The Emeralds soaked in the 100-degree Eugene heat with a 4-3 win against the Vancouver Canadians on Saturday. It was a close one, as Conner Nurse turned in a solid start and a throwing error in the eighth put the Emeralds on top. Carter Aldrete drove in three of the four Eugene runs. With the win, the first-place Emeralds snap a two-game skid and take a 3-2 series lead over the Canadians.
Before the game, Giants No. 28 prospect Ricardo Genoves was promoted to Eugene from Low-A San Jose. Genoves, however, was not in the starting lineup. Nor was first-round catcher Patrick Bailey, who has now missed two games in a row after missing all of last week due to back stiffness.
Both team’s bats came out swinging early, as the entire first inning lasted just seven minutes and 16 pitches.
Nurse, who’s been better recently after a rough start, utilized his 82 mph forkball to quickly mow through the first six batters on 23 pitches.
The second inning was a different story for the Emeralds’ offense than their seven-pitch first, as the first three batters walked to load the bases. Aldrete, who’s struggled this year, lined a single to give the Emeralds an early 2-0 lead.
Nurse was not as effective in the third, giving up a walk and two hits that cut the Emeralds’ lead in half. The Canadians’ offense has been pesky all series. Nurse stranded the bases loaded though, avoiding any further damage.
Nurse bounced back in the fourth, throwing a perfect, 10-pitch inning with two strikeouts.
Heath Quinn and Aldrete hit back-to-back two-out doubles in the fourth, extending the Emeralds’ lead to 3-1. Aldrete had all three RBIs.
The first batter in the fifth reached on a two-base throwing error by Jacob Gonzalez, who was playing third base with Sean Roby getting the night off. Roby, on the other hand, has been impressive in the field. A single then got the Canadians back within a run, 3-2.
Gonzalez made another throwing error in the sixth inning, but the runner was caught stealing by third-string catcher Robert Emery. Nurse, generally not a strikeout pitcher, struck out six in the first six innings while only allowing one earned run.
Nurse came back out for the seventh, but was pulled after allowing a one-out single. John Russell replaced him and got the first batter to fly out, but then allowed a two-out RBI double to tie the game at three apiece.
After Russell allowed a double and hit a batter in the eighth, Chris Wright came in for his first appearance since Tuesday’s wild play where the Vancouver runner missed third base and saved Wright from a blown save. He came in clutch, retiring two batters to keep the game tied.
Will Wilson led off the bottom of the eighth with a double, breaking an 0-for-11 stretch. He advanced to third on a wild pitch.
With one out and the infield in, Armani Smith hit a ground ball to the first baseman and Wilson made a break for home. The first baseman appeared to have plenty of time to throw Wilson out, but his throw went wild, allowing the go-ahead run to score for the Emeralds.
Wright walked a batter but shut the door in the ninth, securing the 4-3 victory.
The Emeralds (29-17) take a 3-2 series lead and hold their lead over the Everett AquaSox for first place in the High-A West. They’ll look to win the series against the Canadians on Sunday, with the game being moved up to 1:05 p.m. due to extreme heat warnings.
