After wrapping up a season-long 10-game homestand with a series sweep of Bend on Thursday, the Pippins hit the road on Friday for a three-game weekend series north of the border against the Victoria HarbourCats. First pitch of the series opener at Royal Athletic Park is set for 6:35 PM, with Pippins left-hander Jack Gonzales set to match-up against Victoria righty Aaron Celestino. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz will begin at 6:20 PM at pippinsbaseball.com/live.

Full Game Notes

PIPPINS SWEEP BEND WITH MARATHON WIN: In the longest nine-inning game of the season for the Pippins, at 3 hours and 52 minutes, Yakima Valley prevailed victorious over Bend, 9-7, to complete their third consecutive three-game series sweep over the Elks. The Pippins jumped ahead 6-0 after three innings against Bend, but the Elks battled back to tie the game with runs in the 4th, 5th, and 6th innings. In the top of the 8th inning, off of Pippins reliever Nick Brown, former Pippin Dayton Provost singled to bring home the go-ahead run for Bend, their first lead of the series. Outfielder Kyle Dean relieved Brown and finished off the inning. Dean would also earn the win, as the Pippins offense exploded in the bottom of the 8th, with Brady Hormel’s go-ahead, 2-RBI triple proving the difference in a 3-run frame that helped capped off the 9-7 comeback win.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Left-hander Jack Gonzales, a West Coast League All-Star, will make his second start of the summer for the Pippins on Friday to open up the series in Victoria. Gonzales, a junior from Dixie State, made his first start of the summer last Sunday in the first game of a doubleheader against Port Angeles, throwing a 7-inning complete game and earning the win after allowing 2 runs on 6 hits, one walk, and 5 strikeouts. A 6-foot-3, 225-pound native of Oceanside, Callifornia, Gonzales is 2-0 on the seasonin 12 appearances, striking out 25 and walking 10 over 30 innings of work.

FOR THE ELKS: Right-hander Aaron Celestino will make his sixth start of the season on Friday in the series opener against the Pippins. The 6-foot, 200-pound righty from the University of the Incarnate Wordlast pitched in relief on July 7 against Bellingham, earning the win with 5 shutout innings out of the bullpen. In a start in Yakima on June 12, Celestino took his only loss of the year, allowing 4 earned runs on 8 hits and 3 strikeouts over 5 innings. On the season, the Houston, Texas native is 2-1 with a 4.39 ERA, striking out 25 and walking 3 over 28.2 innings of work.

LONG ONES: Thursday’s 3 hour, 52 minute marathon was the longest nine-inning game of the season for the Pippins, but it continued a recent trend of long nine-inning games for Yakima Valley. The Pippins have now played 11 games this season that have gone at least 3 hours long, including five in the first 11 games of the second half of the season. The Pippins have only played 10 nine-inning games this year that took less than 2 and a half hours, with 7 of those 10 coming in the first three weeks of the season.

ELIMINATING ELKS: With the Pippins’ sweep-clinching win over Bend on Thursday, Yakima Valley has now swept the last three series against the Elks, and four of the last five series dating back to 2017. The win improved the Pippins’ all-time record over Bend to 19-8.

A LOT OF DUDES: Within the past week, the Pippins have had four new players debut for the team in WCL play, brining their total number of players to appear in a game this season, through 36 games, to 47. Brothers Kyle and Tyler Dean, both position players, debuted early last weekend against Port Angeles, while left-hander Anthony Alvarado made his season debut on the mound on Sunday. On Thursday, right-hander Dominic Miller debuted in relief. A litany of injures has led to larger-than-expected roster turnover early in the season.

ODDS & ENDS: Thursday’s game was the first game all season in which the Pippins have hit multiple triples…Kyle Dean became the first position player to pitch in a game for the Pippins in 2019.

YAKIMA, Wash. –  In their longest nine-inning game of the season, the Yakima Valley Pippins pulled out a late-inning win over the Bend Elks, 9-7, to complete the three-game series sweep at Yakima County Stadium on Thursday evening.

In 3 hours and 52 minutes, the two teams combined for 16 runs, 19 hits, four errors, and 19 walks in a convoluted ballgame. Neither the Elks (2-7, 14-22) or the Pippins (5-4, 17-19) pitched particularly well, with the Pippins jumping ahead early off of Bend starter Michael Hansell. Nick DiCarlo led off the bottom of the first inning with a double, and scored on a throwing error a few batters later to give the Pippins an early lead.

After scoring two more runs in the second inning, and three more in the third, knocking Hansell out of the game, the Pippins had a comfortable 6-0 lead. But from that point forward, right-hander Ryan Jameson struggled with his location, and the Elks offense pounced for three runs in the fourth inning and one more in the fifth to knock Jameson out of the game. He allowed four runs (three earned) on three walks, five hits, and five strikeouts over five inning.

Although the Pippins held onto the lead headed into the sixth, Bend quickly tied things up thanks to former Pippin Dayton Provost. The pinch-hitter laced a 2-out, 2-RBI single off of Pippins reliever Dominic Miller – making his Pippins debut – to tie the game at 6. In the top of the eighth inning, Provost singled again, this time off of Nick Brown, to put the Elks on top for the first time all series, 7-6.

The Pippins took back the lead for good in the bottom of the eighth inning against a pair of relievers for Bend. Drew Baumgartner allowed a pair of walks to put two on, one out for Brady Hormel, who drilled a triple to deep right-center field, drawing a collision in the outfield and bringing home two runs. Another insurance run scored and the Pippins grabbed the 9-7 lead that they would not surrender.

Kyle Dean, a position player who began the game in right field, earned the win on the mound after entering the game in the eighth inning due to a lack of relievers for the Pippins. He threw 1.1 scoreless innings. Baumgartner, who allowed two runs in 2.2 innings, took the loss for Bend.

Christian Padilla led the way on offense for the Pippins, going 3-for-3 while reaching base in all 5 of his at-bats, including a triple. Hormel had 2 hits and 2 RBIs, while Dean also added 2 hits and a double. Provost had 2 hits and 3 RBIs for the Elks, while Jake Jarvis and Efry Cervantes both added multi-hit games.

The Pippins now hit the road for a 3-game weekend series with Victoria before next week’s West Coast League All-Star Game in Bend. First pitch for Friday’s series opener at Royal Athletic Park is set for 6:35 PM, with Pippins left-hander Jack Gonzales set to match-up with Victoria righty Aaron Celestino. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz will begin at pippinsbaseball.com/live at 6:20 PM.

Following a 6-run comeback win over the Bend Elks on Wednesday night to clinch the 3-game series, the Pippins return to the Orchard tonight, looking for their third consecutive series sweep against the Elks. First pitch for the series finale is set for 6:35 PM, with a pair of right-handers – Yakima Valley’s Ryan Jameson, and Bend’s Michael Hansell – set to square off on the mound. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz begins at pippinsbaseball.com/live at 6:20 PM.

Full Game Notes

PIPPINS TOP BEND IN BACK-AND-FORTH CONTEST: In a thrilling game two of a three-game series on Wednesday at Yakima County Stadium, the Pippins came out on top of the Bend Elks, 13-11, to clinch the series and head into Thursday with a chance for a series sweep. After jumping ahead, 3-0, after one inning, when the first five men reached for the Pippins, Bend scored 2 runs in the top of the second and seven in the top of the fourth to take a 9-3 lead. But the Pippins slowly and furiously chipped away, with Nick DiCarlo blasting a 3-run homer in the fifth inningto cut the lead to one, and Aidan Welch singling home the go-ahead run in the sixth. After Bend retook the lead with 2 runs in the top of the seventh, the Pippins answered back with an RBI groundout from Kyle Dean and a Tanner Parker RBI single. Nick Brown closed the door out of the bullpen with two innings of scoreless relief, pushing the Pippins to their fourth win in their last five games.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Right-hander Ryan Jameson will start for the Pippins in Thursday’s series finale. The 6-foot-2, 180-pound righty from Cal Poly is a tough-luck 0-3 on the season, with a 2.86 ERA over 5 appearances, including four starts. In 22 innings of work, Jameson has struck out 32 batters (tied for 7th-most in the WCL) and walked 11. Opponents have hit .213 on the season off of the Hollister, California, native, who lost his last start on Friday against Port Angeles (5 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 K).

FOR THE ELKS: Right-hander Michael Hansell will make his seventh start of the season for the Elks to close out the series on Thursday. A 6-foot-3, 215-pound right-hander from Sammamish, Wash., Hansell has an 0-3 record and 5.75 ERA in 20.1 innings this season for the Elks. The righty from Mesa (Ariz.) Community College has struck out 16 batters and walked 18 this year, while opponents have hit .301 off him.

NOT BUCKING THE TREND: After three and a half innings on Wednesday, with Bend leading the PIppins 9-3, it seemed like the Elks would snap their seven-game losing streak against the Pippins, which dates back to 2017. But Yakima Valley’s wild comeback win continued their more than two-year long winning streak over Bend, and gives the Pippins a chance to complete their third consecutive sweep of Bend on Thursday. All-time, the Pippins have swept Bend three times in a three-game series, with all three sweeps coming within the past two seasons.

NICK IS NICE: The hottest hitter in the Pippins lineup is infielder Nick Israel, who collected two hits and a season-high 4 RBIs in Wednesday’s win. Over his last five games, in which Israel has a hit in all five, Israel is hitting .438 (7-for-16), a stretch that has raised his batting average from .267 to .318. Over those five games, Israel has six RBIs, and 1 walk to 0 strikeouts. He has not struck out since July 5 in Portland, a streak that goes back seven games.

A LOT OF DUDES: Within the past week, the Pippins have had three new players debut for the team in WCL play, brining their total number of players to appear in a game this season, through 35 games, to 46. Brothers Kyle and Tyler Dean, both position players, debuted early last weekend against Port Angeles, while left-hander Anthony Alvarado made his season debut on the mound on Sunday. A litany of injures has led to larger-than-expected roster turnover early in the season.

ODDS & ENDS: Wednesday’s game went a season-long 3 hours and 38 minutes…Nick DiCarlo’s fifth-inning homer was the Pippins’ first since June 20, a stretch of 27 days and 19 league games.

YAKIMA, Wash. – The Yakima Valley Pippins rallied from a 9-3 deficit and pounded out 13 runs on 11 hits to clinch their series with the Bend Elks on Wednesday at Yakima County Stadium, winning 13-11 in front of a crowd of 625.

After combining for 1 run on six hits in Tuesday’s series opener, the Pippins (5-4, 16-19) and Elks (2-6, 14-21) combined for 24 runs on 25 hits and six errors in a game that featured several lead changes and plenty of back-and-forth moments. It was the Pippins that jumped out early, scoring three runs in the bottom of the first inning off of Elks right-hander Alex Giroux to take an early lead.

The first five batters of the bottom of the first inning reached against Giroux, who walked three and allowed an RBI double to Nick Israel. Bend quickly responded in the top of the second with two runs off of Pippins right-hander A.J. Wood, with Jake Jarvis hitting a solo homer and Vinny Zavolta following with an RBI single. Neither starter completed four innings, with Giroux exiting after 3.1 innings and 5 runs (4 earned), while Wood allowed 4 runs (3 earned) over 3-plus innings. Neither starter took a decision as things got crazy in the middle innings.

The Elks struck for seven runs in the top of the fourth inning against three different Pippins pitchers, with Anthony Alvarado allowing five earned runs and recording just one out after Wood was relieved two batters into the weekend. At the end of the frame, the Elks had a 9-3 lead, but the Pippins quickly responded in the bottom half.

Israel hit a 2-run single off of Bend reliever Joe Williams to cut the Elks lead to four, and the Pippins continued to rally from that point forward. In the fifth inning, Nick DiCarlo had his second hit of the day, a booming three-run homer to left field, that sliced the deficit to just one run, 9-8. The Pippins finally rallied to retake the lead in the sixth inning, when runs came home on a wild pitch and an Aidan Welch single to make it 10-9.

Bend took the lead back again in the top of the seven inning with two runs, but the Pippins rallied once again in the bottom of the seventh, with Kyle Dean bringing home a run on a groundout, despite the infield coming in, and Tanner Parker singling home an insurance run to make it 13-11.

Bo Henderson earned the win in relief for the Pippins, allowing two runs (one earned) over 3.2 innings, striking out one and walking one to earn his first win. Nick Brown pitched the final two innings in relief to pick up the save for the Pippins, his second of the year. Bend reliever Alan Embree, who faced just one batter in the seventh (DiCarlo) and allowed a single, picked up the loss, his third of the year.

DiCarlo led the way on offense for the Pippins with his best performance of the year, reaching base in all five trips in a 3-for-3, 3 RBI day. Israel added a season-high four RBIs in a 2-for-4 day, and Parker also had 2 hits and an RBI. For Bend, Jarvis had 3 hits, including two RBIs and the home run, and Chase Ferlund went 2-for-4 with 3 runs scored.

The series wraps up on Thursday in Yakima as the Pippins go for the series sweep, which would be their third consecutive sweep over Bend. Right-hander Ryan Jameson will start for the Pippins against a to-be-announced starter for Bend. First pitch is set for 6:35 PM, with pregame coverage beginning at pippinsbaseball.com/live at 6:20.

After picking up their second 1-0 win of the season on Tuesday and taking the series opener from the Bend Elks, the Pippins will look for their fifth win over their past six games on Wednesday night as the 3-game series continues at Yakima County Stadium. First pitch is set for 6:35 PM in game two, in which the Pippins will send right-hander A.J. Wood to the mound against a to-be-determined starter for Bend. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz at pippinsbaseball.com/live begins at 6:20 PM.

Full Game Notes

PIPPINS PULL OUT NARROW WIN OVER BEND TO OPEN SERIES: The Pippins scrapped and clawed their way to a hard-fought series opening win against the Bend Elks on Tuesday at Yakima County Stadium, pulling out a 1-0 win, their seventh consecutive victory against the Elks. Tyler Frazier, the Pippins’ starter, was fantastic, allowing just four baserunners over seven shutout innings, only one of whom advanced past first base. Frazier picked up his second win after striking out 8, and Mark Woinarowicz threw 2 scoreless innings of relief to earn his first save of the summer. The Pippins picked up their only run of the ballgame in the bottom of the fifth inning, when Nick DiCarlo singled into center field with two on and two out, and Eddy Pelc, pinch-running for the injured Zach Meddings, scored from second base. It was the only run allowed by Bend starter Gil Luna, who walked 6 and threw 118 pitches over 6.2 innings of work to take the loss.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Right-hander A.J. Wood will make his third start of the summer tonight for the Pippins in the second game of the series against Bend. Wood, out of Central Washington, has made his last two appearances in relief after making a spot start on July 4 against Bellingham. He has allowed at least one run over each of his last four appearances, but still holds a 2.86 ERA on the season in 22 innings of work. In that stretch, Wood has a 1-1 record, and has struck out 19 batters to 10 walks. Opponents have hit .250 off of the right-hander native to Sacramento, California.

FOR THE ELKS: The Elks have not announced a projected starter for tonight’s game.

TYLER TERRIFIC: Tyler Frazier picked up his second win on Tuesday after firing seven shutout innings, continuing a strong recent stretch across all competitions. Frazier carried over momentum from his non-league start last week against the Northwest Honkers, in which he allowed one earned run over five innings of work. In his last five WCL appearances, Frazier has allowed one earned run over 11.2 innings, good for a 0.77 ERA. In that stretch, he has 13 strikeouts to just four walks.

HIGH QUALITY STARTERS: Frazier’s seven shutout innings marked the 8th quality start by a Pippins starter this year, and the third in the past week, after Joe Magrisi’s 7 shutout innings against Port Angeles on Saturday, and Jack Gonzales’ 7-inning complete game on Sunday. Overall, five of the Pippins’ eight quality starts on the season have come in the month of July. Tuesday also marked the Pippins’ third team shutout of the season, the second-most total in the league. Only Corvallis (4) has more shutouts on the year.

A LOT OF DUDES: Within the past week, the Pippins have had three new players debut for the team in WCL play, brining their total number of players to appear in a game this season, through 34 games, to 46. Brothers Kyle and Tyler Dean, both position players, debuted early in the weekend against Port Angeles, while left-hander Anthony Alvarado made his season debut on the mound on Sunday. A litany of injures has led to larger-than-expected roster turnover early in the season.

ODDS & ENDS: The Pippins’ win last night over Bend was their first win at home against a South Division team in 2019…Bend only had one runner advance past first base on Tuesday (Vinny Zavolta, 7th inning)…the Pippins improved to 3-6 in one-run games with last night’s 1-0 win, their second 1-0 win of the season…Mark Woinarowicz earned the first save by a Pippins reliever in the second half, and the first in over two weeks (Trystan Vrieling, July 3 vs. Bellingham).

YAKIMA, Wash. – Tyler Frazier threw 7 shutout innings and the Yakima Valley Pippins pushed across the only run of the ballgame in a 1-0 win over the Bend Elks on Tuesday night at Yakima County Stadium, opening up a 3-game series on the right note.

Frazier, making his second start of the year in West Coast League play, was dominant from start to finish for the Pippins (4-4, 14-19). Four of his seven innings of work were 1-2-3 frames, and he struck out a season-high 8 batters to just two walks. Only one did a runner advance past second base against Frazier, when Vinny Zavolta reached on a single and moved up on a walk in the 7th inning for Bend (2-5, 14-20).

The Pippins did not get much offense going against Elks starter Gil Luna, who was shaky with command over 6.2 innings (6 walks) but kept the Pippins off balance, with just 3 hits allowed on the day and 6 strikeouts. In the fifth inning, the Pippins got to Luna for the only time all night. Zach Meddings led off the inning with a single, but was promptly removed due to injury and replaced by Eddy Pelc. After a hit-by-pitch, a pickoff, and a walk, Nick DiCarlo singled into center field, scoring Pelc from second base and giving the Pippins a 1-0 lead.

The Pippins stranded 9 runners otherwise, including leaving the bases loaded in the 7th inning against Bend reliever Jake Wilson. Mark Woinarowicz closed things out for the Pippins in relief, allowing just two baserunners over 2 scoreless innings, and inducing a 4-6-3 double play to end the game in the top of the ninth inning.

Nobody collected a multi-hit game on either side, with just six combined hits between the two teams. Aside from DiCarlo and Meddings, Brett Wells also had a hit for the Pippins, and reached based in all 3 of his plate appearances. Dayton Provost and Nick Burgarello also collected singles for Bend.

The series continues on Wednesday with a 6:35 PM first pitch, as the Pippins look for the series win over the Elks. Right-hander A.J. Wood will start for the Pippins against a to-be-determined starter for Bend. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz begins at 6:20 PM at pippinsbaseball.com/live.

Following a double-header split on Sunday against Port Angeles that completed a 4-game series split with the Lefties, the Pippins return to action at Yakima County Stadium tonight to open up a 3 game series with the Bend Elks. First pitch for game one is set for 6:35 PM PT, with Bend left-hander Gil Luna set to oppose Yakima Valley righty Mark Woinarowicz on the mound.

Full Game Notes

PIPPINS SPLIT TIGHT SUNDAY DOUBLEHEADER WITH LEFTIES: The Pippins needed strong pitching in a Sunday doubleheader with Port Angeles, and they got it, allowing just 3 runs in the two games, but split the doubleheader, and ultimately the series, with the Lefties. Jack Gonzales threw a complete game in the first game of the doubleheader as the Pippins pulled out a 5-2 win, striking out 5, and Aidan Welch added 3 hits in the victory. The Pippins scored all 5 runs in the fourth inning off of Port Angeles left-hander Nathan Bonck. In game two, a 2-1 win for Port Angeles, the Pippins got a strong start from Trystan Vrieling, who allowed one earned run over 5 innings, with zero walks, but Dwayne Angebrandt was even better for the Lefties, styming the Pippins over five innings of work. Early runs in the second and fourth innings pushed Port Angeles ahead, and they never trailed en route to splitting the doubleheader and the series, and pulling out the win in the season series, 4 games to 2.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Right-hander Mark Woinarowicz will make his fourth start of the summer for the Pippins to open up the series against Bend on Tuesday. The right-hander from Cal State East Bay has shuffled between the rotation and the bullpen this season, making his last three league appearances in relief. On the season, the Yorba Linda, California native has a 3-3 record and 4.76 ERA, striking out 22 batters and walking 5 over 28.1 innings of work.

FOR THE ELKS: Left-hander Gil Luna will start for Bend in the series opener on Tuesday, making his seventh start of the season. The reigning West Coast League Pitcher of the Week, Luna sits second in the WCL this season with 47 strikeouts in just 29.1 innings, but also leads the league with his 32 walks. Opponents have hit a paltry .152 off of the Casa Grande, Arizona, native, who allowed one unearned run over 7 innings in his last start at Wenatchee, walking 4 and striking out 12 to pick up his second win of the year.

A LOOK AT THE ELKS: 33 games into 2019, the Elks have an identical record to the Pippins at 14-19, but have already eclipsed their win total from all of 2018, when they won a league-worst 12 games. For the second straight year, Bend’s struggles have manifested largely from the pitching staff, which has a 5.31 ERA that is 3rd-worst in the West Coast League. On offense, the Elks sit middle of the pack in runs scored (160) and team batting average (.244).

