Grand Performance Leads Pippins Over Sox

WENATCHEE, Wash. – Vince Fernandez's WCL record-setting tenth home run, gave the Yakima Valley Pippins (35-19) a win to cap their season, 4-1 over the Wenatchee AppleSox (34-25, 30-24). To make things sweeter for the Pippins, the home run was a grand slam.

With the granny in the seventh inning, Fernandez also broke the WCL single-season record for RBIs (new mark: 51).

The AppleSox drew first blood on Sunday. Michael McCann was able to sacrifice home a run on a bunt, following three leadoff singles by the AppleSox lineup.

Wenatchee would be stifled from that point on, as Gabe Gentner, Mitch Yada, Connor Lau, and Justin Jacobs would combine to hold Wenatchee to just two more hits. The AppleSox were retired in order for the final third of Sunday’s contest.

Fernandez gave the Pippins all they needed in the seventh, as he hit the grand slam off of Hunter Wells. The bases were loaded on a Harrison Ramey walk and a Justin Jacobs single, coupled with a Kyle Thomson bunt single.

The AppleSox end the year at 30-24, and while head coach will miss the playoffs for just the second time in his AppleSox coaching career (and first time in WCL play), he still has tallied a winning season in each of his fourteen seasons as skipper of the Sox.

Knaggs’ career coaching record as the AppleSox head man is 496-274.

Wenatchee’s players said their goodbyes for the summer during Sunday’s postgame. Most will return home or to their colleges on Monday or Tuesday.

The AppleSox would like to thank all of their fans, host families, personnel, sponsors, and the local and national baseball community for another great season of AppleSox baseball.

The 2015 baseball season and the chance to once again, “Celebrate summer one inning at a time,” can’t come soon enough!

YAK    0 0 0  0 0 0   4 0 0      4  11  1  

WEN   1 0 0  0 0 0   0 0 0      1   5   2

WP – Mitch Yada

LP – Hunter Wells

S –