Salem-Keizer Small Ball swipes game in the 8th from Hillsboro

Tyler Vail returned to the mound for the Hops for the second time this homestand and put together his second consecutive quality start, throwing six and a third, scattering six hits and three runs. Matt Peacock made his 15^th appearance on the hill for the Hops, surrendering one run in one and two thirds innings.
The Hops offense came alive in the second, when Drew Ellis and Dan Swain executed a double steal and Tra Holmes singled in Ellis. Tim Susnara promptly followed Holmes and produced an RBI single of his own, driving in Swain. A Ryan Grotjohn fielder's choice crossed Holmes and the Hops took a 3-0 lead.

Salem-Keizer played small ball to produce two quick runs in the fourth. Orlando Garcia led off with a walk and a Ryan Kirby single moved Garcia to third. An early safety squeeze by Manuel Geraldo scored Garcia and moved Kirby to third. Shane Matheny grounded out to second driving in Kirby to cap the inning off.
The rumblings continued in the seventh and the eighth when the Volcanoes added one run in each inning following leadoff doubles to take a late 4-3 lead. Hillsboro had an opportunity to match in the bottom of the seventh when they had men on first and second with no outs, but Salem-Keizer reliever Garrett Cave stymied the Hops.
Salem-Keizer's bullpen finished the job, taking the second game of a three-game set. Aaron Phillips, Cave, and John Russell combined for six innings, one hit, and 11 strikeouts.
The final game of the series and home stand for Hillsboro begins at 7:05 pm at Ron Tonkin Field. Pregame show on Rip City 620 AM begins at 6:35pm. Catch the game on MiLB.tv.