A’S Take Forever To Win After Delay, Southern Oregon Turns Back Spokane Again

Marathons have been run faster.

But the long and short of Sunday’s - and Sunnight’s - Northwest League baseball game at Seafirst Stadium was essentially Southern Oregon taking advantage of its opportunities and Spokane frittering away its chances.

Southern Oregon posted an 8-5 win in a contest that was delayed at the outset by 2 hours because of rain and then took nearly 4 hours to complete. Some 2,667 spectators braved the conditions.

Not a visual beauty, this one, but the A’s will take it. The victory gave them four of five over Spokane in the series and makes a 12-hour bus ride back to Medford more tolerable. After a 1-7 start, the A’s are now 9-8.

“Our guys have battled back,” Southern Oregon manager Tony DeFrancesco said.

The A’s did so again on Sunday.

Down 4-1 after three innings, they pulled in front in the seventh on Jon Valenti’s three-run double, a bolt to center that plated three base runners who had reached via walks.

Southern Oregon added three more runs in the eighth inning as three more free passes factored into the scoring.

It all started so promisingly for the Indians. A downpour hit just before the scheduled 3:05 start time. The grounds crew exhausted its supply of drying compound, about 12 bags worth, then used cat litter to make the field playable.

When the weather cooperated - about two hours later - Spokane was ready.

The Indians scored twice in the first inning and single runs in the second and third. That was all good and fine, except they stranded 10 runners on base in the first four innings.

A key hit in any of those frames and the Indians’ lead may have been too much for the A’s. That hit never came.

The momentum seemed to shift in the fifth when Spokane lefty starting pitcher Hal Hodge was injured on a bizarre play. With runners on first and second, Southern Oregon executed a double steal. Catcher Randy Paulin’s throw to second clipped Hodge on the elbow of his pitching arm.

“I take full responsibility,” said Hodge, sporting a sizable welt on his elbow. He didn’t know the extent of the damage but he was hoping it was only a bruise.

“I thought he (Paulin) was throwing to third,” he said.

Hodge had to leave the game, and relievers Brent Kaysner and Jason Ritter served up seven walks and two hit batsmen over the next three innings.

Meanwhile, Southern Oregon’s bullpen worked eight innings and surrendered only two runs. Scott Rivette, who started his first game for the A’s, was on a 30-pitch limit. He was pulled in the second.

“That team (Southern Oregon) pounded us the last two nights (18-6 and 7-1) and then for them to come back and beat us like that was really bad for our team,” Hodge said.

Spokane had 12 hits, seven walks and two hit batsmen, but that only translated into the five runs, the last coming in the eighth inning.

James Vida extended his hitting streak to 12 games and Patrick Hallmark had three hits. Brett Schafer had a pair of RBIs with a bases-loaded walk and a sacrifice fly.

Valenti’s hit salvaged an otherwise tough game for him. He was 0 for 3 and was hit by a pitch in his other at-bat. Defensively at third base, he somehow missed a tag on William Roland, though the throw had beaten Roland by about 10 feet.

“He could have hung his head for the rest of the night, but he came back and had the key hit of the game,” DeFrancesco said.

Spokane (6-11) begins a three-game series at Everett tonight.

, DataTimes