Final Road Trip of 2021 Starts Tonight
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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.
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.
