Carraway rolling
The way the Everett AquaSox bats were pounding the ball Monday morning, the team didn’t need another stellar performance from starting pitcher Andrew Carraway.
But they got it anyway.
Carraway had a no-hitter going into the fifth inning of Monday’s 11-4 win over Tri-City, eventually running his season record to 4-0. While the Devils eventually got to Carraway with home runs in the fifth and sixth, the damage came well after Monday’s outcome had been determined.
In 10 games this season, including three starts, Carraway has allowed just seven runs off 15 hits and has a team-low 1.44 ERA.
Carraway said his key to success has been continuity. The University of Virginia product pitched in the College World Series, then had only about a week before the AquaSox’ season began.
While he started the season in the bullpen to help rest his arm, Carraway has certainly made the most of his opportunity as a starter.
“At every level I’ve been at, it’s the same thing: it’s about throwing strikes,” he said. “If you can get a guy at 0-2 or 1-2, that makes everything easier.”
Carraway, whom the Seattle Mariners selected out in the 12th round of the April draft, was effective early in Monday’s game. He retired the first seven batters he faced. By the time the Devils got their first hit in the fifth inning, Everett already had an 11-0 lead, and Carraway had fanned five batters.
Carraway went six innings, allowing one earned off three hits. He allowed four runs overall, giving up a two-run homer to Tri-City’s Tim Wheeler in the fifth and a solo shot to Bo Bowman in the sixth.
“He’s a solid starter,” Everett manager John Tamargo said. “If it wasn’t so early in the season, we probably would have used him in the seventh (inning). It was a great outing. He made two bad pitches, and that’s it.”
Bats on shoulders
The AquaSox showed again Monday that they have plenty of offensive firepower. But on this day, the team’s biggest asset may have been patience.
Everett’s first three batters of the game drew walks, helping set the table for a five-run inning. Tamargo was excited to see his team show so much patience.
“Their starter (Brad McAtee) was a little out of whack, and it was good to see” he said. “A lot of those pitches, we’ve been swinging at pitches like that as of late. It was nice to see them hold off.”
On the road again
After the worst homestand of the season — Everett went 2-3 in a five-game series against Tri-City — the AquaSox will head to Yakima for five games this week.
The next home game is Aug. 3, against Boise.
Scott M. Johnson, Herald Writer
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