Bears Start Homestand With 5-3 Loss

The Yakima Bears lost 5-3 to the Everett AquaSox Thursday night at Yakima County Stadium. The Bears are now 20-14 this season and will continue the five-game series Friday.

The Bears got the scoring started in the second inning when the bases were loaded with no outs and two runs scored as a result of a Josh Parr sacrifice fly and wild pitch. Two unearned runs tied the game in the third inning and another unearned run in the fourth inning put the AquaSox on top 3-2. The Bears loaded the bases in the bottom of the fourth and tied the game thanks to a Parr walk. The AquaSox scored the go-ahead runs in the seventh inning off of reliever Blake Forslund.

Forlsund took the loss for the second-straight appearance, as he allowed the pair of earned runs in one inning of work. Chris Thomas tossed one shutout inning and Enrique Burgos was dominant in two scoreless innings to finish the game. Bears starting pitcher Daniel Watts gave up three unearned runs on eight hits and two walks in five innings.

The Bears were outhit 12-9, with all of Yakima’s hits being singles for the second-straight night. Shaun Cooper went 2-for-4 and Joe Loftus went 2-for-3 with a walk and two runs scored. Parr finished 1-for-2 with a walk and two RBIs. Kevin Medrano extended his hitting streak to 13-straight games with a third inning single.

Game two of the series is scheduled for 7:05 Friday at Yakima County Stadium. Left-handed pitcher Cody Wheeler is the probable starter for the Bears, while right-handed pitcher Dylan Unsworth is expected to go for the AquaSox.