AppleSox Welcome Pippins For Weekend Series

/
DSC_0017_edited-1.jpeg

GAME NOTES
BASEBALL BLURBS

APPLESOX WELCOME PIPPINS FOR WEEKEND SET
The Wenatchee AppleSox (20-23, 17-22), fourth place in the WCL East, host the Yakima Valley Pippins (23-18, 21-18), Friday at Paul Thomas Sr. Field for a three-game divisional series...the AppleSox are four games off the lead in the WCL Wild Card race and are looking to snap a five-game losing streak to the Pippins, with all five games being played at Paul Thomas Sr. Field...the AppleSox are playing their 16th franchise season (11th in the WCL) and are led by first-year skipper, AJ Proszek (20-23) (.465), who is in his 3rd season with the Sox, after managing the pitching staff in 2013 and 2014...Proszek is assisted by Miles Kizer and Cory LeBrun, both in their first seasons.

LAST TIME OUT
Hunter Wells (6-1), of Wenatchee, and Nate Simmons (1-4), of Kitsap, each held the opposition hitless through the first three innings of play...Wenatchee opened the night’s scoring in the fourth inning on a two-out RBI single for Sheldon Liikala, up the middle of the infield...the hit scored Jake Hirabayashi, who was aboard on a single to start off the frame...Brett Bautista drove Nobach in from third in the fourth for Kitsap on a two-out RBI single to right field to even the score at one...Wells silenced the BlueJackets through the next two innings, until he got into a troublesome spot in the seventh...three singles had the bases loaded for Kitsap with two outs, however, Wells worked a strikeout of Nobach to end the inning and keep the score tied at one...Simmons also tossed a good game, but was harmed by three Kitsap errors, including one of his own in the eighth inning...the AppleSox used an error on Ryan Atkinson to get aboard to open the inning, and Keston Hiura singled to extend his season-high hitting streak to 10 games...three well executed bunts gave the AppleSox a 4-1 advantage to the bottom of the eighth...Tony Contonio took over in the bottom half, but allowed two runs in two thirds of an inning, forcing Sean Sparling into the game to try to get a four-out save for Wenatchee, which he did for a 4-3 win.

STATISTICS SAY...
The road team has won the Wenatchee-Yakima matchup in 10 of the 12 all-time meetings...Yakima is riding a five-game winning streak in the series (all five on the road)...the lowest combined run total for the two teams amounts to five...there has never been a shutout in the series.

GOING STREAKING
Keston Hiura currently owns a ten-game hitting streak for the AppleSox and is one game away from earning the fifth-longest streak this season...his nine straight games at home is tied for fourth with Christian Cavaness of Bend, however, Brett Bautista, Kitsap, has an active streak of 21 games at home, and Justin Flores, Kelowna, with 16...Hiura has reached base safely in 26 consecutive games, which is the second longest streak in the WCL this season (31, T. Davis, Bend, inactive), and the only active streak alive at 16 or more games...his on-base streak is now the longest in the league on the road (18 games), ahead of Kyle Nixon for Walla Walla, who has a 16 game active streak.

FIRST TIME AROUND
The AppleSox were swept by Yakima Valley June 23-25, at Paul Thomas Sr. Field...Sox ERA: 6.00, AVG: .214...Keston Hiura and Mitchell Holland, a combined 1-for-17...2 HRs for Evan Douglas in the series...7 extra-base hits for Yakima Valley (5 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR)...Losing pitchers: Carns, Contonio, Gettman...Winning pitchers: Bernstein, Yada, Fitzpatrick.

APPLESOX ALL-TIME
Through the first fifteen franchise seasons and 853 games, the AppleSox own a 533-320 (.626) record...the AppleSox are 393-220(.653) since the inception of the WCL in 2005...Wenatchee is 342-202 (.631) all-time in WCL league games (including playoffs), and 55-15 (.786) all-time in non-league contests since 2005...all-time, the AppleSox are 424-277 (.608) against league opponents (including playoffs) and 107-40 (.728) vs. non-league teams...Wenatchee owns a 320-164 (.661) all-time home record, and is 223-175 (.562) on the road...Wenatchee is 34-29 all-time in extra-inning games.