BOISE, Idaho – The Boise Hawks pulled off the unimaginable Monday night when they scored the winning run in their final at-bat, defeating the Everett AquaSox 6-5 in a Northwest League game.
It was the fourth time in five days the Hawks have come from behind to defeat the AquaSox.
Sox reliever Aaron Trolia was again the victim when he threw a wild pitch while facing Boise’s Tony Richie with the bases-loaded and one out in the bottom of the ninth inning. Luiz Montanez scored from third to end the game.
Trolia gave up a walk-off home run on Sunday and hit Ryan Norwood Thursday to force in the winning-run in the bottom of the 16th inning.
It was a wild and crazy series that Everett likely hopes to forget. The AquaSox held leads in every game, holding only one for a 7-5 victory on Saturday.
Everett’s pitchers made Boise’s .200 hitters look like all-stars and Boise made Everett’s ace, Shawn Nottingham, look fallible. Nottingham allowed four runs in 6 1/3 innings, striking out three.
Hawks shortstop Jose Rios who got the best of Nottingham. Rios entered the game batting .209, hit a leadoff homer in the third, his first of the season.
In the sixth Rios singled home a run to cut the Sox’s lead to 5-4.
Rios finished 2-for-4 with two RBI. He batted 7-for-16 in the series.
Trailing 3-2 in the fifth, Everett sent nine batters to the plate. Left fielder Trevor Heid doubled to lead off the inning. Casey Craig followed with a walk and Oswaldo Navarro bunted them over a base.
Brandon Green followed with his second hit of the night, a two-run single that drove in Heid and Craig. Just like that, the AquaSox were up 4-3.
They tacked on an extra run later in the inning when Brent Johnson hit a sacrifice fly that scored Green.
Green finished 2-for-4 with two RBI and two runs scored.
Nottingham, meanwhile, didn’t seem to get into his usual rhythm. He allowed consecutive singles to Ryan Harvey, Kyle Boyer and Norwood leading off the fourth.
Richie followed with a sacrifice fly that scored Harvey. Nottingham struck out Rios, but the pitch deflected off catcher Omar Falcon’s glove and scored Boyer.
Mumba Rivera (2-4) relieved Nottingham in the seventh and gave up a run in the eighth when pinch hitter David Gresky singled to center scoring Richie.
Rivera started the ninth by walking Luiz Montanez. Montanez advanced to second when Harvey hit a sharp liner that third baseman Johnson couldn’t come up with.
After Boyer bounced out, Rivera hit Norwood with a pitch to load the bases.
AquaSox manager Pedro Grifol decided to go with Aaron Trolia.
Trolia, hoping to redeem himself, threw his fourth pitch to Richie in the dirt and it rolled to the backstop to score Montanez.
Everett gets a much needed two-day break starting today. The Northwest League celebrates its 50th birthday with an All-Star game in Spokane. Six AquaSox will make the trip to Spokane.
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