AN AID TO THE OFFENSE: Infielder Aidan Welch had 4 hits on Sunday in the Port Angeles doubleheader, including a 3-hit game in game one. 4 of Welch’s last 6 games have been multi-hit games, and he has seven multi-hit games in his first 14 games with Yakima Valley this season. Welch leads all Pippins hitters with a .360 batting average, and has also added 5 RBIs.

A LOT OF DUDES: Within the past week, the Pippins have had three new players debut for the team in WCL play, brining their total number of players to appear in a game this season, through 33 games, to 46. Brothers Kyle and Tyler Dean, both position players, debuted early in the weekend against Port Angeles, while left-hander Anthony Alvarado made his season debut on the mound on Sunday. A litany of injures has led to larger-than-expected roster turnover early in the season.

ODDS & ENDS: The Pippins are on a 6-game winning streak against Bend, last losing to the Elks on July 27, 2017 in Bend…the Pippins had 2 pitchers named to the WCL All-Star Team on Tuesday, left-hander Jack Gonzales and righty Joe Magrisi…it is the first time since 2015 that two Pippins arms are All-Stars.

YAKIMA, Wash. – Two pitchers for the Yakima Valley Pippins, right-hander Joe Magrisi and left-hander Jack Gonzales, have been named to the North Division roster for the 2019 West Coast League All-Star Game, the league office announced Tuesday. The All-Star Game will take place on Tuesday, June 23, at Vince Genna Stadium in Bend, Oregon.

It is the first WCL All-Star Game selection for both pitchers. Gonzales, in his second year with the Pippins, has posted a 2-0 record and 1.80 ERA over 30 innings of work. The Oceanside, California native ranks fourth in the West Coast League in ERA, while his 30 innings pitched are 6th-most league-wide.

Gonzales, a rising junior at Dixie State, has struck out 25 batters and walked 10 in 12 appearances, while opponents have hit just .226 off of him. Gonzales made his first start of the summer on Sunday against Port Angeles, throwing a 7-inning complete game and earning the win after allowing 2 runs and striking out a season-high five.

Magrisi, a two-time WCL Pitcher of the Week honoree, leads the league in ERA (0.62) and strikeouts (53) this season. A native of San Diego, California, the right-hander is the only pitcher in the West Coast League with 3 different double-digit strikeout games this season. In his last start, Magrisi earned the win after striking out 11 over 7 shutout innings against Port Angeles.

A rising sophomore at Cal State Fullerton, Magrisi has walked just 9 batters in his 28.2 innings of work this summer, while opponents have hit .115 off of him. Amongst qualified pitchers, that .115 mark ranks as the 2nd-best league-wide, and his 16.6 strikeouts per nine innings leads all qualified arms.

The Pippins’ two All-Stars marks the sixth consecutive season with at least two selections, in the team’s sixth year of existence. It is the first time since 2015 that the Pippins have sent two pitchers to the All-Star Game.

After snapping a 3-game WCL losing streak with a 7-1 win over Port Angeles on Saturday evening, the Pippins close out the series with the Lefties on Sunday with a doubleheader at Yakima County Stadium. Two 7-inning games will begin at 4:35 PM, with a 30-minute break between the games. The Pippins will start right-hander Trystan Vrieling will start in game one against Port Angeles left-hander Nathan Bonck, while the Pippins have not announced a starter for game two against Lefties right-hander Dwayne Angebrandt. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz begins at 4:20 at pippinsbaseball.com/live.

Full Game Notes

STRONG PITCHING LEADS PIPPINS TO SERIES-EVENING WIN: Right-hander Joe Magrisi was fantastic in his start on Saturday, tossing 7 shutout innings with 11 strikeouts, and the Pippins rolled over Port Angeles to a 7-1 win to even up the series at Yakima County Stadium. Magrisi, who went just 4.2 innings in his last start, had 3 different 1-2-3 frames and allowed just four hits on 99 pitches in his longest outing of the season. The Pippins got plenty of offense, too, starting with an RBI double from Nick Israel in the first inning that gave the Pippins an early lead. In the fifth inning, Nick DiCarlo added a sacrifice fly, and the Pippins broke things open with a 4-run sixth inning against Lefties starter Tyler Tan. A.J. Wood finished the game off in relief for the Pippins, allowing one run in 2 innings of work.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Right-hander Trystan Vrieling is set to start Game 1 of Sunday’s doubleheader for Yakima Valley, while a game 2 starter has not been decided. Vrieling, a 6-foot-3, 180 pound native of Kennewick, Wash., will be making his first start of the summer after 2 relief appearances to the start his Pippins career. The incoming freshman at Gonzaga has an 0-1 record and 3.37 ERA on the season, striking out 6 batters and walking 3 over 5.1 innings of work. He has allowed opponents to hit .200 and has one save.

FOR THE LEFTIES: Left-hander Nathan Bonck will start Game 1 for the Lefties, followed by right-hander Dwayne Angebrandt in the second game. Bonck, a 6-foot-5, 228 pound southpaw from Alaska, will be making his second start of the summer, and is coming off of a quality start (6 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 4 K) last Sunday at Cowlitz. Angebrandt, a 6-foot-1, 160-pound right-hander from Cal State Northridge, is 1-3 on the season with a 4.17 ERA. In 5 starts this year, Angebrandt has struck out 23 batters and walked 7 in 28 innings of work.

MASTERFUL MAGRISI: Following his seven shutout innings with 11 strikeouts on Saturday, Joe Magrisi reclaimed his spot atop the West Coast League leaderboards in both ERA (0.62) and strikeouts (53). Magrisi is in the midst of a 19.2 scoreless innings streak, last allowing a run in the fourth inning of his start on June 12 at home against Victoria. The 11 strikeouts marked the third consecutive start that Magrisi has struck out 11 or more batters. Bend’s Gil Luna is the only other WCL pitcher with multiple starts this season with double-digit strikeouts.

AN AID TO THE OFFENSE: Infielder Aidan Welch collected 2 hits and reached base three times on Saturday, extending his recent hot stretch at the plate. 3 of Welch’s last 4 games have been multi-hit games, and he has six multi-hit games in his first 12 games with Yakima Valley this season. Welch leads all Pippins hitters with a .333 batting average, and has also added 5 RBIs.

A LOT OF DUDES: With the West Coast League debuts of brothers Tyler and Kyle Dean for the Pippins on Friday in the series opener against Port Angeles, the Pippins have now had 45 different players suit up for a game this season through just 30 games. When left-handed pitcher Anthony Alvarado makes his debut, it will bring the total up to 46. A litany of injures has led to larger-than-expected roster turnover early in the season.

ODDS & ENDS: The Pippins are playing their second doubleheader this season, both against Port Angeles…Joe Magrisi earned the win on the mound on Saturday, improving Pippins starting pitchers to 4-10 on the year…Pippins pitching did not issue a walk on Saturday for the first time since June 4 at Ridgefield.

YAKIMA, Wash. – Joe Magrisi did not allow a run over seven shutout innings and the Yakima Valley Pippins got enough offense in the middle innings to topple the Port Angeles Lefties, 7-1, on Saturday evening at Yakima County Stadium, evening their weekend series at one game apiece.

Magrisi, coming off of his shortest start of the summer last weekend at Portland, had elite command of his three-pitch mix as he sliced up the Port Angeles (2-2, 12-18) lineup from start to finish over his seven-inning outing. After a season-high six walks a week ago, Magrisi did not issue a free pass on Saturday, and also struck out 11 batters to up his league-leading strikeout total to 53 on the year. He allowed four hits, and threw 99 pitches.

The Pippins (2-3, 13-18) jumped on Port Angeles starter Tyler Tan early, giving Magrisi a 2-0 lead after two innings. Aidan Welch singled through the left side, and Nick Israel brought him home a batter later with an RBI double. After a wild pitch moved Israel to third, Noah Andrews scored Israel on a groundout, and the Pippins led 2-0. They never trailed in the ballgame.

While Magrisi cruised through the top halves of innings, Tan ran into some trouble in the middle innings, allowing an unearned run to score in the fifth before exiting with the bases loaded and no outs in the top of the sixth. Reliever Zach Tresemer, facing Andrews, got a ground ball up the middle, but it slid right underneath second baseman Damiano Palmegiani’s glove, leading to two Pippins runs and the start of a 4-run sixth inning that pushed the lead to 7-0.

A.J. Wood finished off the game for the Pippins with two innings of relief, allowing one run on a double in the 8th inning while striking out one. Magrisi earned the win, improving to 2-0 on the season, while Tan took his first loss of the summer.

Israel led the way on offense for the Pippins, going 2-for-4 with 2 RBIs on the day. Welch also added two hits for the Pippins, while Kyle Dean added a double (his first hit of the summer). Gavin Rork (2-for-4, 1 run scored) paced the offense for Port Angeles.

The series wraps up on Sunday with a doubleheader set to begin at 4:35 PM. The two teams will play a pair of seven-inning games separated by 30 minutes. Left-hander Nathan Bonck will start game one for Port Angeles, and will be opposed by Pippins righty Trystan Vrieling. Right-hander Dwayne Angebrandt will get the ball for the Lefties in Game 2 against a to-be-decided pitcher for Yakima Valley. Pregame coverage at pippinsbaseball.com/live with Miles Klotz begins at 4:20 PM.

After dropping the series opener to the Port Angeles Lefties on Friday night at home, 4-1, the Pippins return to action tonight and continue their series against the Lefties with a 6:35 PM first pitch. In a rematch of a rain-cancelled pitching matchup from last month in Port Angeles, right-hander Joe Magrisi will pitch for the Pippins against Lefties righty Tyler Tan. Pregame coverage begins at 6:20 PM at pippinsbaseball.com/live, with Miles Klotz on the call.

Full Game Notes

PIPPINS FALL TO PORT ANGELES IN WILD SERIES OPENER: The Pippins dropped the first game of their weekend series to the Port Angeles Lefties, 4-1, on Friday night at Yakima County Stadium, in a game in which both managers were ejected. The Pippins could never generate enough offense, scoring their only run in the bottom of the ninth inning, and got three of their five hits on the night from center fielder Luke Schwartz. Ryan Jameson, the Pippins’ starter, was not bad, allowing just one earned run in five innings, but the duo of righties Nate Weeldreyer (3 scoreless innings) and Michael Buchanan (4 scoreless innings) for Port Angeles stymied the Pippins offense all night long. Port Angeles used 2-run innings in both the fourth and sixth innings to jump ahead early, and never trailed in the opener.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Right-hander Joe Magrisi will make his fifth start of the season for the Pippins on Saturday. The sophomore right-hander out of Cal State Fullerton only went 4.2 innings deep in his last start at Portland, in part due to his six walks, but did not allow a run and allowed just one hit in the outing while striking out a season-high 12 batters. On the season, Magrisi is 2nd in the West Coast League with his 42 strikeouts in just 21.2 innings of work, while his record stands at 1-0. Magrisi has posted a 0.83 ERA and allowed opponents to hit .099 off of him.

FOR THE PICKLES: Right-hander Tyler Tan will make his fourth start of the summer for the Lefties on Saturday in Yakima. The 5-foot-7, 170-pound native of Kent, Washington, played under Lefties head coach Darren Westergard at Skagit Valley College this past spring. In 3 starts this year, Tan has a 1-0 record and 2.36 ERA, striking out 11 batters and walking 7 in 19 innings of work. Tan was the starting pitcher in the game in Port Angeles on June 25 that was cancelled after 4-plus innings due to rain. In that outing, he lasted just 1.1 innings, as the Pippins pounded him for 8 runs (7 earned) on six hits and a walk.

LONG ONES: Friday’s series opener lasted 3 hours and 13 minutes, marking the fourth consecutive league game that has gone at least 2:50. On the season, it was the Pippins’ 9th game that went at least 3 hours long in league play – 7 of which have came in the past month of the season. Yakima Valley has played 14 games that have gone at least 2 hours and 45 minutes long.

HOMER DROUGHT: It has been over three weeks since the Pippins last hit a home run in any competition, with the last coming from Henry Gargus on June 20 at home. The Pippins’ 5 homers on the year in WCL play are the fewest of any team in the league, with every other team having at least 10 homers on the season. The Pippins are also last in the league in doubles (32), and tied for last in triples (2) on the season.

A LOT OF DUDES: With the West Coast League debuts of brothers Tyler and Kyle Dean for the Pippins on Friday in the series opener against Port Angeles, the Pippins have now had 45 different players suit up for a game this season through just 30 games. When left-handed pitcher Anthony Alvarado makes his debut, it will bring the total up to 46. A litany of injures has led to larger-than-expected roster turnover early in the season.

ODDS & ENDS: The Pippins have lost each of their three games this season against the Lefties after winning 8 of their first 9 against the Port Angeles franchise…Friday’s loss was the Pippins’ 11th time this season scoring 2 or fewer runs, and their 9th time scoring one run or fewer (including the third time in the last three games)…infielder Aidan Welch went 0-for-4, snapping a 9-game on-base streak.

YAKIMA, Wash. – In a wild series opener at Yakima County Stadium, the Yakima Valley Pippins fell, 4-1, to the Port Angeles Lefties, in the series opener of a 4-game series at Yakima County Stadium.

The Pippins (1-3, 12-180 didn’t score a run against the Lefties (2-1, 12-17) until the bottom of the ninth, but a wild night throughout ensured one of the wackiest games of the 2019 season. The Lefties struck early off of Pippins reliever Ryan Jameson, tagging him for two runs in the fourth inning after an infield single by Gavin Rork and a single by Justin Fugitt put two on with no outs. A wild pitch scored Rork, and Baxter Halligan followed with a sacrifice fly to score Fugitt and make it 2-0.

From there, the Lefties pitching staff cruised, with starter Nate Weeldreyer tossing 3 scoreless innings and reliever Michael Buchanan – who picked up his first win in relief – allowing just one baserunner over four scoreless frames. Tension ensued in the sixth inning, when Pippins manager Marcus McKimmy was ejected for arguing with home plate umpire Kyle Katz. The Lefties added two more runs that inning, with Halligan tagging reliever Mark Woinarowicz for an RBI double, and another run coming in to score on a passed ball.

In the bottom of the ninth, the Pippins, off of Port Angeles reliever A.C. Chavez, rallied to score their only run of the ballgame. After Brady Hormel hit a leadoff single, back-to-back groundouts moved him to third. A batter later, Nick Israel hit an infield single that scored Hormel. The next batter, Tyler Dean, reached on a fielding error, before chaos ensued.

After one pitch was thrown to Luke Schwartz, a massive argument erupted between both umpires and two of the Pippins coaches, as well as the entire Pippins dugout. Due to the lengthy delay, the Lefties changed pitchers, putting right-hander Carter Loewen into the game. On a full count, Loewen got Schwartz to bounce out to third base, but after the Lefties had already gone onto the field to celebrate, the call was overturned, and Schwartz was called safe, loading the bases.

A batter later – and after Lefties manager Darren Westergard was ejected – Christian Padilla struck out on a high fastball to end the wild contest. The series will continue on Saturday with a 6:35 PM first pitch at Yakima County Stadium. Right-hander Joe Magrisi will start for the Pippins opposite Port Angeles’ Tyler Tan. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz begins at 6:20 PM at pippinsbaseball.com/live.

After a brief three-game break from West Coast League play, the Pippins return to league action tonight at home against the Port Angeles Lefties, opening up a 4-games in 3 days series. Friday’s opener is Military Appreciation Night at the Orchard, with a special 7:05 PM first pitch and fireworks to follow the game. Ryan Jameson will start for the Pippins opposite Port Angeles righty Nate Weeldreyer. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz begins at 6:50 PM at pippinsbaseball.com/live.

Full Game Notes

PIPPINS COMPLETE CLEAN SWEEP IN NON-LEAGUE GAMES: The Pippins took a quick break from West Coast League play on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, and completed a 3-0 stretch against non-league teams with an 11-10, walk-off win over the Northwest Honkers on Thursday night. In a crazy game, the lead changed hands and the score was tied several different times in the late innings, leading to a 10-inning game. In the bottom of the tenth, the Pippins’ Aidan Welch took a 2-2 fastball through a hole in the left side of the infield, and Eddy Pelc (who led off the frame with a walk) came around to score the winning run, ahead of a throw from left fielder Paul Bryniarski. The Pippins improved to 4-0 on the year in non-league games with the win. They have just two non-league games remaining this season.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Right-hander Ryan Jameson will make his fourth start of the summer on Friday to open up the series against the Lefties. The 6-foot-2, 180-pound right-hander from Cal Poly last started a week ago on July 5 in Portland, where he took a no-decision despite putting together his best start of the year. In 6.2 innings of work, the Hollister, California native struck out a season-high 10 batters and allowed just 1 hit and no runs, while walking 3. On the season, Jameson has an 0-2 record and 3.17 ERA in 17 innings of work, striking out 27 and walking 9.

FOR THE PICKLES: Right-hander Nate Weeldreyer is set to make his second start of the season for the Lefties on Friday in the opener against the Pippins. The 6-foot-1, 197-pound right-hander from Auburn, Washington, has made one start on the year, allowing an earned run in 3 innings of work against Bend on June 29 at home. In that start, he struck out four batters and walked 2. The right-hander will be a freshman at the University of Washington in the fall.

JACK ATTACK: Jack Gonzales continued his stellar stretch of relief outings on Sunday in Portland, tossing another 1.1 of scoreless relief, striking out 2 and walking 1, while allowing just one of three inherited runners to score. The outing was Gonzales’ sixth consecutive without allowing an earned run, dating back to June 24 against Corvallis. In that span, Gonzales has tossed 15.2 scoreless frames to lower his ERA to 1.56. In those innings, he has 15 strikeouts to just 4 walks.

HOMER DROUGHT: It has been over three weeks since the Pippins last hit a home run in any competition, with the last coming from Henry Gargus on June 20 at home. The Pippins’ 5 homers on the year in WCL play are the fewest of any team in the league, with only Cowlitz (8) also in single digits in homers. The Pippins are also last in the league in doubles (32), and tied for last in triples (2) on the season.

A LOT OF DUDES: The Pippins have had 43 different players suit up in West Coast League games this season through their first 29 games, and three more are expected to debut this weekend against Port Angeles. Returning outfielder Kyle Dean, returning pitcher Anthony Alvarado, and new infielder Tyler Dean all appeared this week in non-league games, and will bring the total up to 46 when they debut in WCL play. A litany of injures has led to larger-than-expected roster turnover early in the season.

ODDS & ENDS: The Pippins fell behind, 5-0, to Portland on Sunday after 2 innings; they have now been outscored 44-25 in the first two innings of games this season, a -19 run differential…Sunday’s game took 3 hours and 14 minutes, the fourth straight game that has gone at least 2:50…on Thursday against the Northwest Honkers, the Pippins set a season high in walks drawn (15) and a low in strikeouts (1).

YAKIMA, Wash. – Aidan Welch played the role of walk-off hero on Thursday night at Yakima County Stadium, singling through the left side of the infield in the bottom of the 10th inning to score Eddy Pelc and lead the Yakima Valley Pippins to an 11-10 walk-off win over the Northwest Honkers, sweeping the 2-game non-league series.

After Eddy Pelc drew a walk and Luke Schwartz was hit by a pitch to put the winning run at second base with one out, Welch dug in against Honkers reliever Austin Pesicka. Welch fouled off three tough pitches, working the count to 2-2, before smacking a fastball through the left side of the infield, scoring Pelc ahead of a throw from left fielder Paul Bryniarksi. It gave the Pippins their first walk-off win of the 2019 season.

Even disregarding the crazy ending, it was a wild game from start to finish to wrap up the 2-game series. The Pippins fell behind early to the Honkers, trailing 5-0 after an inning and a half, as the Honkers crushed Pippins starter Ayden Adams for a pair of doubles in the second, including a 2-run extra-base knock by Brock Bueno. The Pippins quickly responded, however, with at least one run in each inning from the 2nd through the 7th.

The biggest frame came in the fourth, when, having again surrendered the lead, the Pippins struck for four runs, capped off by an RBI double down the right-field line from Greg Fuchs to make it a one-run game. After tying it back up in the fifth inning at 8, the Pippins surrendered the lead – and tied it again – with a run in the sixth.

In the top of the 7th, the Honkers struck for an unearned run off of Pippins reliever Anthony Alvarado. Zachary Zurbrugg brought home Kendall Yackley on a sacrifice fly, after Alvarado’s throwing error allowed Yackley to reach second. In the bottom of the seventh, the defensive misfortune benefitted the Pippins, as Nick DiCarlo’s soft fly ball into left field was dropped by Bryniarski, scoring Kyle Dean and tying the game at 10.

With the Pippins hoping to conserve pitchers for a 4-game series in 3 days over the weekend against Port Angeles in WCL play, infielder Tanner Parker pitched the top of the tenth inning and earned the win in relief, stranding the bases loaded with a pair of strikeouts and two walks. The Pippins, on offense, drew a season-high fifteen walks, to just one strikeout (a season low).

