AquaSox weekly update: Sox stay hot; 4 more players promoted

The Everett AquaSox entered this past week’s series having just lost three of their top players.

In the span of less than a week, standout pitcher Matt Brash and sluggers Zach DeLoach and Austin Shenton had each been promoted from the AquaSox to Double-A Arkansas.

No problem.

The Sox kept on rolling.

High-A West-leading Everett won five of six games against the Vancouver Canadians in this past week’s series, which was played in Hillsboro, Oregon, due to the U.S.-Canada border being closed to nonessential travel.

The AquaSox outscored the Canadians by a 44-20 margin in the series, with their only loss coming in a 7-6 extra-inning defeat on Saturday.

Everett (47-23) has won won 23 of its last 30 games. During that stretch, the AquaSox are 10-2 against Vancouver (33-39).

Also, it was announced Monday that four more Everett players have been promoted to Double-A Arkansas.

Here’s a look at both the AquaSox’s standouts from the past week and the four players who are moving up to Double-A:

HITTING STANDOUTS

Everett averaged 7.3 runs per game during the series, highlighted by a 10-1 rout Sunday. Here are a few AquaSox batters who had notable weeks at the plate:

Jake Anchia: The 24-year-old catcher was named the High-A West’s player of the week after going 6-for-16 with two home runs, three doubles and eight RBIs in the series. He drove in six runs in the first two innings of Friday’s game, with a grand slam in the first inning and a two-run double in the second. The 2018 seventh-round MLB draft pick, who has bounced between Everett and Double-A Arkansas this year, has batted .236 with six homers and seven doubles in 28 games with the AquaSox.

Jack Larsen: The 26-year-old outfielder, who was promoted to Double-A Arkansas on Monday, went 7-for-21 with two home runs, two doubles and six RBIs in the series. Both of his homers came in last Thursday’s game. He is batting .308 this season, with eight homers, two triples and 25 doubles. He ranks third in the six-team High-A West in batting average, second in on-base percentage (.425) and fourth in slugging percentage (.532).

Victor Labrada: In his first series with Everett since being promoted from Low-A Modesto, the 21-year-old outfielder from Cuba went 6-for-20 with a triple.

PITCHING STANDOUTS

AquaSox pitchers combined for an impressive 2.38 earned-run average in the series, allowing just 15 earned runs over the six games. Here are a few Everett pitchers who stood out:

Taylor Dollard: The 2020 fifth-round MLB draft pick bounced back from a rough outing the previous week with a strong showing on Sunday. Dollard pitched 6 1/3 innings in the series finale, allowing just one run and four hits. He struck out six batters and walked one. Dollard, ranked by MLB.com as the No. 30 prospect in Seattle Mariners’ organization, has a 5.34 ERA in five starts with the AquaSox since being promoted from Low-A Modesto.

Stephen Kolek: Acquired from the Los Angeles Dodgers’ organization in late April, Kolek was another Everett pitcher who rebounded from a subpar outing the previous week. The 2018 11th-round MLB draft pick allowed one run and four hits in five innings last Wednesday, while recording seven strikeouts and one walk. He has a 3.13 ERA in 31 2/3 innings with the AquaSox this season, along with 37 strikeouts and 10 walks.

Levi Stoudt: The 2019 third-round MLB draft pick allowed one run and two hits in five innings last Thursday, while posting three strikeouts and one walk. For the season, the Mariners’ No. 12-ranked prospect has a 3.09 ERA in 58 1/3 innings, with 61 strikeouts and 29 walks.

Igor Januario: The 23-year-old reliever from Brazil tossed 3 2/3 scoreless innings of no-hit ball over two appearances in the series. He struck out six batters and walked two. He has a 5.49 ERA in 19 2/3 innings this season.

4 MORE AQUASOX PROMOTED

Four Everett players — outfielder Jack Larsen, shortstop Patrick Frick and relievers David Ellingson and Dayeison Arias — have been promoted to Double-A Arkansas, according to a tweet Monday from the Mariners’ player development Twitter account.

For all four players, it will be their first trip to the Double-A level.

With this latest flurry of moves, a total of seven AquaSox players have been called up to Double-A over the last two weeks.

Jack Larsen: The 26-year-old outfielder ranks in the top five of the High-A West in batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage (his stats are included earlier in this article). He was named the High-A West’s player of the month for May and has continued his success at the plate over the last two months.

Patrick Frick: The 24-year-old shortstop is batting .310 with seven home runs, one triple and 19 doubles. Frick, a 2019 14th-round MLB draft pick, ranks second in the High-A West in batting average, first in on-base percentage (.433) and eighth in slugging percentage (.493).

David Ellingson: The 2016 34th-round MLB draft pick has a 1.21 ERA in 29 2/3 innings pitched, over the course of 20 relief appearances this season. He has posted 36 strikeouts and just five walks.

Dayeison Arias: After struggling a bit earlier in the season, the 24-year-old Dominican Republic native has been dominant over the last month or so. Over his last nine appearances, Arias has a 1.10 ERA in 16 1/3 innings pitched, along with 27 strikeouts and just two walks. During that span, he has posted a whopping 45.8% strikeout rate, a .107 opponents’ batting average and 0.49 WHIP (walks plus hits per innings pitched). For the season, Arias has a 2.63 ERA in 24 innings, with 36 strikeouts and eight walks.

STANDINGS UPDATE

The AquaSox widened their lead atop the High-A West to 6.5 games over second-place Eugene. Spokane and Vancouver are tied for third place, with both teams trailing Everett by 15 games.

UP NEXT

The AquaSox return to Funko Field to host second-place Eugene in a seven-game series that runs Tuesday through Sunday. The teams are slated to play a doubleheader on Wednesday to make up a postponement from June 13.