Everett, Wash — The Eugene Emeralds bats came alive like nothing that we have seen from the club this year against the Everett Aquasox tonight — combining for a total of 19 hits which lead to a 14 -4 rout.
The win extends first year skipper Pat Murphy’s team winning-streak to five games and gives them the best record in the Northwest League at 8-2.
The San Diego Padres’ first pick in this years draft, Cory Spangenberg, started the scoring off early – he was the third batter to bat in the top of the first inning and hit a three-run homerun to over the center-field fence — putting Eugene up early and there was no looking back for the Padres minor league team.
Spangenberg finished the game with a career-high five RBIs while batting 2-for-6 at the plate with a double and homerun. He remains top in the Northwest League in on base percentage (.563); ranks tied for fifth in batting average (.394) and his 11 RBIs also leads the Northwest League.
The Emeralds scored another run in the inning on a RBI-single by designated hitter Zach Kometani that scored left fielder Mykal Stokes from second — putting the Emeralds up 4-0.
The Aquasox rebounded with a run of their own in the bottom of the first.
Third baseman Danny Lopez hit a sacrifice fly to right field, which scored shortstop Marcus Littlewood, making the score to 4-1 in favor of Eugene.
In the second inning the Eugene offense showed no signs of slowing down and had two more runs cross the plate.
Spangenberg hit a two-run double to center field — scoring both Donavan Tate and Clint Moore. Moore reached base on a fielding error by shortstop Littlewood and Tate his third double of the season.
Everett (3-7) would pull starting pitcher Bennett Whitmore after allowing six runs on eight hits in just one inning of work — since Eugene’s first four batters of the second inning reached base.
The Aquasox’s relief pitcher, Stephen Kohlscheen, came in and finished the second inning off without allowing a run.
Eugene finished the second inning up 6-1.
Jarrett Burgess, the Aquasox’s center fielder scored on a throwing error by Spangenberg in the bottom of the third inning to bring Everett within four runs, 6-2.
Stokes got his only RBI of the game off of a sacrifice fly to center field to score Tate to put the Emeralds up 7-2 entering the bottom of the fourth inning.
After a scoreless fifth inning both teams would score a run apiece in the sixth inning — making the score 8-3 in favor o Eugene.
Tate, the San Diego Padres No. 3 pick in the 2009 draft, would score the Emeralds run in the sixth off of a single by first baseman Daniel Garce.
Donavan Tate has battled back from a slow start to be a force for the Emeralds. // Photo: Alan K. Fox
Tate, who struggled to get it going on the offensive end earlier in the year, finished the game batting 5-for-6 at the plate with four runs, two doubles and a RBI.
The Aquasox’s , a farm teem for the Seattle Mariners, only run in the sixth came from a leadoff homerun by Lopez over the center-field fence.
In the seventh inning, the Emeralds scored another two runs to put them u 10-4.
The scoring came with two outs from a RBI-single by Moore scoring Michael Gallic from second and a RBI-triple from Tate, which scored Moore.
Moore kept his hot hitting going by hitting a three-run homerun to center field in the ninth inning to top off the scoring for the game. Earlier in the ninth inning Gallic scored on a throwing error by second baseman Jorge Aqudelo. Moore is now batting .400 on the season.
He finished the game 3-for-6 at the plate with a double, a homerun and four RBIs.
Emeralds’ relief pitcher Greg Gonzalez picked up his first win of season and finished with four strikeouts and allowed a run in his three innings pitched.
The Emeralds will look to sweep the three-game series against Everett tomorrow in Everett, Wash. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.
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