Having completed a 3-0 set of non-league games, the Pippins welcome in the Port Angeles Lefties for a WCL series starting Friday night at 7:05 PM at Yakima County Stadium. Friday night is Military Appreciation Night, with postgame fireworks to follow the series opener. Ryan Jameson will start for the Pippins opposite Port Angeles righty Nate Weeldreyer. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz begins at pippinsbaseball.com/live at 6:50 PM.

YAKIMA, Wash. – The Yakima Valley Pippins used a 5-run sixth inning and a strong start on the mound to complete an 8-6 win over the Northwest Honkers in non-league action on Wednesday night at Yakima County Stadium.

The Pippins, who fell behind early after an inning and a half but tacked on 3 runs through four innings, finally turned runners left on base (11 in the first five innings) into runs scored with a big fifth inning. Facing Honkers reliever Warren Utschinski, the Pippins drew three walks, had two singles (including a perfectly placed bunt) and capped it off when James Bell cracked a two-RBI knock to double the Pippins up over the Honkers, 6-3.

That lead was more than enough for the front end of the Pippins pitching staff, headed by righty Tyler Frazier, who was confident and effective in his strike-throwing over 5.1 innings of work. The righty allowed 3 runs, only one of which was earned, and struck out five while walking only one and allowing five hits. He was relieved by Jack Gonzales with the bases loaded in the sixth, but only one run came in to score.

The Honkers put a scare in in the top of the 9th against Pippins reliever Nick Brown, as the first five men of the inning reached and made it a 2-run game, with the tying run reaching the plate with just one out. But Brown induced a 4-6-3 double play and then a game-ending groundout to third to give the Pippins the win.

The Pippins conclude their series with the Honkers, and their brief foray into non-league play, with a 6:35 PM first pitch on Thursday at Yakima County Stadium. Live coverage will be held at pippinsbaseball.com/live, with Miles Klotz on the call.

YAKIMA, Wash. – The Yakima Valley Pippins offense showed out on Tuesday night in Yakima, as the Pippins took down the visiting showcase team from the Cascade Collegiate League, 11-9, at Yakima County Stadium.

The Pippins, in their first non-league game since the season-opening exhibition against the Seattle Studs, struck for 11 runs on 8 hits, beginning with a 3-run first inning. The offense didn’t slow down from there, adding on runs in the fourth, fifth, and sixth innings in a game in which the Pippins trailed just once.

In the top of the 4th inning, the Cascade League team brought home three runs on consecutive singles off of Pippins starter Bo Henderson to take a one-run lead. But the Pippins quickly responded with one of their biggest innings of the summer, a 5-run bottom of the fourth inning capped off by a 2-run single from Tanner Parker to give the Pippins the lead back.

Henderson, who allowed 6 earned runs in 5 innings of work, earned the win, while A.J. Wood, who pitched 4 innings of relief and allowed 2 runs, both unearned, earned the multi-inning save. Parker, who had three hits, and Nick Israel, who also had three hits, led the way on offense for the Pippins.

The Pippins continue their stretch of non-league games on Wednesday when they open up a 2-game series against the Northwest Honkers. First pitch is set for 6:35 PM. Miles Klotz will have coverage at pippinsbaseball.com/live.

PORTLAND, Ore. – The Yakima Valley Pippins pitching struggled and the offense could not carry the load in an 11-4 loss to the Portland Pickles at Walker Stadium on Sunday, dropping the three-game, second half-opening series on the road.

The Pickles (2-1, 11-18) jumped on top of Pippins (1-2, 12-17) starter Nick Brown early, tagging the right-hander for a run in the first inning and four more in the second inning, led by a homer from leadoff man Chase Luttrell, who homered in consecutive games in the series. With a 5-0 lead after two innings, the Pickles – who scored 2 runs combined in the first two games of the series – rode the momentum to an easy win to take the series.

The Pippins made things interesting early off of Pickles left-hander Michael Perzan when they struck for 3 runs in the top of the third inning. Back-to-back singles from Noah Andrews and Tanner Parker set the stage for Ty DeLancey, who singled home a run with the bases loaded, and Brady Hormel, who brought home a second run on a groundout. The Pippins were able to tag Perzan for 3 runs in 3 innings on 5 hits and 2 walks, but scored just once more, in the ninth inning, off of four Portland relievers.

Portland really broke the game open in the bottom of the fourth off of Pippins lefty Mark Finkelnburg, a Portland native. Everett Lau, a left-handed hitter, took a Finkelnburg fastball to dead center field for a three-run homer, and Finkelnburg was unable to complete an inning in his first relief appearance of the summer, allowing four runs on four hits. Brown, who took his third loss of the season, allowed 5 earned runs over 1.2 innings of work.

Portland’s two four-run innings, the bottom of the second and the bottom of the fourth, were especially crushing as the Pickles scored all eight of those runs with two outs. Perzan picked up his third win of the season for Portland. Patrick Hubbs, Daniel Naughton, Christian Ciuffetelli, and Conner Thurman combined to allow one unearned run in relief.

Every single hitter in the Portland lineup, including substitutes, collected at least one hit and scored a run. Gabe Skoro led the way with 3 hits, while Jonathan Kelly went 2-for-4. Aidan Welch (2-for-4) and DeLancey (2 hits before being substituted) had the only multi-hit performances for the Pippins.

After an off day on Monday, the Pippins return home to the Orchard on Tuesday to begin a 9-day, 10-game homestand. The homestand begins with three non-league games, beginning with the showcase team from the Cascade Collegiate League on Tuesday at 6:35 PM. Bo Henderson will start for the Pippins in the game, which will be broadcast at pippinsbaseball.com/live beginning at 6:20 PM with Miles Klotz on the call.

Following a 2-1 loss in extra innings at Walker Stadium on Saturday night, the first extra-inning game of the year for the Pippins, Yakima Valley returns to action for a 5:05 PM rubber match against the Pickles, seeking the series win. Right-hander Nick Brown will make his first start of the summer for the Pippins, and will be opposed by Portland southpaw Michael Perzan. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz begins at 4:50 PM at pippinsbaseball.com/live.

Pippins Game Notes 7-7

PIPPINS FALL IN EXTRA INNINGS TO PORTLAND: The Pippins played their first extra-innings game of the 2019 season Saturday, falling 2-1 in 10 innings to Portland to even the weekend series at a game apiece. With the Pippins leading 1-0 after 8 innings, Portland leadoff man Chase Luttrell hit a solo, game-tying homer to right-center field to lead off the bottom of the ninth inning against Pippins reliever Trystan Vrieling. In the tenth inning, Portland used back-to-back doubles to win it, with John Arndorfer collecting the game-winning hit. The loss spoiled a great outing from starter Joe Magrisi, who struck out 12 batters over 4.2 scoreless innings, allowing one hit and walking 6. Titus Groeneweg, Magrisi’s roommate and college teammate at Cal State Fullerton, tossed 6 innings of 1-run ball on his own, striking out 2 and not issuing a walk.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Right-hander Nick Brown will make his first start of the summer to wrap up the series in Portland against the Pickles. Brown has been one of the Pippins’ most-used relievers this season, appearing in 8 games and posting a 1-2 record and 3.08 ERA. In 11.2 innings, Brown has struck out 10 batters and walked 10 while opponents have hit .261 off of him. A native of Catoosa, Oklahoma, the 6-foot-4, 225-pound Brown will be a redshirt senior at Pittsburg State in the fall.

FOR THE PICKLES: Left-hander Michael Perzan will make his 6th appearance of the summer for the Pickles to close out the series. The reigning WCL Pitcher of the Week, the Chandler, Arizona native tossed 10 scoreless innings in 2 appearances last week, including 6 one-hit innings with 6 strikeouts on June 30 in Bellingham. The 6-foot-2, 170-pound southpaw from Grand Canyon has a 2-0 record and 2.45 ERA over 18.1 innings of work this season, striking out 16 batters and walking 7. Opponents have hit .169 off of him.

JACK ATTACK: Jack Gonzales continued his stellar stretch of relief outings on Friday in Portland, earning the win with 2.1 scoreless innings out of the bullpen, including getting the game-ending strikeout with the winning run at 2nd base in the ninth. The outing was Gonzales’ fifth consecutive without allowing an earned run, and also his fifth consecutive outing of at least 2 innings. In that span, Gonzales has tossed 14.1 scoreless frames to lower his ERA to 1.66. In those innings, he has 13 strikeouts to just 3 walks.

SHUTOUT CITY: The Pippins picked up their second shutout of the season – and their second of the past week – with the 1-0 win on Friday in Portland. Their first shutout came on Tuesday against Bellingham, when three Pippins pitchers combined on a 5-hit shutout. The 3 hits on Friday are the fewest allowed in a Pippins shutout since Taylor Dollar and Connor White held Cowlitz to 3 hits in a 1-0 win on August 1, 2017. The Pippins’ two shutouts this year are tied for the 2nd-most in the WCL, trailing only Corvallis (3).

A LOT OF DUDES: The Pippins had another new addition to the starting lineup on Thursday against Bellingham, with outfielder Eddy Pelc becoming the 43rd different player to appear in a Pippins uniform so far this season through 27 games. A litany of injures has led to larger-than-expected roster turnover early in the season.

ODDS & ENDS: The Pickles will use a left-handed starter for all three games of the series with Perzan starting today…The Pippins lost their first game of the season when leading after 8 innings, falling to 12-8 when entering the ninth ahead…the Pippins set a team record with their 17 strikeouts on the mound.

PORTLAND, Ore. – The Yakima Valley Pippins struggled to score runs and fell victim to a late explosion of extra-base hits in a 2-1, walk-off loss in 10 innings to the Portland Pickles at Walker Stadium on Saturday, evening the second half-opening series at 2.

It was the first extra inning game of the season for the Pippins (1-1, 12-16), but it almost didn’t end up that way. Portland (1-1, 10-18) managed just 2 hits through the first eight inning of the game, and entered the bottom of the ninth trailing, 1-0. Reliever Trystan Vrieling, who had fired 4 innings of scoreless relief, served up a leadoff homer to Chase Luttrell to tie the game at 1.

In extra innings, extra-base hits – which the Pickles had none of in the first 17 innings of the series – came in bunches, with Jonathan Kelly leading off the bottom of the 10th inning with a booming double to left-center field. A batter later, John Arndorfer brought him home with a double just inside the third base bag, sending Portland to a walk-off win, their first win of the second half of the season.

The Pippins got a fantastic start from right-hander Joe Magrisi, who did not have his sharpest command (6 walks in 4.2 innings), but allowed just 1 hit and no runs while striking out a season-high 12 in just over 100 pitches on the night. Vrieling was strong in relief, as well, despite taking the loss, striking out five over 4.1 innings.

Portland pitching was strong throughout, with starter Titus Groeneweg only allowing one unearned run. In the top of the fourth inning, Nick DiCarlo reached on an error, and Aidan Welch followed with a double that brought home the first, and only, run of the game for the Pippins. Groeneweg, who struck out 2 in his 6 innings, allowing 3 hits, took a no-decision. Joey Morris, who tossed 2 scoreless innings in relief, earned the win, his first of the summer.

Arndorfer led the way for the Pickles offensively with his two hits and the game-winning RBI. Welch had the only multi-hit day for the Pippins, who managed just 4 hits on the night.

The Pippins conclude their series with Portland on Sunday with an early 5:05 PM start time, with a chance to take the second-half opening series. Nick Brown will make his first start of the summer for the Pippins opposite Portland left-hander Michael Perzan. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz begins at 4:50 PM at pippinsbaseball.com/live.

After opening up the second half with a thrilling 1-0 win at Portland on Friday, the Pippins return to action in the three-game weekend series with a Saturday night contest at Walker Stadium. Right-hander Joe Magrisi starts for the Pippins opposite his college teammate, Pickles left-hander Titus Groeneweg. First pitch is set for 7:05 PM PT in Portland, with pregame coverage with Miles Klotz beginning at 6:50 PM at pippinsbaseball.com/live.

Full Game Notes

PIPPINS PITCHING DOMINATES IN WIN AT PORTLAND: The Pippins opened up the second half of the 2019 season with a thrilling win in Portland on Friday, topping the Pickles, 1-0, in a pitcher’s duel for the ages. Neither team had a hit in the first four innings, and the two teams finished with a combined 7 hits and 25 strikeouts. Pippins starter Ryan Jameson was on point in his 6.2 innings of work, striking out a season-high 10 batters and allowing just 1 hit and 3 walks, and Jack Gonzales followed with 2.1 innings of scoreless relief. The Pippins scored the game’s only run in the 8th inning, when Eddy Pelc reached on aa single and then scored on a double down the line by Tanner Parker. Pelc led the way on offense for the Pippins with his 2 hits, and Parker collected his team-high 17th RBI.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Right-hander Joe Magrisi will make his fourth start of the summer for the Pippins on Saturday in Portland. The 6-foot-2, 210-pound righty from Cal State Fullerton last pitched in relief on Tuesday against Bellingham, striking out 3 batters in a scoreless ninth inning. His last start, on June 25 in Port Angeles, was not officially counted as the game was called due to rain, but Magrisi had finished 4 scoreless frames with 6 strikeouts in that start. On the season, Magrisi has a 1-0 record and 1.05 ERA, with 30 strikeouts just 3 walks in 17 innings of work. Opponents hit .107 off of him, and he has one save.

FOR THE PICKLES: Left-hander Titus Groeneweg, a college teammate of Magrisi’s at Cal State Fullerton, will get the start for Portland in Saturday’s game 2. A tall, 6-foot-5, 180-pound southpaw native to Vacaville, California, in the Bay Area, Groeneweg has posted a 1-0 record and 2.20 ERA in 16.1 innings of work this season for Portland. In that span, he has struck out 17 batters and walked 2, while opponents hit 290 off of him.

JACK ATTACK: Jack Gonzales continued his stellar stretch of relief outings on Friday in Portland, earning the win with 2.1 scoreless innings out of the bullpen, including getting the game-ending strikeout with the winning run at 2nd base in the ninth. The outing was Gonzales’ fifth consecutive without allowing an earned run, and also his fifth consecutive outing of at least 2 innings. In that span, Gonzales has tossed 14.1 scoreless frames to lower his ERA to 1.66. In those innings, he has 13 strikeouts to just 3 walks.

SHUTOUT CITY: The Pippins picked up their second shutout of the season – and their second of the past week – with the 1-0 win on Friday in Portland. Their first shutout came on Tuesday against Bellingham, when three Pippins pitchers combined on a 5-hit shutout. The 3 hits on Friday are the fewest allowed in a Pippins shutout since Taylor Dollar and Connor White held Cowlitz to 3 hits in a 1-0 win on August 1, 2017. The Pippins’ two shutouts this year are tied for the 2nd-most in the WCL, trailing only Corvallis (3).

A LOT OF DUDES: The Pippins had another new addition to the starting lineup on Thursday against Bellingham, with outfielder Eddy Pelc becoming the 43rd different player to appear in a Pippins uniform so far this season through 27 games. A litany of injures has led to larger-than-expected roster turnover early in the season.

ODDS & ENDS: The Pippins snapped their 9-game road losing streak, which dated back to June 5 in Ridgefield, with Friday’s win…Jack Gonzales stranded the only inherited runner he had on Friday, and has now stranded all 7 inherited runners on the season…the Pippins’ win yesterday was the first in team history against the Pickles, who entered the WCL in 2018 and swept the Pippins in their only series last year.

PORTLAND, Ore. – The Yakima Valley Pippins got a stellar pitching performance and a few timely hits late to open the second half with a win, topping the Portland Pickles, 1-0, on Friday night at Walker Stadium.

It was not the greatest games for fans of big offense, as the Pippins (1-0 second half, 12-15) and the Pickles (0-1 second half, 9-18) combined for just 7 hits on the night in a game that took over 3 hours. Both starters, Yakima Valley’s Ryan Jameson and Portland’s Bradley McVay, were tremendous, with neither allowing an earned run.

Jameson pitched into the 7th inning in his best start of the year, striking out a season-high 10 while allowing just four baserunners (3 walks, 1 hit). He did not, however, earn a decision, as the Pippins scored the go-ahead run in the 8th inning after Jack Gonzales took over to finish off the 7th.

In the 8th, Eddy Pelc led off the inning with a single, and then advanced to second on a stolen base. He later scored a batter later on a double from Tanner Parker down the right field line. Although Parker was stranded at second, that was all the runs the Pippins would need.

Gonzales navigated through trouble in the later innings, as the Pippins did all game. The Pickles stranded ten runners on the night, none bigger than the two in the bottom of the ninth. After Chase Luttrell led off the inning with a single, Jonathan Kelly moved him into scoring position with a sacrifice. A walk from pinch-hitter Alex Shanks and a wild pitch put the winning run in scoring position with two outs, but Gonzales got Austin Lively to strike out swinging to end the ballgame.

Gonzales, who earned his first win of the season in relief, did not allow a run in 2.1 scoreless innings, lowering his ERA to 1.66. It also snapped a 9-game road losing streak for the Pippins, who won their first game away from home since June 5 at Ridgefield. Nicolas Lopez, who allowed the one earned run on two hits in the 8th inning, took the loss for Portland, his first of the year.

Pelc had the only multi-hit day for either side, going 2-for-3 and scoring the game-winning run in the 8th inning. Parker and Owen Cobb (bunt single) contributed the other hits for the Pippins. Lively, Luttrell, and K.C. Hunt had hits for the Pickles.

The series continues on Saturday with a 7:05 PM first pitch from Walker Stadium. Right-hander Joe Magrisi will start for the Pippins, opposite his Cal State Fullerton teammate, Portland lefty Titus Groeneweg. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz begins at pippinsbaseball.com/live at 6:50 PM.

Following a series sweep of the Bellingham Bells at home to close out the 2019 season’s first half, the Pippins hit the road again to the south as they travel to Walker Stadium in Portland to open up a weekend series with the Portland Pickles. First pitch for the first game of the second half is set for 7:05 PM PT, with pregame coverage at pippinsbaseball.com/live set to start at 6:50 PM. Right-hander Ryan Jameson will start for the Pippins opposite Portland’s Brad McVay.

Full Game Notes

PIPPINS BREAK OUT OFFENSIVELY, SWEEP BELLINGHAM: The Pippins collected a season-high 13 runs in an offensive outburst to top Bellingham, 13-4 and complete the sweep on Thursday to close out the first half of the 2019 season. Nearly everyone contributed for the Pippins, with six different players scoring runs and six different players driving in runs. The Pippins struck early for 3 runs off of Bells starter Cole Tucker in the 3rd inning and never trailed from there, plating 6 more in the 4th inning off of the Bellingham bulllpen. Pippins reliever Darius Garcia picked up the win in relief, tossing 2.2 scoreless innings to improve to 1-3 on the year. With the win, the Pippins conclude the first half with an 11-15 record.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Right-hander Ryan Jameson will make his third start of the season for the Pippins to open up the second half in Portland. The 6-foot-2, 180-pound native of Hollister, California, lost his last start last Friday in Corvallis, allowing four earned runs over 5.1 innings, while striking out 6. In 3 appearances this year, including two starts, the righty from Cal Poly has struck out 17 batters in 10.1 innings, but his record is 0-2 and his ERA sits at 5.22. Opponents have hit .302 off of Jameson this season.

FOR THE PICKLES: Left-hander Brad McVay, a Portland-area native and sophomore at the University of Portland, will get the start for the Pickles in the series opener on Friday. A 6-foot-2, 190-pound southpaw from the Portland suburb of Milwaukie, McVay has made 4 appearances this summer, including a pair of starts, in which he has pitched to a 2-2 record and 3.44 ERA. He last pitched on June 21 against Victoria at home, earning the win in relief with 4 innings of 1-run ball, striking out 6 against the league’s best offense. In 15.2 innings of work this season, McVay has struck out 19 batters and walked 11.

A LOOK AT THE PICKLES: While the Pippins closed out the first half with plenty of momentum, the Pickles slumped to the finish, losing their last five games to close out the half with a 9-17 record, 2nd-worst in the West Coast League’s South Division, and 3rd-worst in the league. The main culprit for the Pickles’ struggles has been the team’s offense, which ranks last in the league in batting average (.193) and OPS (.575) and 2nd-to-last in runs scored (98). On the pitching side, the Pickles’ tandem starter system has not been as effective as last season, sitting in the middle of the pick in the league in ERA (4.92, tied for 7th).

THIS GUY IS-REALLY GOOD: Nick Israel collected a season-high 3 hits on Thursday, continuing a recent stretch of success at the plate. The switch-hitting infielder has collected all 7 of his hits this season in his last 5 games after going hitless in his first 6 Pippins at-bats, serving largely as the designated hitter. As the DH this year, Israel is hitting .538 (7-for-13). Also on Thursday, Israel singled from both sides of the plate in the Pippins’ 6-run fourth inning.

