Bears Shutout 2-0 In Spokane

The Yakima Bears were shutout 2-0 by the Spokane Indians at Avista Stadium in Spokane Wednesday night. The loss marked the second time the Bears have been shutout this season.

The Bears offense struggled all night. In his first game with the team, Wagner Mateo went 2-for-3 with a double. Mateo’s effort accounted for two of the Bears six hits and his walk was half of what the team had as a whole.  However, Mateo was thrown out on the base paths twice.

Bears starter Daniel Watts had his worst outing, but it was still a hard-luck loss. Watts allowed two runs, only one of which was earned, over four innings. The lefty became the first starting pitcher to be saddled with a loss this season. The bullpen was good behind Watts, with Enrique Burgos cruising through three scoreless innings and Victor Acosta keeping the Indians off the scoreboard for two innings.

The Indians runs came in the second and third innings. In the second, the lead-off batter reached on an error and came in to score on a sacrifice fly after the bases were loaded. A solo home run an inning later was the only other score on the night.

The Bears lead for first place in the Northwest League’s East Division is now two games, as Tri-City closed the gap a bit with a win at Boise. The Bears will try to even the series against the Indians at Avista Stadium Thursday. Game time is scheduled for 6:35. Right-handed pitcher Blake Perry is expected to start for the Bears in his first appearance since throwing a complete game at Yakima County Stadium. Right-handed pitcher Eric Brooks is the probable starter for the Indians.