2 innings. Ligtenberg had a tough outing in his most recent game, a week ago today. The right-hander from North Dakota State faced four hitters and allowed all four to reach base and score before exiting. He still enters tonight with a 3.65 ERA through five games.

Jayden Tomas is set to start for the NightOwls. He is 0-1 with a 5.26 ERA in four appearances but the bulk of the runs he allowed came in one game when he allowed seven runs on seven hits and three hits in three innings against Kelowna on June 25.

Tonight’s game can be listened to live on kcsyfm.com on your computer or smart phone. If you live in Washington you can listen on your radio on any of the following stations:

·      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

Coverage of tonight’s game begins at 6:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show. Stick around after the game to hear the postgame show with player and coach interviews.

Vassar Deals, Bats Deliver Against Nanaimo

Quincy Vassar tossed seven shutout innings and the Wenatchee AppleSox scored double-digit runs for the eighth time this summer in a 12-1 win over the Nanaimo NightOwls on Friday night at Serauxmen Stadium.

Vassar (1-3) tossed six-or-more shutout innings in a start for the second time this summer and finished one off his single-game high with seven strikeouts in the victory.

Matt Halbach led the offense with 3 RBI as part of a 2-for-5 day at the plate. Aiva Arquette picked up his team-leading 20th RBI with a single in the midst of a five-run seventh inning and Joichiro Oyama extended his hitting streak to a season-best matching nine games with two hits and two runs driven in.

In addition to scoring seven runs in the seventh inning the AppleSox also put together an impressive three-run ninth inning that got started with a one-out solo home run by Adam Fahsel. Cole Miller drove in a run after two errors for his second hit of the night and fourth different time reaching base before Oyama plated the other run. Wenatchee cashed in on five NightOwls errors to pick up the victory.

The AppleSox have no won seven-of-their-11 series-opening games this summer and can take this series with a win on Saturday night. Reese Ligtenberg makes his second start of the summer for the 6:35 p.m. game.

Listen to the latest edition of the AppleSox Podcast for a recap of the game, highlights, postgame interviews with Vassar and Fahsel and a pregame interview with Garrett Gores. Subscribe to the AppleSox Podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

AppleSox Play First Ever Game Against Nanaimo

The Wenatchee AppleSox are looking to bounce back on Friday night after dropping their first series of the second half of the WCL season to the Kelowna Falcons. They travel west to Nanaimo, British Columbia to take on the NightOwls for the first time in franchise history. The three-game set over the weekend starts tonight at 6:35 p.m. as the Sox look to get back in the win column.

Despite back-to-back setbacks on Wednesday and Thursday night, the AppleSox have been able to put faith and trust in their pitchers as the staff did not allow more than four runs to score in any of their games against Kelowna this week. Garret Gores tossed 6.2 innings of shutout ball in the series finale last night, two days after Evan Canfield and Riley Sinclair combined for ten strikeouts and only one earned run in a 2-1 win against the Falcons. The AppleSox matched up against a strong pitching staff in a Falcon team that ranks fourth in the WCL with a 3.95 team ERA so they will look to find more success at the plate this weekend to supplement their lights-out pitching as of late. 

Tonight’s game against the NightOwls is the first time the AppleSox have matched up with them this season and is also the first time they will play the NightOwls in their history since the team’s foundation in 2020. The series this weekend will be the only time the two North Division foes will battle as Nanaimo will not make the trip across the border to take on the AppleSox in Wenatchee later in the year. The NightOwls have won five of their last ten games and are coming off a one-game series win over the Victoria HarbourCats in which they won 8-6. At the dish, the AppleSox will have to look out for Marcus Steen, an outfielder from Ladysmith, BC attending Napa Valley College. He is slashing .378/.462/.556 this season and is coming off a three-hit performance against Victoria. He has the power to spray the gaps as he leads the team with five triples, and he has the speed to take the extra bag as he is tied for second on the team with five steals.

