The Vancouver Canadians were dealt another series loss after dropping a 7-5 decision to the Hillsboro Hops at Ron Tonkin Field Sunday.
Hillsboro got to work right away against Vancouver starter C.J. Van Eyk as Eduardo Diaz earned a five-pitch walk from the leadoff spot. Jorge Barrosa then singled on a 1-and 2 pitch from Van Eyk and Tristin English also got on base on a fielder’s choice to the mound to fill the pillows. Andy Yerzy scored Diaz with a sacrifice fly to left that also advanced Barrosa to third and English to second. Barrosa would score on an Andres Guerra passed ball to put the Hops ahead 2-0.
Vancouver cut the lead in half in the second inning when Luis De Los Santos lifted a fly ball over the right-center field fence off Justin Vernia.
Hillsboro matched De Los Santos’ homer with a solo blast from Yerzy off Van Eyk with two outs in the third inning to restore their two-run lead.
The Hops added on in the fifth inning against Will McAffer.A one-out single by Diaz was followed by a walk to Barrosa and a fielding error by Orelvis Martinez at short allowed English to get aboard to load the bases. Yerzy delivered again for Hillsboro with a two-run single to drive in Diaz and Barrosa.
The Canadians crept a little closer in the sixth when Eric Rivera started the inning with a single to center off Vernia. Rafael Lantigua singled and advanced another 90 feet when English booted the ball in right field, putting two runner in scoring position. Will Robertson scored Rivera with a foul ball sacrifice fly to Hops third baseman A.J. Vukovich. Lantigua—who also went to third on the sac fly—would cross home plate when Martinez lined a base hit to left.
Vancouver made it a one-run game in the seventh when Zac Cook tripled on the second itch from Gerald Ogando to lead things off before Davis Schneider brought Cook home with a deep enough fly ball to center.
Hillsboro expanded its lead again in the ninth. Diaz singled on the first pitch from Cobi Johnson and stole second base. Barrosa followed with a walk and both runners advanced a station on a wild pitch. English got Diaz home on a sacrifice fly before Yerzy singled home Barrosa.
The Canadians battled back in their last at-bat. Cook burned Wesley Rodriguez with a two-out homer to right-center to make it a 7-5 game. Schneider kept the rally going with a full-count walk and got to second on a Guerra base hit up the middle. With the tying runs aboard, Rivera lined one to center to end the game.
C-Notes
Guerra had a leadoff single in the third but that rally was squelched when Rivera rapped Ito a 4-6-3 double play.
Martinez drew his first walk in a C’s uniform with one out in the fourth but he was thrown out trying to steal second by Yerzy to end the inning.
De Los Santos began the fifth with a single to center and Schneider came up with a one-out knock to right but Guerra popped out into an unassisted double play to Hops shortstop Blaze Alexander as he doubled off De Los Santos at second.
The C’s could not string anything else together after Martinez’s RBI single in the sixth as Kyler Stout struck out Spencer Horwitz looking.
Guerra followed Schneider’s sac fly in the seventh by blooping a single to center but was wiped out on a 6-4-3 double play by Rivera to end the inning.
Vancouver was set down in order in the first by Vernia and in the eighth by Kyle Snyder, who retired all four men he faced before giving way to Rodriguez in the ninth.
Guerra had a 3-for-4 day at the plate while Cook and De Los Santos had two hits apiece. Cook hit his third homer of the season while De Los Santos launched his team-leading 10th homer of the year to give him a team-best 50 runs batted in.
Martinez and Schneider got on base twice with a single and a walk. The C’s were just 1-for-3 with runners in scoring position, leaving four men on.
Van Eyk was spared further damage in the first inning when he induced a ground ball from Blaze Alexander to Horwitz at first with Horwitz throwing out English at home. A called strike three from Van Eyk to Vuckovich ended the inning.
Van Eyk alternated good innings with bad as he stranded an Alexander Hernandez two-out double in the second before finishing up with a 1-2-3 fourth. He surrendered three runs (two earned) on three hits and a walk. He struck out four and got six outs on the ground.
McAffer gave up two runs on three hits and a walk but struck out three, finishing up the sixth by whiffing the last two men he faced.
Hagen Danner had the best pitching line of the day with two shutout frames, scattering three hits and striking out two. He rung up Yerzy and Alexander to end the eighth to strand an English single and stolen base.
Rivera helped out Danner by starting a 9-2 double play when he caught a liner from Daniel Oriente and doubled off a Vukovich single at first. Axel Andueza had a single after that but Danner got Hernandez to fly out.
Johnson surrendered two runs in the ninth on two hits and a walk, striking out two. C’s hurlers struck out 11 Hops and walked just three.
Vancouver is now 10 games below .500 at 37-47 and are in fifth place, two-and-a-half games behind fourth place Hillsboro.
The C’s are off to Everett to begin a six-game series with the league-leading AquaSox. Adam Kloffenstein will be on the mound for Monty’s Mounties. First pitch is at 7:05 pm on CanadiansBaseball.com.
C’s Alumni Report
Buffalo tripled up Lehigh Valley 9-3 Sunday.
- Richard Ureña – 2/4, RBI, 2R
- Cullen Large – 2/5, 2B (12), RBI, 2R
- Otto Lopez – 2/4, BB, 3B (1), 2R
- Nash Knight – 2/3, BB, 2B (6), 3RBI, R
- Logan Warmoth – 1/4, 2RBI
Hartford doubled up New Hampshire 10-5.
- Samad Taylor – 2/4, BB, 2B (15), 3B, SB (22)
- Vinny Capra – 1/4, 2RBI
- Jon Talley – 2/4, HR (7), 2B (14), 2RBI
- Fitz Stadler – 1.0IP 0HR 0R/ER 0BB 0K
- Connor Law – 2.0IP 1H 0R/ER 0BB 0K
Rowdy Tellez was 1-for-4 in Milwaukee’s 5-4 loss to San Francisco.
Aaron Sanchez was designated for assignment by the Giants despite a 3.06 earned run average in 35-1/3 innings.
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