Detail-oriented Pirates shut out Spokane
Detail-oriented Pirates shut out Spokane
Pirates 4 RiverHawks 0
MOSES LAKE — The small details usually spell the difference between success and failure.
That was certainly the case for the Moses Lake Pirates Tuesday night, as they did all the little things right and wound up with a 4-0 victory, their second straight win over the Spokane RiverHawks at Larson Field.
The win improved Moses Lake's West Coast Collegiate Baseball League mark to 8-3 and padded their lead over Spokane in the East Division standings to four games. The series finale takes place in Spokane tonight at 7 p.m.
The little things included starting pitcher Tyler Rogers, who pitched six solid if unspectacular shutout innings for the win. Jesse Ayala's well-placed sacrifice bunt in the sixth inning put two runners in scoring position and eventually gave the Pirates their final runs.
Moses Lake also took advantage of poor Spokane defense for the second consecutive night, using an unearned run to go in front in the second inning.
Kevin Coddington led off the frame with a double down the right field line and advanced to third with two outs following a fielder's choice groundout. Spokane appeared set to escape the threat when Ryan Bernsen grounded to third base, but Jackson Evans' throw to first sailed high.
Coddington, the big catcher who just made an NCAA Tournament appearance with Illinois-Chicago, finished the night 3 for 3 and scored three times. Moses Lake head coach Gabe Boruff likes his style and the way he's helping the Pirates put a little punch in the middle of their order.
"He's a real prospect. Look at his frame, look at his arm strength, look at the power he displays," Boruff said of Coddington. "I'm just pleased to have him here. He's a great kid, on and off the field. You really root for guys like that, that play the game the way it's supposed to be played."
While Coddington was busy wrecking the night of Spokane starter Cory Powell, Rogers made sure the RiverHawks wouldn't get back in it. Rogers admitted he didn't have his best stuff, but got help behind him. He got the win, allowing six hits and one walk with one strikeout in six innings.
"I was making some pretty bad two-strike pitches, but my defense was great for me tonight," Rogers said.
Rogers got in hot water in the sixth after Michael Hur doubled and Shawn Wayt singled with one out. The pitcher quickly climbed out of the cauldron, picking off Hur following a long rundown and retiring pinch hitter Chris Bozo on a ground ball.
"He gave us a chance to win — that's the most important thing," Boruff said of Rogers. "I thought he left the ball up quite a bit and he got stung around there but when you get hit, spread 'em out."
Rogers did exactly that and stranded six Spokane runners.
Moses Lake immediately responded to Spokane's threat, giving Rogers a 4-0 lead with two runs in the sixth. Mike Capbarat and Coddington opened the inning with singles and advanced on Ayala's bunt.
The next hitter, Steve Tinoco, found himself in an 0-2 hole but ripped the next pitch to deep left for a sacrifice fly. Ryan Bernsen sat on a Powell breaking ball and singled to score Coddington, making it 4-0 and ending the Spokane starter's evening.
Moses Lake had nine hits for the game. Boruff was pleased with his team's mindset against Powell, a WCCBL veteran.
"We hit the ball hard off a good pitcher," he said. "I think our approach against him today, we were a lot more relaxed and we weren't trying so hard."
Tonight's series finale takes place at Gonzaga University's Patterson Baseball Complex, not Avista Stadium as previously announced. Boruff said he's looking forward to seeing the sparkling new facility that opened this spring.
"Everybody's talking about it," he said. "I hope we can check the field out early and get that out of the way."
Pirates owner Brett Kirwan said the team is still looking for more host families. Anyone interested can call the Pirates at 509-762-8200.
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