With as good of an offense as the AppleSox have had this season, ranking third in the WCL in team batting average, they will run into a tough task tonight with Nanaimo’s starting pitcher. The NIghtOwls send Aiden Herrick from Olympia, Wash. to the mound tonight who has pitched in six games this season, starting four, and has an ERA of 1.00 in 27.0 innings pitched. The staff as a whole for Nanaimo has not been particularly effective this season however as their team ERA ranks third to last in the WCL.

After winning the first game of the second half, the AppleSox come into tonight having won only two of their last six games. They still managed to get traffic on the basepaths in their series against Kelowna but were just one big hit away a few times from turning the tides on their fate in those games. Joichiro Oyama has been stellar as of late as he extends his hitting streak to eight games and also stole three bags in the loss on Thursday night, bringing his season steals total to 22 which ranks first among all players in the WCL. Matt Halbach has also headlined the AppleSox bats recently as he has hit safely in eight of his last ten games, bringing his season batting average to .337 which ranks 11th in the WCL.

Quincy Vassar gets the starting nod for the AppleSox this evening as he looks to rekindle the success he had early in the season. The lefty from Brewster, Wash. will make his fifth start of the season and looks to earn his first winning decision of the summer while he attempts to keep the NightOwls’ bats at bay. Vassar on the road this year has a K/9 of 8.76 and will bring that against a Nanaimo team who is susceptible to the strikeout as they rank fifth in the WCL in strikeouts as a team.

Tonight’s game can be listened to live on kcsyfm.com on your computer or smart phone. If you live in Washington you can listen on your radio on any of the following stations:

·      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

Coverage of tonight’s game begins at 6:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show. Stick around after the game to hear the postgame show with player and coach interviews.

Gores’ Dominant Effort Not Enough For AppleSox

Garrett Gores tossed 6.2 scoreless innings in relief but the Wenatchee AppleSox fell to the Kelowna Falcons, 4-2, on Thursday night at Elks Stadium.

Gores came on in relief with runners at second and third in the bottom of the first and the AppleSox trailing 4-0 and retired each of the next nine hitters in order before allowing his first baserunner. He struck out five, including two in the seventh when he stranded the bases loaded. 

The AppleSox scored twice in the fifth inning but stranded 11 men on the base paths. It marked the third straight game that the AppleSox left double-digit runners on the base paths. They scored five runs in the three games against the Falcons despite entering Thursday’s game with the third-most runs scored in the West Coast League.

Joichiro Oyama picked up a pair of hits and stole three bases. He leads the West Coast League with 22 stolen bases. Oyama and Corey Jarrell scored in the fifth when Jarrell struck out with two outs but reached first base on a passed ball. Jarrell advanced to to third on a single by Oyama, who moved to second on the throw to third. Michael Davinni draw a walk but a passed ball scored Jarrell and Oyama.

Now the AppleSox continue their road trip by facing the Nanaimo NightOwls on Friday night at 6:35 p.m. at Serauxmen Stadium. Brewster native Quincy Vassar will start on the bump for the AppleSox.

AppleSox Play Fifth Straight Rubber Match Tonight

GAME NOTES

The Wenatchee AppleSox face the Kelowna Falcons tonight in the series finale at 6:35 p.m. at Elks Stadium. 

This is the fifth straight series that the AppleSox have played where both teams have split the first two games of a three-game set. Wenatchee has won the first-game of the series in four-of-the-last-five series, including winning Tuesday’s series opener, 2-1. The second games have been more troublesome as the AppleSox have only won it once in the last five series. 

Troubles in the middle game of a series continued last night as the AppleSox fell to the Falcons, 4-1. Wenatchee scored first for the second straight night thanks to an RBI single by Joichiro Oyama in the third inning to extend his hitting streak to seven games. Kelowna tied it up in the fourth before scoring the game-winning run with two outs in the seventh and then adding two runs of insurance in the eighth. 

The AppleSox outhit the Falcons, 11-10, but stranded 13 men on the basepaths. The AppleSox offense had an explosive homestand last week, scoring 64 runs in six games. Wenatchee scored 12-or-more runs in three straight games Thursday-through-Sunday and no less than five runs in any of the six games but has combined to score three runs through the first two games of this six-game road trip. 