A LOT OF DUDES: The Pippins had another new addition to the starting lineup on Thursday against Bellingham, with outfielder Eddy Pelc becoming the 43rd different player to appear in a Pippins uniform so far this season through 26 games. Pitcher Luke Turner, who will join the team in Portland, will become the 44th player to debut when he appears. A litany of injures has led to larger-than-expected roster turnover early in the season.

ODDS & ENDS: The Pippins won on a Thursday for the first time all year yesterday, and have now won at least one game on each day of the week in 2019…the Pippins drew a season-high 9 walks at the plate on Thursday…Owen Cobb scored 4 runs on Thursday, the first Pippin to do so since Cole Pofek on 7/15/18.

YAKIMA, Wash. – The Yakima Valley Pippins struck for 13 runs on 11 hits in a big Independence Day win over the Bellingham Bells, sweeping the series on Thursday at Yakima County Stadium.

The Pippins (11-15) struck early and often against Bellingham (14-10) pitching to claim their second series sweep of the year. The Pippins brought home 3 runs in the third inning off of Bells starter Cole Tucker. Nick DiCarlo started the scoring with a bases loaded hit-by-pitch, and a double play and Zach Meddings single later brought home two runs. That would be all for Tucker, who allowed 3 unearned runs in 3 innings but took the loss.

The Pippins, after allowing one run in the fourth, struck for 6 more in the bottom half of the fourth inning to take a commanding lead. Bells reliever Will Dennis lasted just 0.1 of an inning, walking one batter and hitting another, and Noah Andrews made him pay with a 2-run single. Later than inning, Aiden Welch and Nick Israel also singled home runs.

The Pippins aded two more runs in both the fifth and seventh innings off of Bells pitching. Four of Bellingham’s five pitchers allowed multiple runs, and all but one player in the Pippins lineup reached base safely. On the mound, the Pippins were not extremely sharp, with more walks than strikeouts, but battled to earn the win. Darius Garcia pitched 2.2 innings of scoreless relief to earn the win after starter A.J. Wood was solid in 3-plus inning (1 unearned run, 2 strikeouts), but did not go deep enough to earn the win. They all pitched to Brady Hormel, an infielder with no catching experience, who was making his first start behind the plate.

Nick DiCarlo led the way on offense for the Pippins, reaching base safely in all five times he came to the plate. Owen Cobb had just one hit but scored four runs, while Nick Israel added three hits for the Pippins (including hits from both sides of the plate in the 6-run 4th inning). Bellingham was led by the bottom of the order, with their 7-8-9 hitters (Danny Martin, Nick DeNicola, and Christian Dicochea) all collecting multiple hits.

The Pippins open up play in the West Coast League’s second half on Friday when they travel to open up a 3-game series with the Portland Pickles. Ryan Jameson gets the start at Walker Stadium with a 7:05 PM first pitch. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz begins at 6:50 PM at pippinsbaseball.com/live.

After a thrilling 5-3 win to claim the series from the Bellingham Bells on Wednesday night, the Pippins go for their second sweep of the year as they wrap up the 3-game series with the Bells with an early July 4 game at the Orchard. First pitch is set for 3:05 PM PT, with A.J. Wood set to start for the Pippins opposite Bellingham’s Cole Tucker. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz begins at 2:50 PM at pippinsbaseball.com/live.

Full Game Notes

PIPPINS USE LATE OFFENSE TO TAKE BELLINGHAM SERIES: Luke Schwartz’s go-ahead triple in the 8th inning was the key blow in the Pippins’ 5-3 win over the Bellingham Bells at home on Wednesday night, taking the series against the Bells. After falling behind 3-2 after six inning, the Pippins tied the game at 3 in the 7th on a Tanner Parker sacrifice fly, and then it was Schwartz who delivered the big hit with his wind-aided triple to deep right field in the 8th inning, scoring Brady Hormel. A batter later, Schwartz scored on an error to make it a 2-run game, and the back end of the Pippins bullpen (Tyler Frazier and Trystan Vrieling) closed the win out with two innings of scoreless relief.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Right-hander A.J. Wood will make his second start of the season for the Pippins as they look for the sweep to close out the first half of the WCL season. Wood has made 6 consecutive appearances out of the bullpen since starting his season debut on June 6 in Ridgefield, and has posted a 2.81 ERA on the season, striking out 14 batters in 16 innings. The 6-foot-3 native of Sacramento, CA, pitched twice last weekend in relief in Corvallis, allowing a solo homer on Sunday and tossing 1.2 scoreless innings on Friday.

FOR THE BELLS: Right-hander Cole Tucker will make his second start of the summer for Bellingham to close out the series on Thursday. The 5-foot-10, 175-pound right-hander from UC Riverside has made 3 appearances on the summer, including 1 start, and is 1-0 with a 4.69 ERA. In 7.2 innings of work, he has struck out 12 and walked 5, while allowing opponents to hit .207 off of him. In his last appearance against Portland last Friday, Tucker allowed 2 runs on 1 hit and 4 walks in 0.2 innings of relief. In his first start of the summer, he tossed 5 scoreless innings at Bend.

SCHWARTZ SHINES: It was perhaps the most unlikely of candidates who provided the big hit for the Pippins on Wednesday in outfielder Luke Schwartz. Better regarded for his defense, Schwartz had his best offensive day of the year, going 2-for-4 (his first multi-hit game in a Pippins uniform, in his 22nd game) with the go-ahead triple and an RBI. With the effort, Schwartz raised his batting average from .121 to .143. He also did not strike out for the second consecutive game.

HITS ON THE COBB: Owen Cobb continued his strong recent stretch at the plate on Wednesday with 2 hits in 2 at-bats after coming into the game late as a substitute. Over the last 4 games, Cobb has collected 8 hits in 13 at-bats, good for a .615 batting average, and has drove in a run in each game. His 28 hits this season are tied for most on the Pippins (Tanner Parker), and tied for 7th in the West Coast League. Additionally, Cobb leads all incoming freshmen in the WCL in hits.

A LOT OF DUDES: The Pippins had another new addition to the starting lineup on Wednesday against Bellingham, with outfielder Brian Rice becoming the 42nd different player to appear in a Pippins uniform so far this season through 25 games. Outfielder Eddy Pelc also joined the roster, and will become the 43rd player when he debust for the team. A litany of injures has led to larger-than-expected roster turnover early in the season.

ODDS & ENDS: Thursday is the only day of the week that the Pippins have failed to win a game on in 2019…a crowd of 1,424 watched the game Wednesday, the 2nd-largest of the season so far behind Opening Day…Tyler Frazier’s scoreless 8th inning kept his ERA out of the bullpen this year at 0.00.

YAKIMA, Wash. – Luke Schwartz hit a go-ahead triple in the 8th inning and the Yakima Valley Pippins pulled out a 5-3 win over the Bellingham Bells on Wednesday night at Yakima County Stadium to clinch a series win.

Schwartz, who entered the game hitting below .150, crushed a fastball from Bellingham (14-9) reliever Cody Jensen with Brady Hormel on first and one out in the bottom of the 8th inning that was aided by the wind as it sailed over the head of Bells right fielder Jack Machtolf, scoring Hormel and giving the Pippins (10-15) a 4-3 lead. A batter later, Brett Wells reached on an error that scored Schwartz.

Schwartz also came through offensively in the fourth inning, when the Pippins first struck against Bells pitching. Reliever Danny Garcia served up RBI singles to both Noah Andrews and Schwartz after an infield single and a walk to start the frame, and the Pippins led 2-0 at that point. In the fifth and sixth inning, the Bells battled back with 6 hits off of Pippins reliever Ayden Adams to take a 3-2 lead.

From there, the Pippins answered in the 7th inning when Wells, who doubled, was brought home on a Tanner Parker sacrifice fly. The Pippins did all their late damage off of Bells reliever Cody Jensen, who took the loss after allowing 3 runs on 4 hits in 1.2 innings of work. Tyler Frazier, who tossed a scoreless 8th for the Pippins, earned his first win of the season.

Bo Henderson started on the mound for the Pippins and tossed 4 strong innings to set the tone in a spot start, not allowing a run on 2 hits and one strikeout. Mark Woinarowicz tossed 1.2 of scoreless relief, and newcomer Trystan Vrieling earned the save with a 1-2-3 ninth inning. Bellingham used five different pitchers, none of whom worked more than 2 innings.

Besides Schwartz, the Pippins were led on offense by Noah Andrews, who was 2-for-3 with an RBI, and Tanner Parker, who had 2 hits and drove in a run. Troy Viola and Cole Hinkelman each had 2 hits for Bellingham.

The series concludes on Thursday with an early 3:05 PM start on July 4, as the Pippins close out the first half with A.J. Wood on the mound. He will be opposed by Bellingham right-hander Cole Tucker. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz begins at 2:50 PM at pippinsbaseball.com/live.

Following a 5-0 win to open up a series with the Bellingham Bells at Yakima County Stadium on Tuesday night, the Pippins return to action trying to take the series against the Bells with a 7:05 PM first pitch. Right-hander Bo Henderson will make his first start of the summer for the Pippins, to be opposed by Bellingham righty John Kelly. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz begins at pippinsbaseball.com/live at 6:50 PM.

Full Game Notes

PIPPINS PITCHING DOMINATES IN STREAK-SNAPPING WIN: The Pippins snapped their nine-game losing streak on Tuesday by jumping on the Bellingham Bells early and dominating on the mound. Mark Finkelnburg threw 6 shutout innings with 6 strikeouts to earn his first win, and the Pippins pounced for two runs in the first innings to give Finkelnburg a cushion throughout the rest of his start. The Bells were held to just five hits and one walk as the Pippins put a dent into Bellingham’s first half playoff hopes.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Right-hander Bo Henderson will make his first start of the summer for the Pippins as Yakima Valley goes for the series win. The 6-foot-3, 195-pound right-hander from Cal Poly has a 10.56 ERA in 4 appearances out of the bullpen this year, but has allowed just 2 ER over his last 6 innings of work, striking out 7 to 3 walks in that span. A native of Palos Verdes Estates, CA, Henderson redshirted as a true freshman at Cal Poly this spring.

FOR THE BELLS: Right-hander John Kelly will make his first start of the season for Bellingham on Wednesday. The 5-foot-11, 173-pound righty from Rutherford, NJ, has an 8.30 ERA in 2 appearances out of the bullpen so far this summer, striking out 3 and walking 4 in 4.1 innings of work. A rising sophomore at Oklahoma State in the fall, Kelly has allowed opponents to hit .267 off of him.

THIS STREAK IS OVAH: With Tuesday’s win, the Pippins laid rest to their nine-game losing streak, which was both the longest by any team in the West Coast League and the longest in team history. The previous team record for longest losing streak was four games, which occurred four times, including during the 2018 season.

BULLPEN BULLETS: The two relievers that the Pippins used on Tuesday, left-hander Jack Gonzales and righty Joe Magrisi, were both electric in keeping Bellingham off the scoreboard in the final three frames, allowing just two baserunners, both singles, and striking out four combined hitters. The two threw a combined 36 of their 42 pitches for strikes, which equates to 85.7%.

HITS ON THE COBB: Owen Cobb led the charge on offense for the Pippins on Tuesday with a 3-hit day, including his first inning, go-ahead RBI double. Over the last 3 games, Cobb has collected 6 hits in 11 at-bats, good for a .545 batting average, and has drove in a run in each game. His 26 hits this season are tied for most on the Pippins (Tanner Parker), and tied for 8th in the West Coast League. Additionally, Cobb leads all incoming freshmen in the WCL in hits.

A LOT OF DUDES: The Pippins had another new addition to the starting lineup on Tuesday in the series opener with Bellingham, with infielder Nick DiCarlo becoming the 41st different player to appear in a Pippins uniform so far this season through 24 games. He also became the second returning player from last year’s team on the 2019 roster, joining Jack Gonzlaes. A litany of injures has led to larger-than-expected roster turnover early in the season.

ODDS & ENDS: The 12 hits for the Pippins on Tuesday were the most since collecting 12 in a 10-7 loss to Corvallis on June 23…the shutout win was the first for the Pippins since holding Cowlitz scoreless on August 1, 2017, in a 1-0 win…Jack Gonzales extended his scoreless innings streak to 12 with his 2 shutout innings…the Pippins 3 strikeouts on offense set a season low.

YAKIMA, Wash. – Mark Finkelnburg tossed 6 scoreless innings to set the tone, and the Yakima Valley Pippins rode a 12-hit day on offense all the way to the bank in a 5-0 win over the Bellingham Bells at Yakima County Stadium on Tuesday night, snapping a team-record 9-game losing streak.

The Pippins (9-15) struck early and never looked back, scoring 2 runs on Bellingham (14-8) starter Matt Henckel in the first inning when Owen Cobb hit an RBI double and Brady Hormel brought home a run with a single. From there, Finkelnburg took control, tossing two 1-2-3 innings in a dominating performance. He struck out 6 and allowed just four baserunners (3 hits, one walk) and picked up his first win of the summer in the process.

The Pippins added another run off of Henckel in the 5th inning, knocking him out after an Aidan Welch RBI single. Henckel took his first loss of the summer, allowing 3 earned runs on 9 hits and 2 walks over 4.2 innings. He was relieved by Brenden Argomaniz, making his Bellingham debut, who struggled in the sixth inning, allowing a pair of runs on 3 hits, 2 walks, and a wild pitch that scored Pippins catcher Brett Wells.

Those two insurance runs were all the Pippins would need, as the bullpen was lockdown in relief. Jack Gonzales threw 23 of his 27 pitches for strikes in 2 scoreless innings, and Joe Magrisi struck out 3 batters in a scoreless ninth inning to close out the victory.

Offensively, the Pippins were led by Owen Cobb, who went 3-for-4 with an RBI, and Aidan Welch, who drove in 2 runs as part of a 2-for-4 day. Nick DiCarlo, in his return to the Pippins lineup after playing for the team in 2018, had 2 hits in his 2019 debut, and Brett Wells also added two singles. Guthrie Morrison had two hits for Bellingham.

The series continues on Wednesday with a special 7:05 PM first pitch time at the Orchard. Right-hander Bo Henderson will make his first start of the summer for the Pippins, and will be opposed by Bellingham righty John Kelly. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz at pippinsbaseball.com/live begins at 6:50 PM.

After a day off on Monday, the Pippins return home to the Orchard to open up a three-game series with the Bellingham Bells. First pitch for the series opener is set for 6:35 PM PT, with left-hander Mark Finkelnburg expected to start for the Pippins against a to-be-announced starter for Bellingham. Pregame coverage, both audio and video, begins with Miles Klotz at pippinsbaseball.com/live at 6:20 PM.

Full Game Notes

PIPPINS SWEPT IN CORVALLIS, LOSE NINTH STRAIGHT: The Pippins closed out their season-long road trip on Sunday in Corvallis on a low note, falling behind early and never fighting back in a 9-1 loss. Corvallis completed the sweep and completed an 0-5 road trip for the Pippins, who have lost a season-high nine straight games. Darius Garcia was roughed up as the starter, allowing 6 runs in 2.1 innings on 8 hits and 3 walks, and four Pippins relievers combined to allow 3 more runs in relief. Offensively, Owen Cobb’s RBI single was the only run scored for the Pippins off of Corvallis left-hander Tevita Gerber, who struck out 7 over 5 one-run innings. The Knights completed the season series sweep over the Pippins, going 6-0 on the year.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Left-hander Mark Finkelnburg will make his fifth start of the summer to open up the series against the Bells on Tuesday. The 6-foot-8, 205-pound southpaw from Loyola Marymount turned in a season-best performance last Wednesday in Game 1 of a doubleheader in Port Angeles, striking out 11 in a 6-inning complete game performance, but took the loss after allowing four earned runs on 3 hits and two walks. On the season, the lefty has an 0-1 record and 4.07 ERA in 17.2 innings, striking out 21 and walking 9. Opponents are hitting .235 off of the Portland, Oregon native.

FOR THE BELLS: The Bells have not announced a projected starter for Tuesday’s series opener.

TRYING TO STOP THE BLEEDING: With Sunday’s loss in Corvallis, the Pippins have dropped nine straight games, which is their longest losing streak of the season, and the longest losing streak of any WCL team in league play in 2019. Their opponent, the Knights, extended their winning streak to 9 games, the longest active winning streak in the WCL. In addition, the Pippins have lost nine consecutive road games, with their last win away from home coming on the season’s second day in Ridgefield.

A LOT OF DUDES: The Pippins had three new additions to the starting lineup last weekend in Corvallis, with catcher Brett Wells, infielder/outfielder Zach Meddings, and infielder Brady Hormel becoming the 38th, 39th, and 40th different players to appear in a Pippins uniform so far this season through 23 games. A litany of injures has led to larger-than-expected roster turnover early in the season.

404 RUNS NOT FOUND: The biggest issue for the Pippins in the course of their nine-game losing streak has been the offense, which has struggled mightly over the past week and more. In five of their last six games, the Pippins have been held to two or fewer runs, scoring 1 or 0 in four of those games. Over the losing streak, the Pippins are averaging 2.7 runs per game. In the first 14 games of the season, when the Pippins went 8-6, they averaged 4.5 runs per game.

FRAZIER FINDS HIS PLACE: Pippins reliever Tyler Frazier tossed a scoreless inning on Sunday in Corvallis, his second consecutive scoreless outing out of the bullpen after a scoreless inning on Friday against the Knights. Frazier has an 8.43 ERA in his first 5.1 innings with the Pippins, but in 3 innings spanning 3 relief appearances, Frazier has not allowed an earned run, while striking out 4 batters to just one walk.

ODDS & ENDS: The Pippins committed just one error on Sunday, their first nine-inning game with fewer than 2 errors since June 16 at Bellingham…Brett Wells threw out 2 of 4 attempted base-stealers on Sunday; the newcomer has now thrown out 4 of 7 attempted base-stealers in his first 3 games as a Pippin.

The Pippins wrap up their 3-game series in Corvallis with the Knights with a Sunday day game, with first pitch set for 3:00 PM PT at Goss Stadium. The Pippins, having lost 8 games in a row, will send left-hander Darius Garcia to the mound to make his third start of the summer. He will be opposed by Corvallis southpaw Tevita Gerber. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz begins at pippinsbaseball.com/live at 2:45 PM.

Full Game Notes

PIPPINS DROP 8TH STRAIGHT, SERIES TO CORVALLIS: The Pippins continued their season-long road trip on Saturday by dropping their season-long 8th consecutive game, with a 7-1 loss to the Corvallis Knights at Goss Stadium. The Pippins fell behind early and never recovered, as starter Mark Woinarowicz could not complete the first inning, as the Knights knocked him around for five runs on 8 hits (four for extra bases) in 0.2 of an inning. The rest of the game, Corvallis outscored the Pippins by just one run, but the big first inning was enough to claim the series. Corvallis used five arms to hold the Pippins to one lone run on eight hits, with lefty Colton Meyer getting the bulk of the work in relief (3.2 innings, one earned run) to earn his first win of the summer. The Pippins combined for four relievers to not allowed an earned run in 7.1 innings of relief, but Woinarowicz’s rough first inning tagged him with his third loss of the year.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Left-hander Darius Garcia will make his third start of the season on Sunday as the Pippins close out the series in Corvallis. The 5-foot-8, 175-pound southpaw from UC Irvine last appeared for Yakima Valley in relief last Saturday, June 24, against Corvallis at home in Yakima, when he allowed 3 runs (one earned) on 3 hits and 2 strikeouts in one inning of work. Over 9 innings this season, Garcia has an 0-2 record, 6.00 ERA, and has struck out 8 batters to 2 walks over 9 innings.

FOR THE KNIGHTS: Left-hander Tevita Gerber will make his fourth starter of the season on Sunday to close out the series for Corvallis. The 6-foot-2, 205-pound rising senior from Dixie State is 2-1 on the season with a 4.32 ERA, striking out 13 batters and walking 7 over 16.2 innings of work. The left-hander made his last start last Sunday in Yakima, earning the win against the Pippins despite allowing 7 runs (5 earned) on 9 hits, 3 walks, and 6 strikeouts over 5.2 innings.

TRYING TO STOP THE BLEEDING: With Saturday’s loss in Corvallis, the Pippins have dropped eight straight games, which is their longest losing streak of the season, and the longest losing streak of any WCL team in league play in 2019. Their opponent, the Knights, currently hold the longest active winning streak in the WCL at 8 games. In addition, the Pippins have lost eight consecutive road games, with their last win away from home coming on the season’s second day in Ridgefield.

A LOT OF DUDES: The Pippins have had three new additions to the starting lineup this weekend, with catcher Brett Wells, infielder/outfielder Zach Meddings, and infielder Brady Hormel becoming the 38th, 39th, and 40th different players to appear in a Pippins uniform so far this season through 21 games. A litany of injures has led to larger-than-expected roster turnover early in the season.

