Dust Devils Drop Day Game to Hops

Clutch 2-out hits and the pitching of Hillsboro Hops (7-11) starter Dylan Ray proved too much for the Tri-City Dust Devils (7-10) Thursday, with the home side flipping Wednesday night’s score around for a 6-3 win that ended the Hops’ 10-game losing streak.

Hillsboro got the jump on Dust Devils starter Connor Van Scoyoc (0-2) for the second time in as many meetings, plating two in the bottom of the 1^st inning on a 2-run single by DH Gavin Logan.

Ray (1-1), meanwhile, dominated the first two innings, retiring all six batters he faced and striking out four of them. Tri-City would get to him in the top of the 3^rd inning, starting with 3B Casey Dana’s deep ground rule double that bounced over the center field wall. A wild pitch moved Dana to third, from where he scored on a two-out RBI single to right by SS Arol Vera to cut the Hops’ lead in half at 2-1. That was all the visitors could muster against Ray, who went five innings and struck out nine for the win.

It stayed a one-run game to the 5^th inning, with Van Scoyoc working out of a bases loaded jam in the 3^rd. After getting the first two men out, the Dust Devil righty gave up a triple to 1B Shane Muntz and a walk to Logan, who would quickly steal second. RF Jarrod Watkins came up and lined a single past 1B Gabe Matthews, scoring Muntz and Logan for a 4-1 Hops advantage and ending Van Scoyoc’s outing.

Tri-City reliever Willian Suarez would get the final out of the 5^th, but then ran into trouble the following frame. Hillsboro 3B Jesus Valdez hit a deep line drive double over the head of LF Alexander Ramirez, scoring two more to make it 6-1.

The Dust Devils would answer in the top of the 7^th, scoring two to get back in the game. Ramirez and CF Joe Stewart singled to put two on with no one out, Ramirez to third and Stewart moving up to second on the throw from the outfield. They both scored, via a Dana RBI groundout and an RBI single by Steven Rivas, getting Tri-City within three at 6-3.

The visitors would still have a chance in the 9^th via 2.2 innings of scoreless relief from lefty Nick Jones (1.2 IP, 2 Ks) and righty Roman Phansalkar (a perfect 8^th inning), but Hops reliever Gerald Ogando came in and retired the Dust Devils in order for his first save of 2023.

Offensively, Stewart led the way with his second straight multi-hit game, going 2 for 4. The Michigan native now has hits in four straight games.

Tri-City, still leading the series two games to one, faces Hillsboro in game four of the six-game set at 6:35 p.m. Friday night at Ron Tonkin Field. The Dust Devils will send righty Caden Dana (1-1, 1.20 ERA in three 2023 starts at Single-A Inland Empire) to the mound for his High-A debut. Southpaw Spencer Giesting (0-0, 4.66 ERA) is scheduled to start for the Hops.

Broadcast coverage begins with the pregame show at 6:15 p.m., both here and at the MiLB First Pitch app.

The Dust Devils return home for a two-week homestand beginning Tuesday, May 9^th, against the Eugene Emeralds. It’s another Coca-Cola Tuesday, with 21 oz. Coke products for $2 all night.

Tickets for the upcoming homestand are on sale, with special ticket rates are available for groups of 20 or more. For more information on Dust Devils single game, season, mini-plan (11, 22, 33) and group tickets, visit dustdevilsbaseball.com, call the team office at (509) 544-8789, or visit the team office (10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on game nights, or Monday-Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. otherwise).