Yakima ends Spokane’s five-game winning streak

YAKIMA – Henry Zabala saw to it that the Yakima Bears ended a losing streak – and did so in a timely manner. Zabala led off the sixth inning with a tiebreaking home run and added an RBI double in the eighth Thursday night to guide Yakima to a 4-2 win over Spokane in Northwest League baseball play at Yakima County Stadium. The win allowed the Bears (2-5) to snap a four-game losing streak and came on the heels of Wednesday’s 9-5 16-inning setback that took five hours and 16 innings. Spokane (5-2) had won five consecutive games. The Indians hold a one-game lead over Tri-City in the East Division. Zabala homered to left field off Francisco Mendoza (1-1), who had just replaced Will Lamb. Mendoza was still in when Jimmy Comerota doubled to right to open the eighth. Zabala followed with another double to right. Spokane scored single runs in the first and second off Teo Gutierrez (1-0). Rougned Odor led off the game with a bunt single and scored on Zachary Cone’s two-out single to right. Trever Adams doubled to left to lead off the second. He scored on Carson Vitale’s sacrifice fly to left. The Bears tied the game with Daniel Pulfer’s RBI groundout in the third and Jae Yun Kim’s RBI single to left in the fourth. Gutierrez allowed six hits and two earned runs in 71/3 innings. The teams played until just past midnight on Wednesday when Spokane, which had blown a 5-2 sixth-inning lead, scored four times in the 16th to triumph. Odor’s one-out, two-run homer snapped a 5-all tie to give the Indians a victory in their first road game of the season. Spokane’s Ruben Sierra set a league record by striking out seven times. The teams complete the series tonight before Spokane travels to Boise.