JACK IS BACK: The only returner from the 2018 Pippins team, left-handed reliever Jack Gonzales took some time to return to his form from last summer, but has settled in recently, with 3.1 innings of relief on Saturday in which he allowed 2 unearned runs extending his streak of outings without an earned run to 3. Over those 3 outings, Gonzales has gone 10 innings, pitching at least 2.2 innings in each appearance. His 2.07 ERA leads all Pippins reliever, and trails only Joe Magrisi (1.12) amongst all Pippins pitchers.

ODDS & ENDS: For the second straight game, Pippins catcher Brett Wells threw out more attempted basestealers (2) than ones that were successful stealing (1)…Mark Woinarowicz went 0.2 innings as the starter on Saturday, tying the shortest start by a Pippins starter this season (Ty Pohlmann, 0.2 innings, 6/26 at Port Angeles, Game 2 of a doubleheader).

CORVALLIS, Ore. – A big first inning and strong pitching led the Corvallis Knights to a 7-1 win over the Yakima Valley Pippins at Goss Stadium on Saturday night, the 8th straight win for Corvallis, and the 8th straight loss for the Pippins.

Corvallis (14-6) exploded in the first inning off of Pippins (8-14) starter Mark Woinarowicz, tagging the righty for five earned runs on 8 hits in just 0.2 of an inning before he was relieved. Four of the eight first-inning hits were for extra-bases, including a booming 3-run homer by Knights first baseman Trace Tammaro, his second homer against the Pippins in the past week.

That was more than enough for the Knights pitching staff, a stellar outing on the bump that started with right-hander Connor Redmond, who tossed two scoreless innings to open his outing. Colton Meyer relieved him in the 3rd inning and got the bulk of the work in relief, picking up his first win after allowing one earned run over 3.1 innings, striking out two.

The only run the Pippins picked up was in the third, when they were already trailing 6-0. Zach Meddings led off the inning with a double in his first Pippins at-bat, and scored a few batters later on an Owen Cobb sacrifice fly. From that point forward, the Pippins pitching was strong, but Corvallis’ big first inning set them ahead for good.

Bo Henderson threw two scoreless innings of relief, and was followed by scoreless frames from Tyler Frazier and Nick Brown. Jack Gonzales had another strong outing, going 3.2 innings, allowing 2 unearned runs. For Corvallis, Trevor Bateson, Nick Caviglia, and Brodie Cooper-Vassalakis shut down the Pippins on the back end, allowing just three hits combined while striking out a pair.

Brady Hormel and Brett Wells both had two-hit days for the Pippins, and Meddings added the double and a run scored. Briley Knight led the way offensively for Corvallis with 3 hits, including two doubles. Jake Holcroft, Brooks Lee, Nick Yovetich, and Matthew Gretler all also had multi-hit days for the Knights.

The series wraps up on Sunday with a scheduled 3:00 first pitch at Goss Stadium. A pair of left-handers will square off in the Pippins’ Darius Garcia and Corvallis’ Tevita Gerber. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz will begin at 2:45 at pippinsbaseball.com/live.

CORVALLIS, Ore. – After dropping their season-long 7th consecutive game on Friday in the series opener against Corvallis, the Yakima Valley Pippins try and even up the series with the Knights with Game 2 of the series at Goss Stadium. Right-hander Mark Woinarowicz, who lost his last start against the Knights last weekend in Yakima, starts for the Pippins opposite Corvallis’ Connor Redmond. First pitch is set for 6:30 PM, with pregame coverage beginning with Miles Klotz at pippinsbaseball.com/live at 6:15.

Full Game Notes

PIPPINS LOSE 7TH STRAIGHT TO OPEN SERIES IN CORVALLIS: The Pippins opened up the second leg of their season-log six game road trip with a loss on the road to the Corvallis Knights on Friday. Right-hander Jackson Arnsdorf was spectacular for Corvallis, shutting out the Pippins over 5 innings of work, striking out five while allowing just two hits and one walk. Ryan Jameson had a decent start for the Pippins, keeping Corvallis off the scoreboard early, but ran into some trouble in the fifth, as Jake Harvey and Brooks Lee connected for back-to-back 2-RBI hits to give Corvallis a 4-0 lead, and the Knights never looked back. The Corvallis bullpen used four different arms to shut down the Pippins at the back end, despite a two-run seventh, extending the Corvallis winning streak to 7 games, and the Pippins’ losing streak to 7 as well.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Right-hander Mark Woinarowicz will make his third start of the season on Saturday. The Yorba Linda, California native is 3-2 on the year with a 3.32 ERA, striking out 16 batters and walking just 1 over 21.2 innings of work. In his last start against Corvallis on Monday in Yakima, Woinarowicz allowed a season-high 7 runs (5 earned) on 8 hits and 5 strikeouts over 4 innings of work. In his first start of the summer against Kelowna, he went 7 innings, allowing 1 earned run.

FOR THE KNIGHTS: Right-hander Connor Redmond will make his 2nd start of the summer for Corvallis today. In his last start, on June 20 against Bellingham, the Danville, California native went 3 innings, allowing one unearned run on 2 hits and 3 strikeouts. In 2 appearances this season, spanning five innings, Redmond has struck out 3 batters, not issued a walk, while opponents hit .211 off of the righty.

TRYING TO STOP THE BLEEDING: With Friday’s series-opening loss in Corvallis, the Pippins have dropped seven straight games, which is their longest losing streak of the season, and the longest losing streak of any WCL team in league play in 2019. Their opponent, the Knights, currently hold the longest active winning streak in the WCL at 7 games. In addition, the Pippins have lost seven consecutive road games, with their last win away from home coming on the season’s second day in Ridgefield.

A LOT OF DUDES: The Pippins had two new additions to the starting lineup on Friday, with catcher Brett Wells and infielder Brady Hormel becoming the 38th and 39th different players to appear in a Pippins uniform so far this season through 21 games. Additionally, infielder Zach Meddings joined the roster, but did not play on Friday. A litany of injures has led to larger-than-expected roster turnover early in the season.

NEWCOMERS LEAD THE WAY: The Pippins managed six hits on Friday, with all 6 coming from players who have joined the roster within the last 10 days. Outfielder Noah Andrews and infielder Aidan Welch both collected their first multi-hit games in a Pippins uniform, while debutants Brett Wells and Brady Hormel both added base hits, while also collecting their first Pippins RBIs.

FRAZIER FIRES ZEROES: Right-hander Tyler Frazier had his first scoreless outing in a Pippins uniform on Friday. After allowing 6 runs in 2.1 innings in a start against Corvallis last weekend, the righty struck out 3 in a scoreless 8th inning of relief on Friday night.

ODDS & ENDS: After stealing 10 bases in 3 games last weekend against the Pippins in Yakima, the Knights were held without a stolen base on Friday (0-for-1).

CORVALLIS, Ore. – A four-run 5th inning propelled the Corvallis Knights to a 5-2 win over the Yakima Valley Pippins on Friday night at Goss Stadium in Corvallis, extending the Pippins’ losing streak to 7 games, and the Knights winning streak to 7 games.

For the early part of Friday, the Pippins (8-13) and Knights (13-6) were engaged in an old-fashioned pitchers’ duel, with neither team striking for anything in the first four innings. Both starters were effective early, including Pippins right-hander Ryan Jameson, who needed less than 50 pitchers to cruise through 4 innings before the Knights got to him in the 5th.

After Trace Tammaro led off the inning with a hit-by-pitch, Jameson committed an error when he threw away a bunt attempt by Corvallis right fielder Elliot Willy. An intentional walk later, Jake Harvey lifted a soft fly ball to left that dropped in between a collision of Pippins shortstop Tanner Parker and left fielder Greg Fuchs, scoring two runs. A batter later, Brooks Lee doubled home two to make it a 4-run inning.

Corvallis would add another run off of Jameson in the 6th inning before he exited. The Cal Poly right-hander allowed 5 runs (4 earned) on 5 hits, 3 walks, and 6 strikeouts over 5.1 innings of work. Jackson Arnsdorf, the Corvallis starter, was stellar for the Knights, allowing just 2 hits and a walk while striking out 5 over 5 shutout innings to pick up his third win of the summer. Jameson took the loss, and fell to 0-2.

In the 7th, the Pippins offense struck for 2 runs off of Corvallis reliever Timothy Josten. Aidan Welch and Noah Andrews led off the frame with singles, and a few batters later, Brett Wells, in his Pippins debut, doubled home Welch. Following Wells was another Pippins newcomer, Brady Hormel, whose RBI groundout cut the lead to 5-2. From there, the Pippins never scored again.

Beyond Josten, the Knights used a trio of shutdown relievers in Trace Hokkanen, Nick Caviglia, and Alex Williams, the later of whom struck out 1 in a scoreless ninth inning to pick up his second save of the year.

Andrews and Welch led the way offensively for the Pippins, with both collecting multi-hit games. No member of the Knights had a multi-hit game, as both teams collected just six hits, but Harvey and Lee both had 2 RBIs on the evening.

The series continues on Saturday with a 6:30 PM first pitch at Goss Stadium. Right-hander Mark Woinarowicz will start for the Pippins opposite Corvallis right-hander Connor Redmond. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz will begin at 6:15 PM at pippinsbaseball.com/live.

After Tuesday’s series opener in Port Angeles was cancelled due to rain, the Pippins re-start their series with the Lefties with a pair of 7-inning games in a Wednesday doubleheader. First pitch for Game 1 is set for 5:05 PM PT at Civic Field, with the Pippins set to start left-hander Mark Finkelnburg opposite Port Angeles righty Frankie Scalzo. No starters have been announced for Game 2. Live coverage with Miles Klotz begins at 4:50 PM at pippinsbaseball.com/live.

Full Game Notes

SERIES OPENER IN PORT ANGELES WASHED OUT: Due to heavy rains that doused Civic Field and the Port Angeles area on Tuesday night, the series opener between the Pippins and the Port Angeles Lefties was cancelled after the teams were unable to complete the 5 innings necessary for a game to be official. When the game was initially put into a rain delay, just past 8 PM pacific time, the Pippins were leading Port Angeles, 9-0, with one out in the top of the fifth inning. None of the stats from the game will be counted, and the game will be rescheduled for a doubleheader today. A pair of 7-inning games will begin at 5:05 PM.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Left-hander Mark Finkelnburg is set to make his fourth start of the summer in Game 1 of Wednesday’s doubleheader. The 6-foot-8, 205-pound left-hander from Loyola Marymount has made 3 starts on the season, not yet earning a decision while posting a 3.08 ERA. In 11.2 innings on the summer, the native of Portland, Oregon, has struck out 10 batters and walked 7, while opponents have hit .277 off of the him.

FOR THE LEFTIES: Right-hander Frankie Scalzo will make his sixth appearance of the summer for the Lefties, and his fourth start. In 17 innings of work this summer, the Vista, California, native has posted a 2-1 record and 2.11 ERA, while striking out 14 and walking 5. Opponents hit .266 off the 6-foot-3, 185-pound, rising junior at Grand Canyon University.

A LOOK AT THE LEFTIES: After jumping out to a 4-2 start, winning series against Portland and Bellingham, the Lefties have slowed down considerably over the last two weeks. Port Angeles has lost their last four consecutive series, including a home sweep at the hands of Wenatchee last week. The Lefties, who sit 5th in the WCL North Division with a 7-11 record, one game ahead of the Pippins, rank near the top of the league in many offensive categories, including runs scored (115, 3rd) and home runs (13, t-2nd). On the flipside, their pitching staff ranks near the bottom in many categories, including team ERA (5.42, 9th) and walks allowed (79, 4th).

TRYING TO STOP THE BLEEDING: With Monday’s loss, the Pippins have dropped four straight, their second four game losing streak of the season, as well as their longest home losing streak of the season. In addition, the Pippins have lost four consecutive road games, with their last win away from home coming on the season’s second day in Ridgefield. The Pippins’ last four-game losing streak came in 2018, when they were swept on the road by Portland and lost the opening of a 3-game series at home to Kelowna in June.

A LOT OF DUDES: Nick Israel made his debut for the Pippins on Monday with an 0-for-4 performance, in turn becoming the 37th different player to appear in a Pippins uniform so far this season through 18 games. A litany of injures has led to larger-than-expected roster turnover early in the season.

ODDS & ENDS: The Pippins committed 3 errors on Monday, their 7th consecutive game with multiple errors…the Pippins, having lost four straight at home, will now play 9 of their next 12 away from Yakima County Stadium to close out the first half of the WCL season.

The Pippins hit the road for their longest road trip of the season, a 6-game trip to Port Angeles and Corvallis, today. Yakima Valley is in the midst of a season-long 4-game losing streak, and will send reigning WCL Pitcher of the Week Joe Magrisi to the mound to try and break the streak. Magrisi leads the WCL with 27 strikeouts, and has a 1-0 record and 1.12 ERA in 16 innings. He will be opposed by Port Angeles right-hander Tyler Tan. First pitch at Civic Field is set for 6:35 PM PT, with pregame coverage with Miles Klotz beginning at 6:20 PM at pippinsbaseball.com/live.

Full Game Notes

PIPPINS SHUT DOWN OFFENSIVELY, SWEPT BY CORVALLIS: The Pippins offense struggled as much as it has all season on Monday in an 11-0 loss to Corvallis, clinching the 3-game road series sweep for the Knights. The Knights had a nice day offensively, teeing off for 5 runs in the fourth off of Pippins starter Mark Woinarowicz to take an early lead, but the story was left-handed starter Chase Watkins, who shut down the Pippins over 6 shutout innings, allowing one bloop single and a pair of walks while fanning 7. The Corvallis bullpen was shutdown as well, as three different arms tossed scoreless frames to seal the victory. Owen Cobb collected the only hit of the day for the Pippins, a single.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Right-hander Joe Magrisi will make his fourth start of the summer for the Pippins tonight to open the series in Port Angeles. Named the West Coast League Moss Adams Pitcher of the Week for the second time this season on Monday, Magrisi holds a 1-0 record and 1.12 ERA through 4 appearances (3 starts), while striking out a league-leading 27 batters in 16 innings of work. In his last start against Kelowna last Wednesday, Magrisi tossed 6 no-hit innings, walking one and striking out 11.

FOR THE LEFTIES: Right-hander Tyler Tan will make his third start of the summer for Port Angeles tonight against the Pippins. The 5-foot-7, 160-pound native of Kent, Washington, is 1-0 on the season so far with a 2.76 ERA through 2 starts, although he has not pitched since June 15 in Ridgefield, when he allowed 3 earned runs over 6 innings of work. In his season debut against Bellingham, he picked up the win with 7 innings of one-run ball. Tan attends Skagit Valley College, a junior college in Mount Vernon, WA, where he is coached by Lefties head coach Darren Westergard.

A LOOK AT THE LEFTIES: After jumping out to a 4-2 start, winning series against Portland and Bellingham, the Lefties have slowed down considerably over the last two weeks. Port Angeles has lost their last four consecutive series, including a home sweep at the hands of Wenatchee last week. The Lefties, who sit 5th in the WCL North Division with a 7-11 record, one game ahead of the Pippins, rank near the top of the league in many offensive categories, including runs scored (115, 3rd) and home runs (13, t-2nd). On the flipside, their pitching staff ranks near the bottom in many categories, including team ERA (5.42, 9th) and walks allowed (79, 4th).

TRYING TO STOP THE BLEEDING: With Monday’s loss, the Pippins have dropped four straight, their second four game losing streak of the season, as well as their longest home losing streak of the season. In addition, the Pippins have lost four consecutive road games, with their last win away from home coming on the season’s second day in Ridgefield. The Pippins’ last four-game losing streak came in 2018, when they were swept on the road by Portland and lost the opening of a 3-game series at home to Kelowna in June.

A LOT OF DUDES: Nick Israel made his debut for the Pippins on Monday with an 0-for-4 performance, in turn becoming the 37th different player to appear in a Pippins uniform so far this season through 18 games. A litany of injures has led to larger-than-expected roster turnover early in the season.

ODDS & ENDS: The Pippins committed 3 errors on Monday, their 7th consecutive game with multiple errors…the Pippins, having lost four straight at home, will now play 9 of their next 12 away from Yakima County Stadium to close out the first half of the WCL season.

YAKIMA, Wash. – The Yakima Valley Pippins managed just one hit over nine innings on Monday, falling in the series finale to Corvallis, 11-0, allowing the Knights to complete a 3-game series sweep at Yakima County Stadium.

From the jump, Corvallis (9-6) left-hander Chase Watkins overpowered the Pippins (8-10) lineup. After surging for 7 runs on 12 hits on Sunday, Watkins carved through the Pippins’ starting nine, allowing just two walks and one bloop single over 6 scoreless innings. That was more than enough for a strong day from the Corvallis offense.

Owen Cobb had the only hit of the day for the Pippins in the fifth inning. He hit a high fly ball to shallow left-center field, but miscommunication between Corvallis shortstop Michael Currialle and left fielder Jake Holcroft allowed the ball to drop. With Knights relievers Trevor Bateson, Nick Caviglia, and Trace Hokkanen all firing scoreless frames, that miscommunication proved to be the difference from a one-hitter and a potential no-hitter.

Pippins pitching was not its usual strong self, either, with Mark Woinarowicz struggling through a four-inning start. After falling behind early in the first inning off of an RBI infield single from Briley Knight, Woinarowicz ended up giving up 6 more runs, including 5 in a hectic fourth inning for Corvallis. They used three singles, two hit-by-pitches, and a double to tack 4 on Woinarowicz, who took his second loss of the year after allowing 7 runs (5 earned) on 9 hits, no walks, and 5 strikeouts.

Jack Gonzales was strong in relief of Woinarowicz, allowing just one unearned run on four hits, a walk, and 3 strikeouts in 4 innings of work. Darius Garcia allowed 3 runs, one of them earned, in the ninth, allowed Corvallis to extend their lead to 11-0.

Offensively, Holcroft was a menace for the Knights, reaching in his first five plate appearances (a double, three singles, and a hit-by-pitch) before Garcia got him to strike out swinging in the ninth. Jake Harvey and Andy Atwood also added multi-hit days for Corvallis, with Atwood collecting a pair of RBI doubles.

The Pippins, having concluded the 7-game homestand at 2-5, hit the road for six games beginning on Tuesday in Port Angeles. Joe Magrisi, the reigning West Coast League Pitcher of the Week, gets the ball in the series opener at Civic Field. First pitch is set for 6:35 PM PT. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz begins at pippinsbaseball.com/live at 6:20 PM.

YAKIMA, Wash. – For the second time in the first 3 weeks of the 2019 season, Pippins right-hander pitcher Joe Magrisi has been named the West Coast League Moss Adams Pitcher of the Week, as announced by commissioner Rob Neyer. After winning the award in the season’s first week, Magrisi was honored today for his accomplishments in the week of June 17-23.

Magrisi, who leads the WCL in strikeouts with 27, tossed 6 innings of no-hit baseball against Kelowna on June 18, striking out 11 and allowing just one baserunners, a walk. He took a no-decision in the Pippins loss.

He becomes the first two-time WCL Moss Adams Pitcher of the Week recipient for the Pippins in 2019. The San Diego native, who will be a sophomore at Cal State Fullerton in the fall, ranks second in the WCL with a 1.12 ERA through 16 innings pitched.

After dropping the first two games of a 3-game series to the Corvallis Knights, the Pippins look to salvage a game in the series finale tonight at Yakima County Stadium. Mark Woinarowicz will make his second start of the summer for the Pippins, while Corvallis has yet to announce a projected pitcher. First pitch is set for 6:35 PM PT, with pregame coverage beginning with Miles Klotz at 6:20 PM at pippinsbaseball.com/live.

Full Game Notes

PIPPINS PITCHING STRUGGLES IN SERIES LOSS TO CORVALLIS: The Pippins’ offense broke out for the first time in several games against Corvallis on Sunday, but the pitching staff continued its recent struggles as Corvallis toppled the Pippins, 10-7, to clinch the 3-game series with a game to play. With newcomer Tyler Frazier making his first start of the mound, Corvallis pounced early, striking for four runs in the 1st inning and 3 more in the 3rd and 4th innings. While the Pippins had the game tied at 6 after 3 innings due to a pair of 3-run frames, the offense slowed down from there, grabbing just one more run in the sixth inning. A.J. Wood took the loss in relief, allowing 3 runs in 3 innings as Corvallis used contributions from up and down the lineup to stretch the lead to 3, with Briley Knight’s 4 RBIs and Jake Holcroft’s 4 hits leading the way.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Right-hander Mark Woinarowicz will make his second start of the summer tonight against Corvallis. The 6-foot-2, 185-pound right-hander from Cal State East Bay posted a quality start in his first start of the summer last week against Kelowna, going 7 innings and allowing one earned run while striking out a pair. On the season, the Yorba Linda, California native is 3-1 with a 1.53 ERA. Those 3 wins are tied for the most in the West Coast League with Joseph Brandon of Victoria, and the 1.53 ERA ranks 6th league-wide. Additionally, Woinarowicz had pitched 17.2 innings, 7th-most in the league.

FOR THE KNIGHTS: Corvallis has not announced a projected starter for Monday’s series finale.

