Seeing Both Sides: Placencia’s Two Homers Help Tri-City Top Spokane
PASCO – 2B Adrian Placencia accomplished a feat few have for the Tri-City Dust Devils (8-2 2H, 38-38) Tuesday night, homering from both sides of the plate in a 7-4 victory over the Spokane Indians (7-3 2H, 36-40) that gave Tri-City sole possession of first place in the Northwest League’s
PASCO – 2B Adrian Placencia accomplished a feat few have for the Tri-City Dust Devils (8-2 2H, 38-38) Tuesday night, homering from both sides of the plate in a 7-4 victory over the Spokane Indians (7-3 2H, 36-40) that gave Tri-City sole possession of first place in the Northwest League’s Second Half standings.
Placencia’s first home run came in the bottom of the 2nd inning, a no-doubter from the left hand side of the plate that soared over the wall in right field to give the Dust Devils a 3-2 lead. The switch-hitting middle infielder then lined a rocket just over the left field wall in the bottom of the 6th, with his second solo shot of the night making him the first Tri-City player to homer in a game from both the left and right hand sides since infielder Sandy Almonte did the same in a 13-3 win over the Yakima Bears at Yakima County Stadium on August 25, 2005. The homer, also making Placencia the first Dust Devils to homer twice in a game in 2025, backed up RF Randy De Jesus’s two-run blast off Spokane reliever Stu Flesland (1-2) that pushed the Dust Devils back in front at 5-4.
Tri-City hit four home runs on the night, matching their season-high total for a single game. DH Matt Coutney’s two-run homer tied the game in the bottom of the 1st after the Indians’ Braylen Wimmer did the same on the top side to give Spokane an early 2-0 advantage. Dust Devils hurler Sandy Gastón (3-1) got the win, going 1.2 innings and striking out five while not allowing a run or a hit. Jake Smith threw the final two innings for his fifth save, retiring the final four he faced and striking out four to cinch the team’s third straight win.
DUST DEVILS NOTES
-Starter Ryan Costeiu went 5.1 innings in a no-decision for Tri-City, giving up four runs on nine hits and striking out six. The righty walked five and hit a batter but largely navigated around the free passes, with only one of them scoring.
-SS Capri Ortiz added a double to the extra-base hit tally, making it five of eight hits that went for more than one base.
-The win for the Dust Devils brought the team back to the .500 mark for the first time since they were 25-25 in the late stages of the First Half. Tri-City dropped to nine below the watermark on June 15 at 27-36, with the team winning 11 of its last 13 games.
CAN WE GET THE CHEC(O), PLEASE?
Tri-City and Spokane play game two of their three-game series and six-game week at 7:05 p.m. Wednesday night at Gesa Stadium, where it’s Hanford Workers Night presented by United Energy Workers Healthcare. Checos will face off for the third time this season, with Dust Devils right-hander Jorge Marcheco (4-4, 3.74 ERA) taking on Indians left-hander Albert Pacheco (6-5, 6.21 ERA).
Free broadcast coverage of the game, with video in the MiLB Zone of Bally Sports Live and audio at dustdevilsbaseball.com and the MiLB app, will begin with the Dust Devils Pregame Show at 6:45 p.m.
After Thursday night’s Independence Day Fireworks Extravaganza, presented by McEachen Electric, the teams head to Avista Stadium in Spokane Valley for another three-game set to conclude the week. Tri-City then returns home to host the Everett AquaSox, High-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners, for six games beginning Tuesday, July 8th.
For tickets to Wednesday night’s game, the Everett series, and for all 2025 Dust Devils home games, visit the official ticket site, dustdevilsbaseball.com.