AquaSox rally for 8-6 win over Spokane

Published 10:56 pm Friday, July 24, 2015

EVERETT — The Everett AquaSox gave themselves a little working margin in the race for a first-half title, mounting a late rally to beat the Spokane Indians 8-6 Friday night at Everett Memorial Stadium.

Everett trailed 6-2 heading into the bottom of the seventh inning, but the Sox broke out for six runs in the inning to turn defeat into victory. Conner Hale’s three-run double was the decisive blow.

The Sox now lead Tri-City by 1 1/2 games at the top of the Northwest League’s North Division standings. Tri-City’s game at Vancouver on Friday was rained out. Just two days remain in the first half of the season.

Drew Jackson continued his onslaught on Northwest League pitching, going 3-for-4 with a homer and three runs. Jackson’s homer was the first of his professional career, and he is now 14-for-21 over his past five outings.

Logan Taylor and Arturo Nieto each added two hits for Everett (22-14), which goes for a three-game sweep over Spokane on Saturday. Lance Thonvold earned the win in relief with two dominating innings in which he struck out four. Matt Clancy earned the save with a perfect ninth.

Misiewicz deals

Anthony Misiewicz was dealing Thursday night.

The Sox starting pitcher turned in one of the best starts of the season when he tossed four no-hit innings in Everett’s 8-1 victory over Spokane. The left-hander, who was the Seattle Mariners’ 18th-round pick in this year’s amateur draft out of Michigan State University, allowed just one baserunner on a walk, and he struck out seven — all coming in the first 10 batters he faced. That was a dramatic increase in strikeout rate as his previous best with the Sox was four punchouts in a four-inning stint on July 13 at Boise.

“It was my fastball, the movement on my fastball, working in and out, and just establishing the fastball, which hitters don’t like most of the time,” Misiewicz said about why he was so effective. “So I just kept pounding it in, then working away from them. They couldn’t touch the fastball. It was mostly my fastball, not even really my off speed, but just commanding my fastball in both zones of the plate.

“I really didn’t know I had seven strikeouts until I got one of the last ones and somebody said something in the stands,” added Misiewicz, who called it his best outing as a pro. “I was pumped up and it was a good game.”