In addition to Oyama, Andrew Haight also extended his hitting streak with a base-hit last night. Haight singles in his first at-bat to stretch his streak to nine games. The AppleSox catcher has a hit in all but one-of-the-10 games that he has played in and is batting .352 over his streak. 

Gianluca Shinn starts for the AppleSox in his third start and fifth appearance of the summer. He pitched 2.1 innings on Sunday and allowed five runs on four hits and four walks. Two runs to score against him came across after he had left the game. Shinn is 1-0 with a 7.87 ERA in eight innings this year. 

Kelowna counters with right-hander Hiroyuki Yamada, who enters Thursday night with a 1-3 record and an 8.59 ERA over 14.2 innings in four games, all starts. Yamada last pitched on July 1 at Walla Walla and allowed four runs in two innings on four hits and two walks to suffer the loss. 

Tonight’s game can be listened to live on kcsyfm.com on your computer or smart phone. If you live in Washington you can listen on your radio on any of the following stations:

·      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

Coverage of tonight’s game begins at 6:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show. Stick around after the game to hear the postgame show with player and coach interviews.

Oyama Extends Streak But AppleSox Fall To Falcons

The Wenatchee AppleSox scored first but fell to the Kelowna Falcons, 4-1, on Wednesday night at Elks Stadium.

Joichiro Oyama extended his hitting streak to seven games with an RBI single in the third but Wenatchee could not overcome stranding 13 men on the basepaths. 

Despite scoring first for the second straight day Wenatchee gave up a tying run in the fourth before the go-ahead run scored in the seventh and then two more in the eighth.

Jack Moffitt gave the AppleSox a strong start by striking out five in 4.1 innings, both matching season-highs for him. He exited with one out in the fifth and Mason Philley (2-2) retired the next five hitters before giving up the lead in the seventh.

Michael Davinni recorded his third consecutive multi-hit game and helped get a rally started for the AppleSox in the ninth inning as he singled before Matt Halbach recorded his ninth multi-hit game of the summer with a double down the left-field line to put runners at second and third with one out. The AppleSox could not push across any runs and fell in the second game of the series. 

Wenatchee can win this series and the season series by taking Thursday’s game. Gianluca Shinn gets the ball for the AppleSox in his third start of the year. First pitch is at 6:35 p.m.

AppleSox Look To Win Season Series vs Kelowna

GAME NOTES

The Wenatchee AppleSox continue their six-game road trip with the second game of their series against the Kelowna Falcons tonight at 6:35 at Elks Stadium. 

Wenatchee took the first game of the series with a 2-1 victory last night. Matt Halbach hit a go-ahead solo home run to lead off the fifth inning and Evan Canfield tossed five shutout innings of relief after Riley Sinclair only allowed one run in the first four innings. 

Tuesday’s win marked the AppleSox’ fourth of the season against the Falcons after taking two-of-three games against them last week at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium. A win tonight or tomorrow gives Wenatchee a season-series victory. Last night’s win was the AppleSox’ fourth consecutive at Elks Stadium dating back to a series sweep in 2019. 

The AppleSox struck first last night to pick up the series-opening win but also allowed a run in the first inning for the fourth consecutive game. Wenatchee has given up eight runs in the first inning in each of the last four games while scoring six runs in the that time. The AppleSox have split each of their last four games.

Tuesday’s victory also tied for the lowest combined scoring game of the season along with the AppleSox’ 2-1 loss to the Edmonton Riverhawks on June 24. When both teams combine to score five-runs-or-less the AppleSox are 2-3. Kelowna has not given up a combined three runs over its last three games and is 2-1 after sweeping a doubleheader on Sunday against Walla Walla.

Jack Moffitt gets the ball tonight in his team-leading sixth start of the summer. He is looking to bounce back after allowing three runs on four hits in the first inning on Saturday against Bend. The redshirt sophomore at Gonzaga did not face the Falcons last week and is 1-1 with a 6.31 ERA in 15.2 innings this summer.

