Running observations from the annual Everett Cup

Published 1:30 am Wednesday, June 12, 2019

EVERETT — The Everett AquaSox kicked off their season with the Everett Cup, an exhibition game against the Everett Merchants, a semi-professional team that plays in the Pacific International League. The Merchants won, 2-0, in eight innings — due to the AquaSox running out of available pitchers — to claim their first Everett Cup since 2010.

From the AquaSox perspective, here were some quick running observations:

— There was a decent applause for local product Trent Tingelstad when the Marysville native was announced as the next batter in the first inning. He flew out to right-center in his first at-bat.

— Fourteenth-round draft pick Patrick Frick out of Wake Forest appears to be a slick-fielding shortstop. Frick dove to his right on a hard-hit groundball and flung a throw on a rope to first baseman Cash Gladfelter to obtain an out in the third inning.

— Miguel Perez isn’t on any prospect lists, but the speedy center fielder appears to be an interesting player at first glance. The 18-year-old first caught my eye during batting practice of the team’s first workout on Wednesday, running after every fly ball and attempting to catch almost every one like it was the last out of the World Series. Hitting leadoff for the AquaSox on Wednesday, Perez flashed some speed by cruising from first-to-third on a two-out single. He also flicked a single to center field in the fifth.

— The AquaSox deployed nine pitchers on Wednesday in a calculated plan, and the one that caught my eye the most was Reid Morgan, a 13th-round pick from South Carolina. His fastball topped out at about 91 mph, but his windup featured plenty of deception, was quick to the plate and his low-80s slider featured plenty of bite. He pitched a clean eighth for the AquaSox.

— Some of the Merchants’ pitchers were throwing offspeed pitches in the 60 mph range, and many of the Everett players had a hard time waiting back on that slow of a speed. My guess is many AquaSox players haven’t faced that slow of pitching in quite some time.

— The Everett Merchants won their first Everett Cup since 2010, the same year the AquaSox won their last Northwest League title. The AquaSox hope that’s more of a good omen than a coincidence.