THE HITS ARE COMING: The Pippins tied a season-high with 12 hits on Sunday, their third game in the last four in which they collected double-digit hits. Five different players for Yakima Valley had multi-hit games on Sunday, while all but two starters collected hits on the day. The Pippins have improved their team batting average to .249, which ranks 9th in the West Coast League.

POHLMANN POSTS ZEROES: One of the more unheralded standouts of the season so far for the Pippins has been Ty Pohlmann, the team’s most-used reliever, who tossed a scoreless ninth inning on Sunday, his fourth scoreless appearance out of six in the regular season. It was the fourth time this year that Pohlmann has pitched in the ninth inning (the most out of any Pippins pitcher); he has also pitched the eighth inning 4 times. Despite just 3 strikeouts in 9.2 innings, Pohlmann has the lowest ERA of any Pippins reliever with a 1.86 mark (minimum 3 appearances), and opponents are hitting just .219 off of the tall right-hander from UNLV.

PARKER PACES THE OFFENSE: Pippins infielder Tanner Parker continued his recent hot stretch with another multi-hit game on Sunday, going 2-for-5 with an RBI. The two hits extended Parker’s hitting streak to 12 games, the last 6 of which have come from the leadoff spot in the batting order. Over that stretch, Parker has collected 8 extra-base hits (6 doubles and 2 home runs). His .381 batting average ranks 6th in the West Coast League, and 3rd-best amongst players from the WCL’s North Division.

ODDS & ENDS: The Pippins have lost 8 of their last 10 games after a 6-1 start…the Pippins committed a season-high 5 errors on Sunday, their sixth consecutive game with multiple errors…the Pippins are tied for 2nd-to-last in the WCL with Wenatchee in fielding percentage at .946, ahead of only Portland (.943)…the Pippins were 1-for-2 on stolen base attempts on Sunday; their 9 stolen bases are the fewest in the WCL, and the only team in single digits in stolen bases…their 14 SB attempts are also fewest in the WCL.

YAKIMA, Wash. –  The Yakima Valley Pippins were victims of a strong offensive performance by the Corvallis Knights on Sunday, falling by a final score of 10-7 at Yakima County Stadium to drop the 3-game series.

Corvallis (7-6) pounced on Pippins (8-9) starter Tyler Frazier early, scoring four runs in the first inning on three hard singles and a two-run homer by Trace Tammaro. Despite the Pippins tacking on 3 runs in both the second and third innings, Corvallis hit Frazier for more in the third to to knock him out after just 2.1 innings, allowing 6 runs (5 earned) on 6 hits.

Just like in Friday’s series opener, the Pippins offense had early signs of life. Off of Corvallis southpaw Tevita Gerber, Luke Schwartz hit a 2-out, 2 RBI single in the second inning to cap off a three-run frame, and three different Pippins added RBI singles in the third. After that, however, the Pippins would manage just three more hits and one more run the rest of the way, an offensive blackout similar to Friday.

Gerber, who picked up the win, finished after allowing 7 runs (5 earned) on 9 hits, 3 walks, and 6 strikeouts over 5.2 innings of work. The Corvallis offense backed him up in the sixth inning when Briley Knight roped a 2-0, one-out fastball from Pippins reliever A.J. Wood through the right side to extend their lead to 9-6. Wood, who allowed 3 earned runs in 3 innings of relief, took his first loss of the summer.

The Pippins added one in the sixth when Tanner Parker hit an RBI single, but the Knight’s bullpen duo of Colton Meyer and Kevin West shut down Yakima Valley late. West, who struggled on Friday, was rock-solid on Saturday, needing just 15 pitches over 2.1 innings to secure his first save of the summer.

Knight led the way offensively for Corvallis with 4 RBIs in a 2-for-3 day, giving him 6 for the series. Jake Holcroft, Corvallis’ leadoff hitter, was 4-for-5, and Matthew Gretler went 2-for-5 with 2 RBIs. For the Pippins, Parker went 2-for-5, while Henry Gargus, Tyler Rando, Greg Fuchs, and Owen Cobb all also added multi-hit games.

The series concludes on Monday with a 6:35 PM PT first pitch, as the Pippins look to salvage one from the reigning league champions. Mark Woinarowicz will make his second start of the summer for the Pippins, opposing a to-be-announced starter for Corvallis. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz begins at 6:20 PM.

After dropping the series opener to the Corvallis Knights on Sunday, their second consecutive loss, the Yakima Valley Pippins are back in action tonight at the Orchard as they try to even the series with the Knights. First pitch is set for 6:05 PM PT, with right-hander Tyler Frazier scheduled to make his first start of the summer for the Pippins. He will be opposed by Corvallis southpaw Tevita Gerber, making his third start of the summer. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz begins at 5:50 PM at pippinsbaseball.com/live.

Full Game Notes

PIPPINS DROP SERIES OPENER TO CORVALLIS: The Pippins collected three of their five hits and all four of their runs on Saturday night in the second inning, and it was not enough in a 7-4, series-opening loss to Corvallis. The Knights took an early 2-0 lead in the second inning, but a big 4-run bottom half for the Pippins, capped off by a two-run single by newcomer Noah Andrews, in his first game as a Pippin, gave Yakima Valley a 4-2 lead. Despite Ryan Jameson’s 8 strikeouts over 4 innings, the Pippins were nota ble to hold on, as Corvallis chipped away throughout, with 1 or 2 runs in four of the final seven innings, while the Pippins managed just one hit after four in the first two innings. Timothy Josten was stellar for the Knights, fanning 9 and not allowing an earned run, and the Pippins stranded 7 runners in 3 innings against the Corvallis bullpen.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Right-hander Tyler Frazier is set to make his first start of the summer tonight against Corvallis. The 6-foot-1, 150-pound righty from Oregon made his season debut for the Pippins in relief on Thursday against Victoria, throwing 21 pitches in the 6th inning. After entering with the bases loaded and nobody out, Frazier allowed all 3 runners to score, but did not allow an earned run of his own in the frame, surrendering two hits and a walk, while striking out one. As a freshman at Oregon this past spring, Frazier had an 0-2 record and 6.91 ERA in 27.1 innings of work. He made 11 appearances on the year, which included six starts.

FOR THE KNIGHTS: Left-hander Tevita Gerber will make his third start of the summer for Corvallis tonight against the Pippins. The 6-foot-2, 205-pound southpaw native to Salt Lake City, Utah, has a 1-1 record on the year for the Knights with a 2.45 ERA. He won his last start last Sunday against Cowlitz, allowing one earned run over 6.1 innings on 4 hits and a walk, while striking out four. On the season, he has struck out 7 and walked 4 in 11 innings of work. At Dixie State in the spring, Gerber had a 6.56 ERA, splitting time between the rotation and the bullpen.

WHERE ARE THE EXTRA BASES?: Despite another poor performance on the mound from Pippins pitching on Saturday, they did not allow the Knights to collect an extra-base hit, holding Corvallis to 13 singles on the night. It was yet another performance by the Pippins pitching staff in which they limited extra-base hits. On Thursday, 15 of Victoria’s 17 hits were singles. On the flipside, Pippins hitters have largely struggled to collect extra-base hits so far this season. The Pippins’ 20 doubles are tied for last in the WCL (Kelowna), their 1 triple is tied for 2nd-to-last, and their 5 home runs are tied for 7th. As a team, the Pippins’ .312 slugging percentage is 3rd-worst in the WCL, just ahead of Cowlitz (.290) and Portland (.264), two teams with losing records on the year.

PARKER PACES THE OFFENSE: Pippins infielder Tanner Parker continued his early-season hot stretch with another multi-hit game on Saturday, going 2-for-5 with a double. The two hits extended Parker’s hitting streak to 11 games, the last 5 of which have come from the leadoff spot in the batting order. Over that stretch, Parker has collected 8 extra-base hits (6 doubles and 2 home runs). His .379 batting average ranks 6th in the West Coast League, and 3rd-best amongst players from the WCL’s North Division.

ODDS & ENDS: After Josh Hahn’s 8th-inning strikeout on Saturday, Pippins pinch-hitters are now 0-for-9 on the year…the Pippins committed a season-high four errors, their fifth consecutive game with multiple fielding miscues.

YAKIMA, Wash. – The Yakima Valley Pippins picked up an early lead over the Corvallis Knights on Saturday night, but could not hold on, falling 7-4 at Yakima County Stadium to drop the series opener to the 3-time reigning West Coast League champions.

The Knights (7-6) actually grabbed the first lead of the ballgame in the top of the second inning. With 2 outs and 2 strikes on Corvallis’ nine-hole hitter, Michael Dixon, Pippins (8-8) starter Ryan Jameson threw a fastball, which Dixon smacked through the right side for a 2-run, opposite-field single that gave the Knights the lead. The Pippins answered right back with a big bottom half of the inning, however, when Luke Schwartz, Tanner Parker, and Noah Andrews all delivered RBI singles. Andrews, in his Pippins debut, had a 2-run hit to give the Pippins the lead.

From there, however, Corvallis left-hander Timothy Josten and 3 Knights relievers were too much for the Pippins, who mustered just one hit in the following seven innings. Josten sliced through a mostly right-handed Pippins lineup, striking out a season-high 7 while allowing just the four runs (all unearned) on 4 hits and a walk to earn his second win of the season.

Jameson, making his first start of the summer, fought around trouble in both the third and fourth innings to put together a respectable outing. In four innings, with a pitch count nearing 85, he struck out 8 batters and walked 2, while allowing 2 earned runs on six hits. His breaking ball was particularly effective as an out pitch. Because he left with the Pippins leading but before completing five innings, Jameson took a no-decision.

Dylan Barkley came on in relief, his first time coming out of the bullpen in 2019, and quickly surrendered the lead, with the Knights tacking on a run in the fifth, and then two in the sixth off of RBI singles from Jake Holcroft and Andy Atwood. Barkley, who allowed another run in the 8th inning, took the loss after allowing 4 runs (3 earned) on 7 hits and 2 strikeouts in his four innings of relief.

The Pippins threatened against the Corvallis bullpen in the late innings, but never were able to strike for runs. A single and a walk put two on in the 6th against reliever Kevin West, but he struck out Ty DeLancey to end the threat. In the 7th, without a base hit, the Pippins loaded the bases (dropped third strike and two walks) but did not score. An error and a walk put two on with two outs in the eighth, but the Pippins again stranded a pair.

Alex Williams came on in relief for the Knights to earn a four-out save, his first of the summer, and struck out two in the process. Ayden Adams tossed a 1-2-3 ninth for the Pippins, throwing all 7 of his pitches for strikes.

Tanner Parker led the way for the Pippins with another multi-hit game, going 2-for-5 and adding his 6th double and a pair of RBIs, extending his hitting streak to 11 games. Luke Schwartz had an RBI single for Yakima Valley, and Andrews drove in a pair in his Pippins debut.

Atwood led the way on offense for Corvallis with 3 hits, while Holcroft added two hits, and RBI, and two stolen bases. Briley Knight and Matthew Gretler also had two-hit games for Corvallis.

The series resumes on Sunday with a 6:05 PM first pitch at Yakima County Stadium. The Pippins will send righty Tyler Frazier to the mound for his first start, while Corvallis counters with left-hander Tevita Gerber. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz at pippinsbaseball.com/live begins at 5:50 PM.

Following an off day on Friday, the Pippins are back in action at the Orchard tonight at 7:05 PM to continue their 7-game homestand and open up a three-game series with 3-time reigning league champion Corvallis. Fireworks will take place after tonight’s opener. Right-hander Ryan Jameson makes his first start of the summer for the Pippins, while the Knights will send southpaw Timothy Josten to the mound for his third start. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz starts at pippinsbaseball.com/live at 6:50 PM.

Full Game Notes

PIPPINS FALL BEHIND EARLY, DROP FINALE TO VICTORIA: In the resumption of a three-game series that began a week prior, the Victoria HarbourCats jumped out to an early 5-0 lead and never looked back to clinch the series at Yakima County Stadium on Thursday with a 13-4 win. The HarbourCats struck for 7 runs in 3 innings off of Pippins starter Darius Garcia, and despite 12 hits from the offense, the Pippins lost big for the second time in a week. Victoria batted around in the first, and later added 6 more runs off of a Pippins bullpen that used five different arms. Seven different hitters for Victoria recorded multi-hit games. The Pippins were led offensively by a nice day from Henry Gargus, who homered once and narrowly missed a second homer off of the wall in a 3-hit day, and James Bell, who went 2-for-3 and had his first multi-hit game in a Piippins uniform.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Right-hander Ryan Jameson will make his first start of the summer tonight against Corvallis. The 6-foot-2, 180-pound righty from Cal Poly made his Pippins debut in relief on Tuesday against Kelowna and took a tough-luck loss in one inning of work, allowing an unearned run on 2 hits and a walk, while recording all three outs by way of the strikeout. The Hollister, California native appeared in 13 games in relief for the Mustangs as a freshman in the spring, posting a 4.43 ERA over 20.1 innings of work.

FOR THE KNIGHTS: Left-hander Timothy Josten is set to make his third start of the summer today for Corvallis. The 5-foot-11, 180-pound southpaw from Cal State Fullerton won his last start on June 14 against Cowlitz at home, tossing 6 scoreless innings with 6 strikeouts. On the season, he is 1-1 with a 3.27 ERA, striking out 7 batters and walking 3 in 11 innings of work. A rising junior at Cal State Fullerton in the fall, the Santa Clarita, California native pitched to a 4.14 ERA in 67.1 innings of work this past spring.

A LOOK AT THE KNIGHTS: After a slow start to the year, the three-time reigning league champion Knights are starting to round into form as their roster fills out. The Knights enter the weekend series at .500 (6-6), but have won six of their last nine games after being swept on the road by Walla Walla to start the year. The Knights picked up a road series win at Victoria before opening at home by sweeping Cowlitz. Most recently, they dropped two out of three at home to WCL North Division-leading Bellingham. Corvallis is hitting .277 as a team, 2nd-best in the WCL (Victoria), while their 4.15 team ERA ranks 6th.

HOMETOWN BOY HEATS UP: After a slow start to the year, Yakima’s own Henry Gargus has seen his bat heat up over the last 9 games. In those 9 games, he has collected a hit in each game, the second-longest hitting streak on the Pippins this season (Tanner Parker, 10). Over that stretch, Gargus is hitting .343 (11-for-32), which has raised his batting average from .133 to .279. On Thursday, he added his first two extra-base hits of the summer with a first-inning solo homer and a 7th-inning double off of the wall.

THE HITS ARE COMING: The Pippins collected 12 hits on Thursday, tying a season-high in that category. It was their second straight game collecting 10 or more hits, and their third game in the last 4 with at least 8 hits. The Pippins are now hitting .248 as a team, which ranks 9th in the West Coast League.

ODDS & ENDS: The Pippins homered in consecutive games for the 2nd time this season, and the first since doing since on June 5 and June 6 in Ridgefield…the Pippins used a season-high six pitchers on Thursday; the previous high was 5, against Victoria on June 13.

YAKIMA, Wash. – The Victoria HarbourCats struck early and often on Thursday, opening up with a 5-run first inning and never looking back in a 13-4 win over the home Yakima Valley Pippins in Yakima on Thursday night, concluding a series that had begun a week before with a win.

The first-place HarbourCats (10-5) pounced on Pippins (8-7) starter Darius Garcia in the first inning. Victoria batted around, collecting 7 hits and 5 runs, to set the tone for an offensive onslaught throughout the game. Garcia lasted just 3 innings, allowing 7 runs (4 earned) on 11 hits, while striking out 3. But the Pippins offense never got the necessary run support to overcome the big early deficit.

The Pippins offense had one of its better days of the season, all things considered, but left 9 runners on base and failed to convert on several opportunities. Yakima native Henry Gargus continued his recent hot stretch and had the nicest offensive day for the Pippins. He hit a solo homer in the first inning, and his double in the 7th off of the wall barely missed being a second home run. He also singled in the 7th for a 3-hit day.

The Pippins grabbed two runs in the fifth inning off of a bases loaded hit-by-pitch and a double play with no outs hit by James Bell, but mustered up just one run beyond that. Starter DJ Peters allowed 3 runs in 4-plus innings for Victoria on 8 hits and a strikeout. Reliever Zac Horne, who pitched 1-plus inning and walked 3 batters but allowed no runs earned the win. Garcia took the loss for the Pippins.

The Pippins bullpen had its fair share of struggles as well. Bo Henderson pitched a strong first two innings before struggles hit in his third inning of work, and he allowed 3 runs total. Tyler Frazier and Jack Gonzales also allowed runs in their respective innings. Victoria had 7 different hitters record multi-hit games, and all but two record RBIs.

Gargus led the way on offense for the Pippins with his 3 hits. Ty DeLancey had his first multi-hit game as a Pippin after a 2-for-4 night, and James Bell also added two hits. Tanner Parker had a ninth inning single that extended his hitting streak to a team-high 10 games.

The Pippins, now 2-2 on the current homestand, have Friday off before returning to action on Saturday night against Corvallis. First pitch for the series opener is set for 7:05 PM. Ryan Jameson is expected to start for the Pippins. Pregame coverage will begin with Miles Klotz at pippinsbaseball.com/live at 6:50 PM.

After completing a series win over the Kelowna Falcons with a strong offensive performance to win 9-4 on Wednesday night at the Orchard, the Pippins continue their homestand on Thursday with a matchup against the Victoria HarbourCats. After the two teams split a two-game series last week in Yakima, Victoria returns for one game to close out the home set in Yakima between the two teams in the 2019 regular season. Left-hander Darius Garcia is set to make his second start of the summer for the Pippins, and will be opposed by Victoria righty DJ Peters. First pitch is set for 6:35 PM PT, with pregame coverage beginning with Miles Klotz at pippinsbaseball.com/live at 6:20 PM.

Full Game Notes

PIPPINS USE BALANCED OFFENSE TO TAKE SERIES FROM KELOWNA: After failing to score in a Tuesday shutout loss to the Kelowna Falcons, the Pippins offense broke out with 9 runs on Wednesday to take a 9-4 win, and the series, from Kelowna. After falling behind early after 2 innings, the Pippins offense struck with a bases-loaded hit by pitch and a balk to tie the game in the 4th inning. In the 6th inning, having again fallen behind, the Pippins struck for 5 runs on 6 hits while batting around for the first time in 2019, capped off by Tanner Parker’s bases-clearing double. Parker also added a 2-run homer in the 8th inning to cap off the big win. A.J. Wood earned his first win of the summer for the Pippins with 3 innings of scoreless relief. The Pippins scored runs off of four different pitchers for Kelowna to take the series.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Left-hander Darius Garcia is set to make his second start of the summer for the Pippins, and his first at home, tonight against the HarbourCats. The 5-foot-8, 175-pound southpaw from UC Irvine made his first start for the Pippins on Saturday in Bellingham, and took a tough-luck loss. He allowed two runs, only one of which was earned, in 5-plus innings of work, striking out three batters and walking a pair. He allowed four hits in the outing. On the year, he is 0-1 with a 1.80 ERA.

FOR THE HARBOURCATS: Right-hander DJ Peters will make his second start of the summer tonight for Victoria. In his first start back on June 5 in Wenatchee, the Mesa, Arizona, native allowed 2 runs, only one of which was earned, over 4 innings while striking out 4 and walking 3 on 3 hits. The righty out of Scottsdale (Ariz.) Community College made 12 starts for Scottsdale in the spring, posting a 5-5 record and 4.39 ERA over 55.1 innings of work.

PARKER PACES THE OFFENSE: Tanner Parker, the Pippins’ everyday second baseman, continued his hot stretch on Wednesday with another 2-for-5 performance. Hitting leadoff for the third consecutive game, Parker extended his streak of multi-hit games to eight, and his hit streak to nine games. With a 5th-inning double and an 8th-inning two run homer, it was the first game in the streak in which Parker collected multiple extra-base hits. After collecting just 2 hits in his first five games, Parker is hitting .486 (18-for-37) over his current 9-game hitting streak. His .388 batting average is good for 8th in the West Coast League, and his 12 RBIs are tied for 2nd in the league.

HOMETOWN BOY HEATS UP: After a slow start to the year, Yakima’s own Henry Gargus has seen his bat heat up over the last 8 games. In those 8 games, he has collected a hit in each game, the second-longest hitting streak on the Pippins this season (Tanner Parker, 9). Over that stretch, Gargus is hitting .285 (8-for-28), which has raised his batting average from .133 to .231.

WOOD STABILIZES THE BACK END: After starting the season on a short-term contract, Central Washington’s A.J. Wood has been one of the best relievers in the Pippins’ bullpen all season long. With 3 scoreless innings of one-hit relief on Wednesday, Wood picked up his first win, and saw his ERA drop to 0.87 in 4 appearances. After making a start in his first appearance of the year, Wood has come out of the bullpen the previous three times, and has yet to allow a run in those 3 appearances.

ODDS & ENDS: With Tanner Parker’s 8th inning home run, the Pippins hit homers in consecutive games for the first time since doing so in Ridgefield on June 5 and June 6…the Pippins have yet to lose back-to-back home games so far this season.