Brock Keller starts for Kelowna in his third start of the summer. His last appearance came last Thursday against the AppleSox when he allowed five runs in four innings and suffered the loss against Wenatchee. Keller tossed scoreless frames in the first and third innings but endured long innings in the second and fourth innings. Wenatchee sent eight men to the plate and scored three runs in the second before adding two in the fourth while seven hitters came to hit.

Tonight’s game can be listened to live on kcsyfm.com on your computer or smart phone. If you live in Washington you can listen on your radio on any of the following stations:

·      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

Coverage of tonight’s game begins at 6:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show. Stick around after the game to hear the postgame show with player and coach interviews.

Halbach, Canfield Lead Sox Past Falcons

Matt Halbach hit a go-ahead solo home run in the fifth inning and Evan Canfield tossed five shutout innings of relief to lead the AppleSox past the Kelowna Falcons, 2-1, on Tuesday night at Elks Stadium.

Canfield punched out a season-high seven, including five in a row at one point, to record his first save of the summer. He now has a 1.25 ERA over 14.1 innings in his first four appearances on the mound. 

Canfield twice pitched in dangerous situations with the lead. He allowed consecutive hits to open up the bottom of the fifth in his first inning of relief but struck out the side to get out of the threat. In the ninth he surrendered a leadoff walk and a sacrifice bunt moved the tying run to scoring position but he induced back-to-back pop outs to end the game.

Riley Sinclair (1-0) allowed one run in four innings to earn his first victory of the season. 

Michael Davinni picked up a pair of hits including an RBI single in the first inning to put Wenatchee on the board first. The Falcons answered back with a run on a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the frame but Halbach’s first home run of the year to lead off the fifth gave Wenatchee the lead for good.

The AppleSox can win their fourth series in the last five if they can win Wednesday’s 6:35 p.m. against the Falcons. Jack Moffitt will toe the rubber for Wenatchee in his team-leading sixth start of the summer.

Listen to the latest edition of the AppleSox Podcast to hear a recap of the game, highlights, a postgame interview with head coach Mitch Darlington and a pregame interview with Lee Souza.

AppleSox Open Second Half At Kelowna

GAME NOTES

The Wenatchee AppleSox begin the second half of their season on Tuesday night at 6:35 p.m. against the Kelowna Falcons at Elks Stadium.

It’s the second straight week that the AppleSox will play the Falcons after taking two-of-three against them this past week at home. Wenatchee won 9-4 last Tuesday, lost 11-7 and then won 14-3 to capture their third consecutive series victory. That streak came to an end over the weekend as the AppleSox lost two-of-three games against the Elks despite a huge 14-3 series-opening win on Friday.

This is the first game of the AppleSox’ second six-game road trip north of the border this season. Wenatchee previously visited the Victoria HarbourCats June 21-23 before then traveling to take on the Edmonton Riverhawks June 24-26. The AppleSox won both series and are 6-3 against Canadian teams this season.

That success against non-U.S. teams will need to continue in the second half as 12 of the AppleSox’ final 27 games are against Canadian opponents and all of those games are in divisional play. The Bellingham Bells won the North Division in the first half and have thus already clinched a playoff spot. The AppleSox are and can take a playoff spot by either winning the second half or having the third or fourth-best overall record in the division. The only way that they can clinch home-field advantage in the Divisional Series is by winning the second half.

The AppleSox send Riley Sinclair to the mound for his third start of the summer. He faced the Flacons a week ago and he allowed two runs on two walks, two hits and five strikeouts in four innings. Sinclair allowed three runs in two innings in his first start on June 21 and is appearing in his fourth game overall tonight.

Kelowna has not announced a probable pitcher.

Tonight’s game can be listened to live on kcsyfm.com on your computer or smart phone. If you live in Washington you can listen on your radio on any of the following stations:

·      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

Coverage of tonight’s game begins at 6:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show. Stick around after the game to hear the postgame show with player and coach interviews.

Stuka Wins WCL Player Of The Week

AppleSox first baseman Luc Stuka has been named the West Coast League Player of the Week for June 27-July 3 after hitting .458 with two doubles, a home run and 7 RBI.

