Everett’s Mike Salvatore hits grand slam, Spokane Indians lose to AquaSox 7-3

EVERETT – It started out like a dream. It quickly turned into a nightmare. 

Mike Salvatore hit a grand slam in a six-run first inning and the Everett AquaSox beat the Spokane Indians 7-3 in the third of a six-game High-A Northwest League series at Funko Field on Thursday. 

Benny Montgomery staked the Indians to a 1-0 lead, leading the game off with a solo homer, his eighth of the season. 

It immediately turned for the worse.

Indians starting pitcher Jaden Hill walked Cole Young on five pitches, then hit Henry Ford. He called for the trainer and left the game after just nine pitches.

The team indicated during the game Hill (0-9, 9.48) suffered from lower back tightness. The 23-year-old right-hander had ligament replacement surgery in his pitching elbow 2021. 

Lefty Evan Shawver entered as the emergency replacement and found nothing but trouble. He walked Hogan Windish, then Walking Cabrera dropped a two-run single into short center field.

Ben Ramirez singled, then Salvatore launched a grand slam to left center, his third homer of the season to make to 6-1.

The Indians loaded the bases with two down in the fourth inning. Montgomery drew a walk from reliever Kelvin Nunez to force in a run, but Juan Guerrero flied out to end the rally.

Sean Bouchard, on rehab assignment from the Colorado Rockies from a torn biceps, hit a long home run in the fifth to trim the Indians deficit to 6-3. Bouchard finished 3 for 5 with a run and RBI. 

With one down and runners at second and third in the sixth, Indians reliever Brayan Castillo balked in a run.

In relief: After Shawver got out of the first inning he settled down to turn in three more scoreless innings.

All told, he allowed four runs on five hits and four walks with three strikeouts. He threw 73 pitches, 42 for strikes.

New guy: Righty Seth Halvorsen was assigned to the Indians before the game. The 23-year-old was the Rockies seventh-round pick out of the University of Tennessee in the 2023 draft. 

Halvorsen pitched a 1-2-3 fifth inning in his High-A debut.