Martin's Three Hits Lead Hops Over Emeralds
Hillsboro, OR (August 22, 2023) – The Hops returned home after a two-week road trip to face off against their rival Eugene Emeralds at Ron Tonkin Field. David Martin had a three-hit, two RBI game for the Hops and the Emeralds were 0-for-11 with runners in scoring position, in the
Hillsboro, OR (August 22, 2023) – The Hops returned home after a two-week road trip to face off against their rival Eugene Emeralds at Ron Tonkin Field. David Martin had a three-hit, two RBI game for the Hops and the Emeralds were 0-for-11 with runners in scoring position, in the 9-3 Hillsboro win.
Zach Morgan doubled home a run in the second inning against Spencer Giesting to get the scoring started for Eugene, his fourth double of the year made it 1-0 Emeralds. Juan Corniel ended the inning defensively for the Hops by making an incredible diving catch at second base to rob Grant McCray of a two-RBI hit.
Hillsboro responded in the bottom half of the frame with a run of their own after back-to-back doubles by Junior Franco and Manuel Peña. The RBI was the first of three in the game for Peña.
The Hops poured it on Eugene starter Hayden Wynja with five hits in the third inning. They plated four runs (only one earned), to take a 5-1 lead. The scoring in the inning got started by a Christian Cerda RBI single and was followed by a Manuel Peña two-RBI single and a David Martin RBI single. Wynja was chased from the game after 3.2 innings, eight hits and five runs allowed.
Spencer Giesting turned in another solid outing for the Hops, allowing just two earned runs over five frames. Carter Howell’s solo homer in the 5th was the last run Giesting surrendered. Howell’s fifth High-A blast brought the Emeralds to within three, 5-2.
That would be as close as Eugene would get, as the Hops tacked on to the lead in both the fifth and eighth innings. David Martin recorded his second RBI single of the game for the lone run in the fifth and then they added two more runs in the eighth on a pair of wild pitches by Eric Silva.
Logan Clayton, Armando Vasquez and Liam Norris each threw a scoreless inning of relief in the 9-3 win.
Jack Hurley had a two-hit game and his first Ron Tonkin Field double, with Manuel Peña adding a pair of hits and David Martin having a three-hit game.
The Hops and Emeralds will play game two of the series on Wednesday at Ron Tonkin Field. First pitch is at 7:05 with the pregame show starting at 6:50 on Rip City Radio 620 and Bally Live.