Stuka has been on a roll since a 3-for-4 night on June 21. That marked the first of 12 consecutive starts that he would make at first base and he hit .404 in that span with a nine-game hitting streak from June 23-July 2. Stuka recorded five different multi-hit games over that hitting streak.

July 2 marked the one-year anniversary of him hitting for the first cycle in AppleSox history and Stuka followed it up with quite the encore by going five-for-six with 5 RBI against the Bend Elks to record the AppleSox’ first five-hit game since Aug. 2, 2015.

Stuka played his final game of the summer on Sunday and did not collect any hits to extend his hitting streak to double digits but walked twice. He will take time off from baseball before getting prepared for school to begin in mid-August.

The incoming junior at Cal State Northridge ends the summer with a .351 batting average in 15 games. Including non-leagues games Stuka has played in 58 games for the AppleSox in the last two summers. He joins Joichiro Oyama (June 6-12) as the second AppleSox player to win the West Coast League Player of the Week honor this summer.

The AppleSox are off on Monday but return to action Tuesday against the Kelowna Falcons for the first game of a six-game road trip. Their next game is July 12 against the Dub Sea Fish Sticks for the first of a two-game non-league series. It’s a $2 Off Tuesday with all tickets, hot dogs, burgers and Coors Draft beers all $2 off. Purchase tickets now at saferseating.com.

AppleSox Drop Series Finale To Elks

Michael Davinni went 3-for-4 and scored twice but the Wenatchee AppleSox fell to the Bend Elks, 9-5, on Sunday afternoon at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium.

Davinni recorded his seventh multi-hit game and third three-hit effort of the summer but the AppleSox lost a series for the first time in two weeks.

Davinni’s first hit of the game was the second of three consecutive doubles to open the inning. He plated Andrew Haight after his leadoff double and Grant Sherrod drove in Davinni before a sacrifice bunt advanced Sherrod to third and he scored on a sacrifice fly by Matt Halbach to tie the game up, 3-3.

However, the AppleSox did not score again until the bottom of the ninth when Davinni hit a one-out double and scored on an RBI triple by Joichiro Oyama, who then came home after a Halbach single. In between the third and ninth innings the Elks scored six runs to pick up the series victory.

Sunday marked the first time since Thursday that the AppleSox did not score double-digit runs. Wenatchee split the homestand by winning two-of-three games against the Kelowna Falcons before dropping two-of-three against the Bend Elks. The AppleSox end the first half with a 12-15 record and in third place in the North Division at the time of the conclusion of Sunday’s game.

Wenatchee opens the second half of the season on Tuesday when it travels to Kelowna for a three-game road series before then traveling to Nanaimo for three games against the NightOwls.

Stuka's Five Hits Not Enough vs Elks

The Wenatchee AppleSox and Bend Elks combined to score 29 runs Friday night at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium but it was the visiting team who picked up the 17-12 win in front of 1,588 fans.

Luc Stuka led the way for the AppleSox with a 5-for-6 performance for the first 5-hit effort by the AppleSox this summer and their first since Nick Nyquist collected five against the Victoria HarbourCats on Aug. 2, 2015. He singled in the first, second, fourth and fifth innings before doubling in eighth. The incoming junior at Cal State Northridge also drove in five runs in the losing cause. He extended his hitting streak to 10 games with his huge night.

The AppleSox lost despite outhitting the Elks and Bend committing eight errors. Wenatchee led 4-3 after one inning but never did again after allowing five runs in the top of the second.

The true turning point of the game came with the AppleSox batting with the bases loaded in the bottom of the third trailing 8-5. Enzo Apodaca popped out to third after three straight hitters had reached with two outs and the Elks went on to score five runs over the next two innings before Wenatchee struck again but they never got as close to the three-run deficit again.

The AppleSox look to take the series on Sunday at 1:05 p.m. against the Elks. Gianluca Shinn gets the ball for his second start of the summer in the AppleSox’ fourth consecutive rubber match. Tickets can be purchased at saferseating.com.