YAKIMA, Wash. – The Yakima Valley Pippins used a balanced offensive attack to topple the Kelowna Falcons, 9-4, and take the series at Yakima County Stadium on Wednesday night. The Pippins scored multiple runs in three separate innings off of four different pitchers in the win.

Kelowna (3-9) jumped out to an early lead against Pippins (8-6) starter Mark Finkelnburg in the second innings, when they used an RBI single from Tylor Nixon to take the lead, and then extended it on an error by Pippins third baseman Owen Cobb. The Pippins needed some time to get the offense rolling, but finally got to Kelowna starter Marcus Cain in the fourth inning.

Using two walks and two hit by pitches, the Pippins loaded the bases and then cut the deficit to one run before Cain was pulled for left-hander Ian Turner. Turner proceeded to balk in the tying run. While the Falcons would take the lead back in the 5th off of another balk, Turner surrendered the lead back in the 6th.

The Pippins batted around for the first time this season in the sixth inning, starting with a double from James Bell, his first hit in a Pippins uniform. A few batters later, Ty DeLancey, in his first game as a Pippin, hit an infield single that drove in the tying run, and Christian Padilla followed with an RBI single. Two batters later, with the bases loaded, red-hot Tanner Parker hit a bases-clearing double to right-center field to break the game open.

Finkelnburg was relieved by A.J. Wood in the fifth inning and took his 3rd consecutive no-decision, in perhaps his best start of the summer. He allowed 3 runs, 2 of them earned, on 6 hits, 2 walks, and 4 strikeouts in 4.2 innings. Cain took a no-decision for the Falcons after allowing 2 earned runs on 1 hit, 4 walks, and 2 punch-outs in 3.2 frames.

The Pippins tacked on two more in the 8th inning when Parker launched a two-run homer to right field off of Kelowna reliever Zach Jacobs. Parker has now hit safely in 9 straight games, and extended his multi-hit game streak to eight. Kelowna would add one more unearned run in the ninth off of Pippins reliever Jahred Butler.

Turner took the loss for Kelowna after allowing 2 runs in 1.1 innings, while Wood, who tossed 3 scoreless frames out of the bullpen, earned his first win of the WCL regular season.

The Pippins will welcome in first-place Victoria to Yakima County Stadium on Thursday to conclude a three-game series that began last week at home. Left-hander Darius Garcia will make his second start of the summer for the Pippins against a to-be-announced starter for Victoria. First pitch is set for 6:35 PM PT, with pregame coverage with Miles Klotz beginning at 6:20 PM at pippinsbaseball.com/live.

After dropping game two of a 3-game, midweek series to Kelowna last night at the Orchard, the Pippins continue their 7-game homestand with the third game of the series against the Falcons. Looking for the series win, the Pippins will send left-hander Mark Finkelnburg to the mound for his third start of the summer. He will be opposed by southpaw Marcus Cain for Kelowna, making his summer debut. First pitch is set for 6:35 PM PT, and pregame coverage with Miles Klotz will begin at 6:20 PM at pippinsbaseball.com/live.

Full Game Notes

PIPPINS FALL TO KELOWNA DESPITE MAGRISI’S STELLAR START: The Pippins got great pitching on the mound on Tuesday, but fell to Kelowna, 3-0, to even the midweek series at one game apiece. Joe Magrisi was fantastic in his third start of the summer, striking out 11 and facing one batter over the minimum (a walk) in 6 no-hit innings against the Falcons. The bullpen allowed 3 runs over three innings, with right-hander Ryan Jameson taking the loss, but only one of the three relief arms (left-hander Josh Hahn) allowed an earned run, and they struck out 4 batters to 2 walks. Righty Gage Wall started for the Falcons, shutting down the Pippins in 4-plus scoreless innings. He was followed by left-hander Nick Nygard, who earned the win with 5 innings of shutout relief, striking out 6 batters.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Left-hander Mark Finkelnburg will make his third start of the summer today for the Pippins. The left-hander out of Loyola Marymount last started on Thursday against Victoria, not allowing an earned run but only last 3.1 innings before he was relieved. In two starts this season, Finkelnburg has not recorded a decision, but has a 2.57 ERA and 6 strikeouts in 7 innings. A native of Portland, Oregon, Finkelnburg will be a redshirt senior at Loyola Marymount in the fall.

FOR THE FALCONS: Left-hander Marcus Cain is set to make his season debut for the Falcons as the starter tonight against the Pippins. A native of Mead, Washington, he will transfer to Gonzaga in the fall after two seasons at Spokane Falls Community College, where he was coached by Pippins assistant coach Justin Jacobs. A 6-foot-2, 175-pound southpaw, Cain posted a 4.16 ERA in 12 starts for the Bigfoot in the spring. As a freshman for Spokane Falls, Cain had a 2.36 ERA, striking out 45 batters in 57 innings of work.

PARKER PACES THE OFFENSE: Tanner Parker, the Pippins’ everyday second baseman, continued his early season hot stretch on Tuesday with another 2-for-5 performance. Hitting leadoff for the second consecutive, Parker extended his streak of multi-hit games to seven, with singles in both the second and fifth innings. After collecting just 2 hits in his first five games, Parker is hitting .500 (16-for-32) over his current 8-game hitting streak. His .386 batting average is good for 8th in the West Coast League.

LOTS OF QUALITY AT THE FRONT END: The Pippins have had strong starting pitching all season, with a team ERA of 2.32 from their starting pitchers this season. On the year, the Pippins have gotten 3 quality starts from their starting pitchers, with two of them coming in each of the last two games. Joe Magrisi went 6 innings, allowing 0 earned runs last night, while Mark Woinarowicz went a season-high (for a Pippins starter) 7 innings on Monday, allowing just 1 earned run. The only other quality start this year came from Dylan Barkley on Opening Day in Ridgefield.

MOWIN’ THEM OVER: Thanks in large part to Magrisi’s 11 strikeouts, the Pippins tied a team record with 15 strikeouts by the pitching staff on Tuesday. The previous time that Yakima Valley set down as many batters via the strikeout came on August 6, 2014, against Cowlitz, in a 7-6 Pippins victory.

ODDS & ENDS: Joe Magrisi became the first Pippins starter to strike out double-digit batters since Chase Farrell set a team record with 12 punchouts last July against Port Angeles…the Pippins tied a season-high by drawing 8 walks on Tuesday…the Pippins also set a season high by leaving 14 runners on base.

YAKIMA, Wash. – Joe Magrisi threw 6 innings of no-hit baseball as the Pippins’ starter on Tuesday, but the Kelowna Falcons rallied off of the Yakima Valley bullpen to claim a 3-0 win and even up the 3-game midweek series on Tuesday at Yakima County Stadium.

The Pippins (7-6) got one of their best starts of the year on the mound from right-hander Joe Magrisi, who was dominant from start to finish in his six innings of work. Magrisi allowed just one baserunner – a four pitch leadoff walk to Dan Pruitt in the second inning – while striking out 11 of the 19 batters he faced. He left with a no decision, however, as the Pippins were shut out for the first time all season.

Kelowna (3-8) got a good start on the mound from right-hander Gage Wall, making his second start of the season. Wall exited after allowing the first two batters of the fifth inning to single, but got off the hook and exited with no runs in 4-plus innings. He walked four batters and struck out two. Nick Nygard came in and finished off the job for the Falcons, tossing 5 shutout innings of relief and stranding the two inherited runners he had in the 5th inning. Nygard walked 4 batters, struck out 6, and earned his first win of the year.

The game was still scoreless after 6 innings before the Falcons scratched and clawed for three runs off of the Pippins’ bullpen – one each in the 7th, 8th, and 9th innings. In the 7th inning, pinch-hitter Tyler Williams hit a ball towards third that was knocked down by the bare hand of Pippins’ third baseman Spencer Bramwell, allowing a run to score. Matt Voelzke’s bloop single added another run in the 8th off of Jack Gonzales, and Tylor Nixon hit a pinch-hit sacrifice fly in the ninth inning to make it 3-0.

The Pippins threatened a bit in the ninth inning by putting runners on the corners with one out, but James Bell, in his first game with the team, grounded into a game-ending double play, 6-4-3. Reliever Ryan Jameson, in his Pippins debut, allowed one unearned run and was tagged with the loss.

Offensively, Tanner Parker led the way for the Pippins with 2 hits, his seventh consecutive multi-hit game. Greg Fuchs also walked 4 times, setting a season-high for any Pippins batter in 2019. No Kelowna player had more than one hit on offense.

The series concludes on Wednesday with a 6:35 PM first pitch at Yakima County Stadium. Left-hander Mark Finkelnburg will make his third start of the summer for the Pippins. He is set to be opposed by Kelowna lefty Marcus Cain, making his first appearance of the summer for Kelowna. Pregame coverage at pippinsbaseball.com/live begins with Miles Klotz at 6:20 PM.

Following a 6-4 win over Kelowna on Monday, in which the Pippins snapped their 4-game losing streak, Yakima Valley is back in action tonight against the Falcons, looking for the series win. Joe Magrisi makes his third start of the summer on the mound for the Pippins against a to-be-announced starter for Kelowna. First pitch is set for 6:35 PM PT, with pregame coverage on pippinsbaseball.com/live beginning at 6:20 PM with Miles Klotz.

Full Game Notes

PIPPINS SNAP LOSING STREAK WITH WIN OVER KELOWNA: The Pippins returned home on Monday and opened up their 7-game homestand with a 6-4 win over the Kelowna Falcons, snapping out of a season-long four game losing streak. Kelowna took an early 2-0 lead with runs in the second and third innings off of Pippins right-hander Mark Woinarowicz, but the Pippins quickly responded with a 5-run fourth inning, capped off by a three-run homer from Tanner Parker, the first homer hit by a Pippins player at the Orchard in 2019. Woinarowicz finished with a quality start, allowing 1 earned run in 7 innings, and Nick Brown closed things out for the Pippins by allowing one run over two innings to earn the save.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Right-hander Joe Magrisi is set to make his third start of the summer tonight against Kelowna. Magrisi, a rising sophomore at Cal State Fullerton, made his last start on Wednesday against Victoria, striking out 6 over 4 innings, while allowing 2 runs on 4 hits and 2 walks. On the season, the 6-foot-2, 210-pound right-hander is 1-0 with a 1.80 ERA and a league-leading 16 strikeouts in 10 innings of work. He was named the WCL’s Pitcher of the Week after the first week of the season, when he allowed 1 hit over 6 innings in two appearances, striking out 10.

FOR THE FALCONS: The Falcons have not announced a starting pitcher for tonight’s game.

PARKER PACES THE OFFENSE: Tanner Parker, the Pippins’ everyday second baseman, continued his early season hot stretch on Monday with a 2-for-5 performance. Hitting leadoff for the first time in his Pippins career, Parker extended his streak of multi-hit games to six, while also hitting his first homer of the season, a go-ahead, 3-run blast in the fourth inning. After collecting just 2 hits in his first five games, Parker is hitting .518 (14-for-27) over his current 7-game hitting streak. His .385 batting average is good for 9th in the West Coast League.

HOME RUNS BACK ON THE MENU: Tanner Parker’s 3-run, go-ahead homer in the 4th inning on Monday not only gave the Pippins the lead and was the first homer of the year by a Pippin at the Orchard, but it broke an 11-day long long stretch since the last homer by a Pippin at any venue. Since Owen Cobb’s solo shot in the 8th inning at Ridgefield on June 6, the Pippins did not a homer in the following 8 games before Parker broke that stretch with his shot. The Pippins’ three homers on the season are the 4th-fewest in the WCL.

WOINAROWICZ JUST WINS: Mark Woinarowicz picked up his third win of the summer in his first start of the year on Monday against Kelowna, improving his record on the season to 3-1. With the win, he becomes the first pitcher in the West Coast League this summer to record three victories, and takes sole possession of first place in the league in victories. Woinarowicz has earned the decision in all 4 of his appearances so far this season. Among pitchers in the WCL with at least 4 appearances, he is the only one who has earned the decision in each of his outings this year.

ODDS & ENDS: The Pippins set a season-high for runs in an inning in 2019 by scoring five runs in the fourth inning on Monday…before last night, the Pippins had not scored a run in the fourth inning all season…Mark Woinarowicz posted the first quality start by a Pippins pitcher since June 4 with his 7 innings last night, allowing 1 earned run…the Pippins were outhit last night, 10-8, winning for the second time in 2019 when the opponent collects more hits…Owen Cobb had 3 hits on Monday for the 3rd time in 2019.

YAKIMA, Wash. – A return home was all the Yakima Valley Pippins needed to get back on the winning track. The Pippins used a quality start from Mark Woinarowicz and a 5-run fourth inning to snap out of their four-game losing streak with a 6-4 win over the Kelowna Falcons on Monday night at Yakima County Stadium.

The game did not get off to the best start for the Pippins (7-5), as Kelowna (2-8) grabbed an early lead in the second inning off of a sacrifice fly from Brayden Merritt, then added on in the second when Matt Voelzke singled home a run. Things started to click in the fourth inning, however, when the Pippins brought home five runs.

Henry Gargus led off the inning with a single, and was followed by a walk from Daniel Cipriano. Two batters later, Owen Cobb ripped a double to deep left-center field that tied the game at two. A pop-up and a hit-by-pitch later, and Tanner Parker deposited a baseball over the right field wall, a 3-run shot that was the first homer at Yakima County Stadium by a Pippin this season, to give Yakima Valley a 5-2 lead.

From there, Woinarowicz cruised, allowing just one more unearned run in the seventh. He finished his 7-inning start – the first of his collegiate career – allowing 3 runs, just one of them earned, on 7 hits, one walk, and 2 strikeouts. In the process, he earned a quality start, just the second of the year for the Pippins, and the first since Opening Day in Ridgefield. Nick Brown came on in relief to earn the save with 2 innings of work; he allowed a run to score and the tying run to reach base in the 9th, but shut the down with an infield popout.

Jonathan Clark started and took the loss for Kelowna, allowing 5 earned runs in 5 innings on 6 hits, 2 walks, and 3 strikeouts. Tyler Wincig followed with two shutout innings of relief, while Matt Voelzke allowed an unearned run in the 8th inning.

Offensively, the Pippins were led by Parker (2-for-5, his sixth consecutive multi-hit game) and Cobb (3-for-4, 2 RBI). Tyler Williams and Austen Butler led the way for Kelowna, both going 2-for-4, with Butler driving in a run.

The series continues on Tuesday as the Pippins will look for the series win. Joe Magrisi gets the ball for the Pippins, with first pitch set for 6:35 PM. Kelowna has not announced a projected starter. Pregame coverage on pippinsbaseball.com/live will begin with Miles Klotz at 6:20 PM.

BELLINGHAM, Wash. – The Bellingham Bells completed a three game, weekend series sweep of the Yakima Valley Pippins on Sunday with a 19-2 win at Joe Martin Field, in an early start on Father’s Day. The 17-run loss tied the worst loss in Pippins franchise history.

The game got off to a slow start on offense for the Pippins (6-5), who struggled to get anything going against Bellingham (8-4) starter Diego Barrerra, who left after 1.2 innings with an injury, and reliever Tate Dearing, who pitched 4.1 innings in relief. The Bells struck for an early lead off of Pippins left-handed starter Dylan Barkley in the first off of an error when Barkley misplayed a bunt.

From there, the teams traded zeroes in the scoresheet until the Bells opened the floodgates with an 8-run fifth inning. Barkley started the inning, but after allowing four of the first five batters he saw to reach on base hits, he was relieved for Bo Henderson, making his Pippins debut. Barkley’s night came to an end after allowing 5 runs (4 earned) on 9 hits, no walks, and 2 strikeouts over 4.1 innings.

Henderson finished the fifth and pitched the sixth (in which Bellingham scored 3 more runs), allowing 7 earned runs on 5 hits and 4 walks, with no strikeouts. From that point, the Bells held onto their commanding lead. They added 7 more runs in the bottom of the 8th off of Pippins outfielder Riley Gill, who entered in the game to pitch. The 8th inning was capped by a two-run, opposite-field homer by Bells relief pitcher Will Armbruester.

The Pippins did avoid being shut out for the first time in 2019 by adding 2 runs in the top of the eighth inning. Owen Cobb and Luke Schwartz both hit RBI singles to cut into the Bellingham lead. Tanner Parker led the way offensively again for the Pippins, adding 3 hits, his fifth consecutive multi-hit game. Spencer Bramwell also had a pair of base hits for the Pippins.

Now on a season-long four-game losing streak, the Pippins return to Yakima on Monday to start an 8-day, 7-game homestand at the Orchard. The first team to visit on the homestand will be the Kelowna Falcons, with first pitch of game one of a three-game series set for Monday night at 6:35 PM. Mark Woinarowicz will start for the Pippins against a to-be-named starter for the Falcons. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz begins at pippinsbaseball.com/live at 6;20 PM.

After dropping their third consecutive game, and the series, on Saturday in Bellingham with a 3-1 loss, the Pippins look to bounce back into the win column on Father’s Day with a 1:05 PM first pitch at Joe Martin Field. Left-hander Dylan Barkley is set to make his third start of the summer for Yakima Valley, opposed by Bellingham southpaw Diego Barrerra. Pregame radio coverage with Miles Klotz begins at 12:50 PM at pippinsbaseball.com/live.

Full Game Notes

PIPPINS DROP SERIES IN BELLINGHAM, LOSE THIRD STRAIGHT: The Pippins failed to get anything generated offensively on Saturday night against Bellingham and fell, 3-1, for their season-high third consecutive loss. Darius Garcia got the start in his Pippins debut and was impressive, allowing just 2 runs (1 earned) over 5-plus innings, and the bullpen duo of A.J. Wood and Ty Pohlmann did their job, but the Pippins managed just four hits over the first eight innings against Bellingham righties Nick Proctor and Matt Geoffrion. In the ninth, against left-hander Bryce Moyle, the Pippins struck for one run, but Spencer Bramwell, who drove in the run, was thrown out trying to advance to third on a wild pitch, ending the game and clinching the series for the Bells.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Left-hander Dylan Barkley is set to make his third start of the summer to close out the series in Bellingham. The Pippins’ opening day starter in Ridgefield, Barkley last started a week ago at home against Wenatchee, allowing one unearned run over 5.1 innings of work. He struck out 5 batters in that start, and, for the second consecutive outing, did not walk a batter. Barkley has not allowed a walk over 11.1 innings this summer, and has a 1.58 ERA through two starts.

FOR THE BELLS: Left-hander Diego Barrerra is set to make his season debut for the Bells as the starter on Sunday. A 6-foot, 155-pound southpaw native to Chino Hills, California, Barrerra played his freshman season at Washington in 2019. In 7 games for the Huskies, including a pair of starts, Barrerra did not record a decision but had a 6.08 ERA over 13.1 innings. He struck out 14 batters and walked 9, while opponents hit .260 off of him.

PARKER PACES THE OFFENSE: While the offense has been slow to take off for the Pippins in 2019, infielder Tanner Parker has settled in quickly at second base. After a 2-for-4 performance on Saturday, Parker extended his hitting streak to five games, and his streak of multi-hit games to four. Over his last 5 games, Parker is hitting .529 (9-for-16) with 3 doubles, 4 RBIs, and 1 walk to 1 strikeout. He has raised his batting average more than .200 points in that span, from .133 to .345.

BULLPEN BUCKLES DOWN: The Pippins’ bullpen had another strong night on Saturday, as A.J. Wood came in and tossed a scoreless inning, and Ty Pohlmann followed with 2 innings of one-run ball. The Pippins bullpen, even after allowing 5 runs on Friday, still has a WCL-low 2.57 ERA on the season. The starting pitching has topped that, too, with a 2.24 mark. In addition, even after one inherited runner scored on Saturday, the bullpen has allowed just 23% of inherited runners (3-for-13) to score on the season.

CLOSE GAMES BECOMING COMMON: The Pippins lost another close game on Saturday, falling 3-1. It was their third consecutive loss by 2 or fewer runs. All four losses this season have come by either 1 or 2 runs. Saturday was also the fifth consecutive game, win or loss, decided by 2 runs or fewer. Overall, the Pippins have had just 2 games out of their first 10 decided by more than 3 runs (an 8-3 win over Wenatchee on June 8, and a 10-3 win at Ridgefield on June 5).

ODDS & ENDS: The Pippins used two pinch-hitters on Saturday, the first time this season they have used more than one in a game…Pippins pinch-hitters were 0-for-2 on Saturday, and are now 0-for-6 on the season, with 3 strikeouts…the Pippins committed multiple errors for the third consecutive game, dropping their fielding percentage to .958, 5th-worst in the WCL.

BELLINGHAM, Wash. – The Yakima Valley Pippins mustered up just one run on seven hits on Saturday in Bellingham en route to dropping a 3-1 decision to lose the road series with a game to play. The Bells overtook the Pippins for first place in the WCL North Division with the loss.

