Walking The Frogs, Hops Fall 8-6

One night after combining for 14 strikeouts, Hops pitchers went the opposite direction against the most selective team in the Northwest League.
Corbin Carroll continued to please his local fans in Everett, but even the late-inning heroics of the Hops' newest young star were not enough to overcome 11 walks issued by five pitchers in an 8-6 loss to the AquaSox (8-10 second half, 26-30 overall).

The Seattle native Carroll extended his Hops' hitting streak to five games (11 overall) with a game-tying, two-out double in the top of the eighth inning, but Eduardo Herrera (0-1) could not hold the line in the bottom of the frame, giving up two hits and three walks without recording an out as the AquaSox regained the lead for good. Carroll threw out a runner at the plate in the inning, but the damage was done.
Hillsboro third baseman Tristin English extended his multi-hit game streak to six with two hits, including his third homer of the season to lead off the sixth inning. That made the score 3-2 Everett. The AquaSox would load the bases with none out in the bottom of the inning as Hops reliever Jacob Stevens gave up a leadoff single to Robert Perez before walking back-to-back batters. Justin Garcia came on to strike out Cesar Izturis, Jr., but he issued back-to-back walks to Patrick Frick and Trent Tingelstad to force in two runs, putting Everett up 5-2.
The Hops (11-7, 35-21) responded with an Eddie Hernandez two-run home run in the top of the seventh to once again draw within one. Then in the eighth, a wild throw to first by Izturis put English aboard. Two outs later, with English at second base, Carroll smacked a Travis Kuhn pitch into the left center gap for his third extra base hit and fourth as a Hop. English scored to tie the game.
Herrera had recently been closing games for the Hops, but entered with the game tied in the bottom of the eighth. Izturis led off the inning with a hard shot past the diving English at third for a base hit. Frick lashed a 3-2 pitch into right for a single, then Tingelstad drew his third walk of the game to lad the bases. Cade Marlowe followed with a seven pitch walk to force in Izturis with the go-ahead run. Then Carter Bins worked the fourth consecutive full count before drawing yet another walk for his third run batted in of the game.
Mailon Arroyo came on to face Miguel Perez, who singled to right center to score Tingelstad. Marlowe tried to score from second, but Carroll threw a one hop strike to the plate, and on an unsual tag play, catcher Ryan January fell backwards over the plate, while blindly reaching back to tag Marlowe. After assuring that the ball was in January's glove, home plate umpire Willie Traynor called Marlowe out, arousing the ire of the Everett crowd and AquaSox manager Louis Boyd.
Down three in the ninth, the Hops would threaten when Hernandez walked with one out and scored on Jorge Barrosa's RBI single. English was hit by a Kuhn pitch to put the tying run on base, but Andy Yerzy grounded out to second to end the game.
English and Hernandez each scored two runs for the Hops. Bins reached base four times, including a solo homer to lead off the fourth off Hops' starter Deyni Olivero. Bins has homered twice and driven in seven runs in his last two games. Tingelstad, from nearby Marysville, Washington, also reached base four times, scoring two runs. 
With all of the North teams beating the South teams Monday night, the Hops remain in first place in the NWL South Division second-half standings, a game up on Eugene and Salem-Keizer. The teams wrap up the three-game series Tuesday morning at 11:05 a.m. as the Hops other first-round draft pick, Drey Jameson, gets the start on the hill. The game will air live on Alt-102-3 FM at 11 a.m.