The Eugene Emeralds beat down on the Tri-City Dust Devils last week, winning the first five and only falling short in Sunday’s matchup.
Former Ducks Kenyon Yovan and Kyle Kasser made their returns to PK Park, while Giants top prospect Marco Luciano made his Emeralds debut. The offense put up 20 runs on Friday in a bombardment of Tri-City pitching.
Offense was hot
The Emeralds scored 50 runs in six games –– 20 of which came in their 20-2 onslaught on Friday. They led the High-A West with a .988 team OPS, while holding Tri-City to a division-low .530 OPS.
Sean Roby and Tyler Fitzgerald had monster weeks, each playing in all six games and posting an OPS north of 1.300. Fitzgerald hit for the cycle as part of a five-hit performance on Friday — and got that cycle done by the fifth inning.
Tyler Flores also hit what appeared to be the longest home run anyone’s hit at PK Park all season, blasting one beyond the shed in right field on Friday. He played in four games, going 6-for-13 with a homer and a double.
While they came up short on Sunday, there was never much doubt about their chances of winning in the first five games. The offense took control and dominated the last place Dust Devils’ pitching staff.
Marco Luciano made his High-A debut
Luciano, who’s still just 19 years old, made his much anticipated debut on Thursday. He came out swinging, hitting a two-run double in his second at-bat. He also showed his impressive power to the opposite field on Friday, hitting a homer onto the shed in right field.
He struggled after that, going 0-for-11 with nine strikeouts. His numbers in the lower levels of the minors suggest a remarkable amount of patience for such a young hitter, but he appeared more aggressive and free swinging in his first taste of High-A baseball.
Still, Giants fans got what they wished for as Luciano progresses on his path to the major leagues.
Strong pitching all week
The Emeralds held the Dust Devils to just 16 runs, only 10 of which were earned. They also struck out 74 in 54 innings, good for a 12.33 K/9. And, for once, they actually limited the walks, surrendering only 2.67 BB/9.
Yovan hit RBI doubles against the Emeralds in his homecoming on Wednesday and Thursday, but he struggled after that, striking out in his last eight at-bats. Kasser was a bit of a pest, posting a .350 OBP.
Ryan Murphy was the standout in his first two starts as an Emerald. He dominated with Low-A San Jose and picked up where he left off in the first and last game of this series. He combined to throw 10 1/3 innings –– allowing no earned runs, while giving up five hits and three walks and striking out 16. He technically allowed five runs, but they were all unearned.
Jake Dahlberg made his home debut for the Emeralds. He bounced back from a rough road outing to pitch six scoreless innings with nine strikeouts, no walks and only two hits allowed. Kai-Wei Teng also pitched five scoreless, while Conner Nurse had his best start of the season –– giving up one run in six innings, while striking out nine.
For the most part, everything seemed to click for the Emeralds last week. They closed the gap in the High-A West to just four games behind the Everett AquaSox and will now head back on the road for a series against the Hillsboro Hops.
First pitch for Game 1 against the Hops is set for 7:05 p.m. on Tuesday.