For eight innings, the Pippins (6-4) could get almost nothing going offensively. They had just four hits before a rally in the ninth, and did not draw a walk all night. In the ninth inning, the Pippins fought for a run off of Bellingham (7-4) closer Bryce Moyle, who allowed singles to Tanner Parker, Spencer Bramwell, and Henry Gargus, but finished the game off by a strikeout and catching Bramwell trying to take third base on a wild pitch.

Both sides pitched well on Saturday, with the Pippins getting a good start out of season debutant Darius Garcia. The left-hander from UC Irvine went 5-plus innings, allowing 2 runs (1 earned), on four hits, two walks, and 3 strikeouts. He exited after allowing the leadoff man in the sixth to reach, and A.J. Wood relieved him, allowing the runner to score unearned. Garcia, however, took a hard-luck loss for his performance.

The pitching was stellar for Bellingham, led by starter Nick Proctor, who tossed five shutout innings, allowing just 3 hits and striking out five. Matt Geoffrion, in his season debut, followed with three scoreless innings of relief, allowing just one hit. The pair were backed up by some light early offense for the Bells.

Bellingham got a run in the second inning off of an RBI groundout from Danny Martin after loading the bases with no outs, and later got a second run in the 6th inning on a Troy Viola sacrifice fly. They added a key insurance run in the 8th off of a Jack Machtolf RBI single.

The series concludes on Sunday as the Pippins look to salvage a game from the weekend set. First pitch on Father’s Day is set for 1:05 PM PT. The Pippins will send left-hander Dylan Barkley to the mound for his third start of the season, while the Bells have not announced a projected starter.

YAKIMA, Wash. – The Yakima Valley Pippins pitching staff put together another strong performance on Wednesday as the Pippins opened up a 2-game series with the Victoria HarbourCats with a 4-2 win at Yakima County Stadium.

Joe Magrisi, last week’s WCL Pitcher of the Week, did not get off to his sharpest start for the Pippins (6-1), allowing Victoria (3-4) to take an early lead off of an opposite field, RBI double by Victoria infielder Emilio Nogales. He also issues his first walk of the season that inning. The Pippins offense, however, picked up Magrisi in the bottom half.

Against Victoria right-hander Aaron Celestino, the Pippins pounced for three first-inning runs, capped off by a soft two-run single into center field by Tanner Parker, who drove in his first two runs of the summer. Henry Gargus, the Yakima native, also added an RBI single.

The Pippins added another run in the second inning off of an RBI sacrifice fly from Tyler Pittman. It was the first sacrifice fly of the year for the Pippins, and scored Korrey Siracusa. From there, the Pippins pitching cruised. Celestino worked three more innings, but took the loss, allowing the 4 earned runs on 8 hits and 3 strikeouts.

Magrisi was tagged for an RBI single in the fourth inning, and did not work into the fifth with his pitch count nearing 80, but still allowed just 2 runs over 4 innings, striking out 6 and walking 2. The star of the show, however, was winning pitcher Mark Woinarowicz, who came in relief in the fifth inning and only allowed one hit over his five innings of relief. He earned the win, his second of the season, for his performance, as Magrisi did not complete the 5 innings necessary for a victory.

Woinarowicz threw 57 pitches, 42 for strikes, over his five innings, not walking a batter and striking out two. Hunter Hennigh threw three innings of scoreless relief for the HarbourCats after Celestino.

The two teams wrap up their short, two-game series on Thursday night at 6:35 PM at the Orchard. Left-hander Mark Finkelnburg is set to make his second start of the year for the Pippins, while Victoria will counter with southpaw Dillon Larsen, an Ellensburg native.

Fresh off of a home-opening weekend series sweep against the Wenatchee AppleSox, the Pippins continue their 5-game home-stand against WCL North Division opponents by opening up a short, 2 game series against the Victoria HarbourCats. First pitch is set for 6:35 PM at the Orchard, with Joe Magrisi scheduled to start for the Pippins opposite Victoria’s Aaron Celestino. Pregame coverage with Miles Klotz, both audio and video, begins at 6:20 PM at pippinsbaseball.com/live.

Full Game Notes

PIPPINS SWEEP APPLESOX WITH SUNDAY VICTORY: The Pippins completed their first sweep of the 2019 season on Sunday with a 4-2 win over the Wenatchee AppleSox, despite being outhit, 8 to 5. Dylan Barkley, in his second start of the summer, took a no-decision after allowing 1 unearned run over 5.1 innings of work. The Pippins, after falling behind 2-1 in the 6th inning, benefited from a throwing error from Wenatchee’s Grant Gorrell that allowed 2 runs to score in a 3-run bottom of the 6th, giving the Pippins a late lead. Jack Gonzales, in his first appearance of 2019, tossed 2 scoreless innings to get the save.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Right-hander Joe Magrisi, the reining West Coast League Pitcher of the Week, makes his second start of the season today against the HarbourCats. Magrisi started on Friday against Wenatchee, allowing just 1 hit and no walks over 5 shutout innings while striking out 7 to earn his first win of the season. The 6-foot-2, 210-pound sophomore from Cal State Fullerton also has one save this year, which he earned on Opening Day last week in Ridgefield by striking out the side on 10 pitches.

FOR THE HARBOURCATS: Right-hander Aaron Celestino makes his second start of the season today for Victoria. The 6-foot, 200-pound native of Houston, Texas, started last Wednesday at Wenatchee, earning the win after posting a quality start. He allowed 1 earned run over 6 innings, allowing 4 hits, no walks, and striking out 5. Celestino is a  rising junior at the University of the Incarnate Word in San Antonio, Texas.

A LOOK AT VICTORIA: The HarbourCats are off to a 3-3 start to the season, opening the season with a road series win at Wenatchee before dropping 2 of 3 to 3-time reigning league champion Corvallis at home last weekend. Despite the middling record, Victoria ranks tied for 4th in the WCL in runs scored, and is 4th in the league with a 3.23 team ERA. Tulane catcher Frankie Niemann leads Victoria offensively, with a .480 batting average through six games, including 2 doubles and 4 RBIs. Canada native Cade Smith has been the team’s top starter, posting a 3.60 ERA and 11 strikeouts over 10 innings in his first two starts.

A FAST-STARTING FRANCHISE: With a win today, the Pippins would improve to 6-1, which would be the second best start in franchise history. While each of the past two years prior to 2018, the Pippins have fallen below .500 early, the franchise has historically gotten off to fast starts. The 2016 team starte 6-0 in WCL games, and eventually reached 7-1, while the 2015 team also started 5-1.

BARKLEY’S WALK-FREE NATURE: Dylan Barkley added another good start to his early season resume on Sunday, most impressively increasing his stretch of walk-free baseball to 11.1 innings by again not walking a batter over 5.1 frames against Wenatchee. Of all WCL pitchers who have made at least 2 starts this summer, Barkley is one of two (Matthew Henckel, Bellingham) without a free pass issued, and is the only one who has enough innings pitched to qualify for the league leaderboard. As a team, the Pippins have walked 14 batters, fewer than any other team in the WCL. Victoria ranks second with 16 walks allowed.

ODDS & ENDS: The Pippins struck out offensively a season-low 5 times on Sunday, the third consecutive game that they set a new season low for offensive strikeouts…Owen Cobb ranks 5th in the league in batting average, with a .476 mark; he is the youngest player in the top five…the Pippins are 4-for-4 on stolen bases this season, one of two WCL teams that has not been caught (Bellingham); Victoria is 2nd in the league in steals, with 15, but has been caught a league-high 11 times, for a 57.7% success rate…the Pippins came back to win after falling behind on Sunday; they are now 4-0 when scoring second in 2019.

YAKIMA, Wash. – Yakima Valley Pippins right-handed pitcher Joe Magrisi has been named the West Coast League Pitcher of the Week for the Week of June 4-9, WCL Commissioner Rob Neyer and the league office announced Monday. Magrisi is the first Pippins pitcher honored with the award since Hunter French was the weekly selection on June 11, 2018.

The 6-foot-2, 210-pound native of San Diego, California, appeared in two games for the Pippins this past week as the team posted a 5-1 record. He earned the save on Opening Day against the Ridgefield Raptors on the road, striking out the side in the bottom of the ninth inning on 10 pitches. On Friday, Magrisi started the Pippins’ home opener against the Wenatchee AppleSox and earned his first victory of the season, allowing 1 hit over five shutout innings, striking out 7 and not walking a batter.

A rising sophomore at Cal State Fullerton in the fall, Magrisi sits tied for second in the WCL with his 10 strikeouts, and is tied for the league lead with a perfect 0.00 ERA.

YAKIMA, Wash. – Dylan Barkley threw 5.1 innings of 1-run ball, and the Yakima Valley Pippins used a 3-run sixth inning to complete a 3-game, home-opening weekend series sweep of the Wenatchee AppleSox with a 4-2 win at Yakima County Stadium on Sunday evening.

Barkley, making his 2nd start of the summer for the Pippins (5-1), fell behind early in the 2nd inning when a Hunter Montgomery double and Blake Klassen single put runners on the corners for Wenatchee (1-5). A batter later, catcher Justin Lutz airmailed a thrown down to second base, allowing Montgomery to score, and giving Wenatchee an early lead. The unearned run would be the only blemish on Barkley’s record; he completed 5.1 innings on 4 hits, no walks (for the second straight start), and struck out 5.

The Pippins answered back with a run in the third inning off of an Owen Cobb RBI double, scoring Tanner Parker, who had doubled a batter earlier. Wenatchee regained the lead with a run in the sixth inning off of Pippins reliever Scott Youngbrandt, but the Pippins responded with a three-run bottom of the sixth inning. After Henry Gargus drew a bases loaded walk to tie it at 2, Lutz hit a bouncing ground ball towards second, which was thrown away by Wenatchee second baseman Grant Gorrell, scoring two. The Pippins never trailed from that point.

Youngbrandt earned his first win of the summer in relief, while the newest Pippin, left-hander Jack Gonzales, earned the save with two scoreless innings to close out the win, striking out a pair. Cobb led the way on offense for the Pippins with 2 hits, while Tyler Pittman had a 2-hit day, including a double. Parker had the only other of Yakima Valley’s 5 hits.

Starter Keegan Romig took the loss for Wenatchee, allowing 4 runs (3 earned) over 5-plus innings on 3 hits, 2 walks, and 3 strikeouts. He did not record an out in the sixth inning, allowing all four men he saw to reach base. Klassen was 3-for-4 with an RBI for the AppleSox.

The Pippins, atop the West Coast League’s North Division at 5-1, have two off days on Monday and Tuesday before returning to action on Wednesday at home to start a two-game series with the Victoria HarbourCats. First pitch on Wednesday is set for 6:35 PM PT, with A.J. Wood expected to start for the Pippins. Pre-game audio and video coverage with Miles Klotz will begin at 6:20 PM.

YAKIMA, Wash. – Cameron Liss was strong in his Pippins debut out the bullpen, and the Pippins rode a pair of 4-run innings to an 8-3 win over Wenatchee on Saturday night at Yakima County Stadium, clinching their second consecutive series win.

Liss, who joined the team Saturday morning, came out of the bullpen for the Pippins (4-1) in the 4th inning with a two men on and two outs. After a fly out to end the inning, Liss avoided much trouble over his next 4 innings of relief, allowing just 4 baserunners (2 hits and 2 walks) while striking out four. He earned the win by virtue of starter Mark Finkelnburg not completing the five requisite innings.

The Pippins gave Finkelnburg, also making his Pippins debut, a 4-run cushion in the first inning after Ryan Altenberger hit a solo shot to give Wenatchee (1-4) an early 1-0 lead. Owen Cobb singled home Christian Padilla after a walk and a Zach Lew single, and then Lew scored on a wild pitch. With two men in scoring position, Tyler Pittman singled through the right side to add 2 more runs to the Pippins’ tally. While Wenatchee threatened on several occasions, the Pippins never trailed again.

Finkelnburg started strong besides the home run, but ran into some trouble in the fourth inning and was relieved with two outs. He allowed 3 runs, two of them earned, on 3 hits and 2 walks while striking out 4 over his 3.2 innings. Nick Brown closed out the Pippins win with a scoreless 9th inning, including a strikeout.

The Pippins added four more runs in the 6th inning against AppleSox reliever Cameron Sommer, although only one run was earned. The Pippins hit six singles in that inning, in which all nine men came to the plate, and benefited from throwing errors from the pitcher and from center fielder Johnny Graham.

Trent Sellers started on the mound for Wenatchee and allowed the 4 first-inning runs over 4 innings on 3 hits, 3 walks, and 4 strikeouts. Wenatchee used four other relievers, all of whom left with unscathed lines.

Lew led the way offensively for the Pippins with 3 hits, including an 8th-inning double. Cipriano also added two hits. Every batter in the Pippins lineup had at least one base hit. No Wenatchee batter had multiple hits.

The series concludes on Sunday as the Pippins go for their first series sweep of 2019, with first pitch of Game 3 set for 6:05 PM PT. The Pippins will send left-hander Dylan Barkley to the mound for his second start of the year, while Wenatchee will counter with right-hander Keegan Romig.

YAKIMA, Wash. – Joe Magrisi tossed 5 dominant innings, and the Yakima Valley Pippins used a 2-run 5th inning to lead the way to a 4-1 victory over the Wenatchee AppleSox on Opening Night at Yakima County Stadium on Friday.

Magrisi, making his first start of the summer, was not fazed by the large home crowd on Opening Night. He allowed just 1 hit over 5 scoreless innings for the Pippins (3-1), while striking out 7 and not walking a  batter. He threw 48 of his 74 pitches for strikes, a 64.8% mark.

The Pippins jumped on Wenatchee (1-3) starter Gavin Gorrell early, when newcomer Christian Padilla singled into right field in his first Pippins at-bat. A batter later, Zach Lew drove him home with a single up the middle to give the Pippins a 1-0 lead. They would not trail at any point during the contest.

The Pippins added two more runs in the fifth inning off of Gorrell, which started with a Padilla double to right-center field, and was followed by a Zach Lew fielder’s choice and Daniel Cipriano RBI single. Three batters later, Owen Cobb drove in Lew to make it a 3-0 Pippins lead. Cobb collected 3 hits to up his early season batting average to .538.

Ty Pohlmann pitched 3.1 strong innings of relief after Magrisi exited in the 6th inning. Pohlmann allowed 1 run on a sacrifice fly from Tyler Detloff of the AppleSox in the 6th inning, but did not allow any further damage. After walking a batter in the 9th inning, Pohlmann was replaced by Ayden Adams, making his Pippins debut. Adams got a groundout and a strikeout to earn the save.

Padilla, Lew, Cipriano, and Cobb collected all 9 of the Pippins’ hits, with Cobb leading the way with his three base knocks (all singles). No Wenatchee batter collected multiple hits, but Brett Gillis tripled and scored as part of a 1-for-3 day.

The series continues on Saturday with game 2 set for a 6:35 PM PT start time. Cameron Liss is set to make his Pippins debut as the starting pitcher, while Trent Sellers will oppose him for Wenatchee. Live coverage begins at pippinsbaseball.com/live at 6:20 PM.

The Pippins, fresh off of a road series win to open the season in Ridgefield, Washington, return home for the home opener against the Wenatchee AppleSox tonight to open up a 5-game homestand. First pitch is set for 7:05 PM PT, with Pippins right-hander Joe Magrisi scheduled to make his first start of the summer, opposing Wenatchee left-hander Gavin Gorrell. Live coverage, both audio and video, begins with Miles Klotz at 6:50 PM PT on pippinsbaseball.com/live

Full Game Notes

PIPPINS BATS GO QUIET IN LOSS TO RAPTORS: The Pippins were unable to complete the sweep in Ridgefield on Thursday, managing just five hits and 2 runs in a 3-2 loss to the Raptors. The Ridgefield pitching staff was sharp, starting with starter Zach Barnes, who struck out 8 and did not walk a batter over 6 innings of 1-run ball. Pippins pitching held their own throughout most the game, with starter A.J. Wood allowing 1 run in 4.1 innings, but a two-run, go-ahead homer from Cameron Repetti in the 8th inning off of Mark Woinarowicz put Ridgefield ahead. Repetti earned the win despite serving up a solo homer to Owen Cobb in the top of the 8th that originally put the Pippins ahead.

HOME OPENER HISTORY: Friday will mark the 6th home opener in the history of the Pippins, 5 years and 1 day past the date of their first game in franchise history, which was, coincidentally, also against Wenatchee at County Stadium. All-time, the Pippins are 3-2 in home openers, with the two losses coming in each of the last two years, to Walla Walla and Victoria, respectively. Both home opener losses came by one run apiece.

FOR THE PIPPINS: Right-hander Joe Magrisi will make his first start of the season on Friday against Wenatchee. Magrisi was sharp in a relief appearance on Opening Night in Ridgefield, striking out the side in the bottom of the 9th on 10 pitches. The 6-foot-2, 210-pound native of San Diego has a three-pitch mix, with a low-90s fastball, curveball, and changeup. As a freshman at Cal State Fullerton this spring, Magrisi appeared in 11 games, making 3 midweek starts, and struck out 22 batters over 21.1 innings of work.

FOR THE APPLESOX: Left-hander Gavin Gorrell will make his first start of the season for the AppleSox. The 6-foot-3, 200-pound southpaw from North Bend, Washington, has yet to appear in a game for the AppleSox this season. After pitching as a freshman at Northern Colorado in 2018, where he posted a 9.15 ERA in 8 games, Gorrell sat out this past season at Boise State, which is restarting its baseball program next spring. His cousin, Grant, is an infielder for the AppleSox who will be a freshman at Boise State next spring.

A LOOK AT WENATCHEE: The AppleSox are 1-2 on the season after dropping the last two games of a season-opening series against Victoria at home. Wenatchee needed 4 runs in the last two innings on Tuesday against Victoria reliever Ryan Watson to pick up a 7-4 opening day win, but fell behind early in the final two games and never recovered. Victoria jumped out to 5-0 and 4-0 leadings after two innings and sent the AppleSox into holes they never dug out of. Washington State’s Trent Sellers, who is primarily a pitcher, has led the way offensively for the AppleSox, with 4 hits in 7 at-bats so far.

STRIKEOUT HAPPY: After 3 games, the Pippins have proven to be a strikeout-happy team, both on offense and on the mound. After setting a new single-season team record in pitching strikeouts last year, the Pippins are off to a strong start in that category again, sitting third in the WCL with 29 strikeouts over 3 games, about 9.6 per game. On the other hand, the Pippins lead the league in strikeouts on offense, fanning 39 times in 3 games, an average of 13 times per game. Last season, the Pippins struck out 396 times, which was 4th-fewest in the WCL.

ODDS & ENDS: Pippins pitching has walked just 6 batters this season, tied for the fewest in the WCL (Victoria)…the Pippins are one of two teams in the WCL that have had multiple players hit a HR (Ridgefield).

RIDGEFIELD, Wash. – Cameron Repetti’s 8th inning, 2-run, go-ahead home run led the Ridgefield Raptors to their first win in franchise history, 3-2, over the Yakima Valley Pippins on Thursday night at the Ridgefield Outdoor Recreation Complex.

After serving up a go-ahead homer to the Pippins’ Owen Cobb in the top of the 8th inning that broke a 1-1 deadlock, Repetti, who started the game as Ridgefield’s third baseman and later moved to the mound, took a Mark Woinarowicz pitch deep to center with two outs that gave Ridgefield (1-2) the lead. Repetti then came on to close out the win, which he earned, in the top of the ninth.

The Pippins (2-1) struggled to string together much offensively all night after taking an early lead. In the second inning, Riley Gill hit a soft single just past first baseman Carter Benbrook into shallow right field that scored Scott Youngbrandt to give the Pippins an early advantage. The Raptors answered with an RBI double from Michael Hicks in the 4th, and the pitcher’s duel moved quickly from that point forward.

A.J. Wood got the start for Yakima Valley and worked 4.1 strong innings, allowing just one earned run on four hits and one walk while striking out six. Woinarowicz was nearly flawless in relief before serving up the go-ahead homer, working out of multiple jams with runners in scoring position over his 3.2 innings of work. He took his first loss of the season, allowing the 2 runs on 3 hits, no walks and four strikeouts.

Ridgefield was strong on the mound all night, striking out double-digit Pippins batters for the third consecutive night. Zach Barnes got the start and took a tough-luck no-decision despite a quality start – 6 innings of 1-run ball, striking out 8 without allowing a walk on four hits. Peter Allegro bridged the gap to Repetti, tossing a scoreless 7th inning.

Youngbrandt had the only multi-hit game of the night for the Pippins, and scored the team’s other run besides Cobb. Ridgefield had just seven hits of their own, with Jonny Weaver leading the way with a 2-hit night. Michael Yourg also added a double for the Raptors.

The Pippins, unable to complete the sweep, still finish off a road series win to open the 2019 season. They return home Friday to open up a 3-game weekend series with the Wenatchee AppleSox. First pitch Friday is set for 7:05 PM PT, with Joe Magrisi pitching for the Pippins, opposing Wenatchee left-hander Gavin Gorrell. The game will be broadcast live, both audio and video, on pippinsbaseball.com/live, with coverage beginning 15 minutes prior to first pitch.