Ems Lose 7-1 as Spokane Ties the Series

EUGENE, OR – The Spokane Indians (8-14) took an early 2 run lead and maintained it for a 7-1 win against the Eugene Emeralds (14-8) at PK Park on Friday night.

THE DETAILS:

- Winning Pitcher: Chris McMahon (2-0, 4.18 ERA): 6.0 IP | 5 H | 1 R | 1 ER | 0 BB | 7 K

- Losing Pitcher: Nick Avila (1-3, 6.75 ERA): 4.2 IP | 9 H | 4 R | 4 ER | 1 BB | 0 K

- Save: N/A

- HR(s): Decolati (SPO): 4th Labour (SPO): 3rd

HOW IT HAPPENED: Eugene and Spokane continued their back and forth series one night after a walk-off win for the Ems. Eugene could’ve taken sole possession of first place in the High-A West with a win, but those hopes were dashed after a 5-hit 1-run effort.

For the third straight game, the Indians took an early lead off a Michael Toglia triple that scored Willie MacIver before Hunter Stovall drove Toglia in on a ground out that made the score 2-0. The Emeralds lone offensive highlight came in the form of a 415-foot bomb that came off of Franklin Labour’s bat at 103 mph which cut Eugene’s deficit to 1 in the bottom of the 2nd, but that would be Eugene’s first and only run scored on the evening.

The Indians would go on to add 2 more runs in the top of the 3rd, adding to their 1 run lead and putting the game out of reach for the Emeralds who wouldn’t see a baserunner after the 5th until a Will Wilson walk in the bottom of the 9th.

Niko Decolati then added 3 runs in the 6th with a homer in his second straight game, but with the bases loaded and two outs in the same inning, newcomer Chris Wright who was brought aboard from Low-A San Jose on the 25th,

struck John Cresto out to get out of the inning. Wright, a 12th rounder in the 2019 MLB Draft hailing from Bryant University, went on to pitch 2 more innings striking out 7 and walking only 1 in his extremely impressive Emeralds debut.

The Indians 3 run 6th inning would be the last runs of the night as Spokane would go on to win 7-1 on a clear night at PK Park in the fourth game of six game series that continues Saturday at 7:05.

PEAK PERFORMERS:

- Franklin Labour – RF: Although it was a quiet night at the plate for the Emeralds, Labour had 2 hits on 3 at-bats and scored Eugene’s only run of the evening on his 415-foot belt to left center field in the 2nd in addition to a single in the 4th.

- Chris Wright – LHP: The new Emerald struck 7 out in his limited first appearance and didn’t give up a single run and allowing only a single walk in 2.1 IP.

WHAT’S NEXT: The Ems and Indians face off again on Saturday at 7:05pm PST at PK Park.

You can watch the action live via MiLB.tv or you can listen live to all the action on 95.3FM The Score, via MiLB.com or on the MiLB app.

Information regarding tickets to Emeralds home games is available at www.EmeraldsBaseball.com or by calling (541) 342-5367.