Opponent: Yakima Bears
When: 7:05 p.m.
Where: Yakima County Stadium
Radio: KRKO (1380 AM)
Pitchers: Everett left-hander Robert Rohrbaugh (2-1, 5.19 ERA) vs. Yakima TBD.
Martinez, Thomas swap spots
Justin Thomas may have been outstanding in his first relief appearance since being moved from the starting rotation to the bullpen, but don’t expect him to return to the rotation any time soon.
Thomas, who threw 32/3 innings of scoreless relief in earning the win Saturday in Everett’s 6-5 victory over Tri-City, is expected to remain in the bullpen to give his left arm a break.
“We put Martinez in the starting rotation instead of Thomas just for the fact that Thomas threw a lot of innings in college,” Everett pitching coach Marcos Garcia said in reference to the 841/3 innings Thomas threw for Youngstown State in the spring. “It’s not an injury or anything, it’s just to cut down on his innings. His pitch counts have been up in the 80s and I don’t want that, it’s too many. I’d rather he go two or three innings at a time. He’ll still be on the same type of program as the starters, which is throwing in the pen once between appearances.”
Roman Martinez, who replaced Thomas in the rotation, struggled in his first start, giving up five runs in 31/3 innings, but Garcia said he believes the right-hander is the best replacement.
“He was here last year and did pretty well,” Garcia said. “He throws strikes, is aggressive, has a sinker – which I like. This year he’s learned how to pitch, he’s mixing his pitches better, so he was the best candidate right now.”
Short hops: Everett first baseman Jeff Flaig went into Sunday’s game mired in a 0-for-23 slump that dropped his batting average to .273. … The AquaSox, who are in third place in the West Division, would be in first place in the East Division, where all four teams are at .500 or below.
Nick Patterson, Herald writer
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