Spokane Indians Comeback Falls Short in 5-2 Loss to Hillsboro Hops

The Spokane Indians saw their comeback effort stall Sunday afternoon in Hillsboro, Oregon, falling to the Hops 5-2 in the closing game of a six-game road series at Hillsboro Hops Ballpark.

Both starting pitchers kept the opposition off the board through the first three innings, trading zeroes in a tight opening battle. Spokane finally broke through in the fourth, loading the bases through a Kevin Fitzer single, a Tommy Hopfe walk, and a hit-by-pitch on Kelvin Hidalgo. With two outs, Mate Savino entered from the Hillsboro bullpen and walked Jacob Hinderleider to force in the opening run and give the Indians a 1-0 advantage.

The Hops answered decisively in the fifth. Everett Catlett ran into trouble, allowing a walk to Ruben Santana and a two-out single from Slade Caldwell that put runners at the corners. Avery Owusu-Asiedu followed with a triple that cleared both base runners, and he came home immediately on a single by Brady Counsell, suddenly flipping the score to 3-1.

Catlett was pulled after the inning, having allowed three runs on five hits and two walks while striking out four. He threw 82 pitches, 51 for strikes.

Hillsboro tacked on two more runs in the seventh against reliever Hunter Mann. Adrian Rodriguez and Caldwell drew walks to put two aboard, and with two outs, Yassel Soler delivered a single to center field that brought both runners home, stretching the lead to 5-1.

Spokane refused to go quietly. In the eighth, Hopfe worked a leadoff walk and Kelvin Hidalgo followed with a single. Alan Espinal grounded a single to right that plated Hopfe, but Hinderleider hit a sharp ground ball that was snared by second baseman Wallace Clark for the third out, leaving runners stranded.

The Indians pushed two more batters on in the ninth, with Max Belyeu and Robert Calaz drawing walks, but Hillsboro brought in lefty Rocco Reid, who struck out Kevin Fitzer and then Hopfe swinging to seal the 5-2 victory.

Spokane slips to 4-5 on the young season with the loss. The club returns home to host a six-game set against Vancouver beginning Tuesday morning at 11:05 a.m.