It all seemed to start so nicely for the Eugene Emeralds. They took down the Everett AquaSox 9-3 at PK Park in Game 1 of their six-game series, coming within a half-game of first place.
But it was all downhill from there, as they lost the next five by a combined score of 51-14. They fell 5.5 games out of first place, losing their second series of the year — both of which have come against the mighty AquaSox.
The offense, which has lost some of its key pieces, struggled mightily, while the pitching was overwhelmed by a powerful Everett offense.
The offense struggled without some of its key hitters
The first big loss came on Tuesday, when Will Wilson and Diego Rincones were promoted to Double-A Richmond. They posted an .839 and .918 OPS with the club, respectively.
They took another big hit when Logan Wyatt appeared to tweak a hamstring running down the line in his first at-bat in Game 1. He would end up missing the rest of the series.
And so the hitters struggled, especially throughout that five-game skid in which they only scored 14 runs. Collectively, they put up an ugly .275 OBP for the series.
Recently promoted Brett Auerbach was one of the lone bright spots, as he put up a .316/.381/.579 batting line in five games. The catcher even tried his hand at center field in one game. Sean Roby also had a good series, going 7-for-25 with four doubles and two homers. Ismael Munguia went 7-for-21, albeit with only one extra-base hit.
Losing players due to promotion is part of the nature of Minor League Baseball, but the toll it took on the Emeralds last week is undeniable. They’ll need Wyatt and his superb on-base skills to return soon to get this offense clicking again.
The pitchers got rocked — but with lots of strikeouts
It was a brutal series for the pitchers, who got knocked around by a lethal Everett offense. They surrendered 54 runs, 22 more than the next-worst team in the High-A West last week. That amounts to a ghastly 8.83 ERA for the series.
Strangely, though, the pitching staff collected 81 strikeouts in 54 innings, good for a dominant mark of 13.5 K/9. Their season K/9 had been gradually slipping in recent weeks, but their performance this series got that number back up to 11.48. With all the runs they gave up, it’s hard to call this a success, but it’s a silver lining that shows they’re not as bad as they may have looked.
What did them in was 35 walks in those 54 innings — a common struggle for these Emeralds pitchers. They also surrendered 64 hits, 10 of which were home runs. The AquaSox offense collectively posted a .401 OBP and .529 slugging percentage against Eugene, tearing them down mercilessly.
Back on the road to face the Spokane Indians
The Emeralds will certainly be happy to see an opponent other than the AquaSox after those brutal last five games. In fact, they’ve lost just two series this year, and both of them have come to the AquaSox. They’re 2-9 against Everett and 32-16 against everyone else.
The Emeralds now find their run differential in negative territory for the first time all season at -2, while the AquaSox saw theirs skyrocket to +179. The gap between first and second place is at a season-high 5.5 games.
Still, there’s a lot of baseball left. The Emeralds will begin a road series against Spokane on Tuesday, a team that sits in fourth place in the High-A West with a 28-32 record. The Emeralds (34-25) will look to end their five-game skid and claw their way back toward the top of the division.
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July 12, 2021 at 11:24PM
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Eugene Emeralds lose five out of six to Everett AquaSox - Oregon Daily Emerald
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