Frogs Jump Early On, Over Dust Devils
PASCO – Newer Dust Devil 1B Slate Alford had a big game at the plate for the Tri-City Dust Devils (23-28 2H, 58-59) Thursday night, but the Everett AquaSox (26-25 2H, 59-58) went big as a team in handing the Dust Devils an 11-5 defeat at Gesa Stadium. The Alabama
PASCO – Newer Dust Devil 1B Slate Alford had a big game at the plate for the Tri-City Dust Devils (23-28 2H, 58-59) Thursday night, but the Everett AquaSox (26-25 2H, 59-58) went big as a team in handing the Dust Devils an 11-5 defeat at Gesa Stadium.
The Alabama native, but Georgia baseball alum, drove in four of his team’s runs on the night. The first came in the bottom of the 2nd on an RBI single up the middle, after a six-run 1st inning from Everett and a 2nd inning run staked the visitors to a 7-0 lead. Tri-City LF Jonny McGill, who reached via single, came in to score from third to make it a 7-1 game at the time.
Two innings later, Alford used his power to drive a ball the opposite way over the right field wall for a three-run home run, his first longball for the Dust Devils. Both McGill, who had again singled as part of a three-hit night, and DH Kevyn Castillo scored ahead of Alford to cut the deficit in half at 7-4 through four innings.
Everett answered immediately, scoring three in the top of the 5th to shove the lead back out to six at 10-4. In the end their six-run 1st inning proved too much for the Dust Devils to overcome, handing the loss to starter Yeferson Vargas (3-10). Reliever Pedro da Costa Lemos (1-0) got the game to official status, going 1.2 innings for the win.
2B Capri Ortiz capped the night with a solo home run to left, with his eighth round-tripper of the year finishing out the scoring and giving the infielder an even 50 RBI for the year.
DUST DEVILS NOTES
-CF Hayden Alvarez went 2-for-3 with a walk, reaching base three times in the game. The 19-year-old and #3 Angels prospect, according to MLB Pipeline, has safely made it aboard in every game he has played for Tri-City (eight in total).
-The AquaSox hit three home runs on the night and the Dust Devils two, bringing both teams to 40 home runs against the other through the first 27 games of the season series.
-Tri-City remained five games back in the Second Half playoff chase with now 15 games remaining. The Eugene Emeralds took a 10-7 victory over the Vancouver Canadians at PK Park, allowing Everett to move within two games of the top spot. The Hillsboro Hops shut out the Spokane Indians 9-0 at Avista Stadium to move within a game of the Dust Devils.
BE TRUE TO YOUR SCHOOL…AND THE DUST DEVILS
Tri-City and Everett clash in game four of their six-game series at 7:05 p.m. Friday night at Gesa Stadium. Postgame fireworks will light the sky above the Tri thanks to Columbia Basin Hearing Center, and fans are encouraged to wear local high school gear as part of School Spirit Night. As well, the Richland High Marching Band will be at the ballpark to provide spirit in musical form.
A pair of accomplished right-handers will take the mound. For the Dust Devils Peyton Olejnik (5-7, 4.58 ERA), the June 2026 Northwest League Pitcher of the Month, will take the hill. Colton Shaw (6-5, 4.64 ERA), a two-time NWL Pitcher of the Week Award winner, counters for the AquaSox.
Free broadcast coverage on the MiLB app and dustdevilsbaseball.com will begin with the Dust Devils Pregame Show at 6:45 p.m. Fans can also watch the game for free on Bally Sports Live (Tri-City broadcast), and via subscription on MLB.tv and the MiLB app.
For tickets to the Everett series, as well as all 2026 Dust Devils home games, visit the official ticket site, dustdevilsbaseball.com.