Starter Konner Eaton roughed up in short stint, Spokane Indians lose 4th in 5 games to Vancouver 12-2
The High-A minor league regular season is long – 132 games. For players in their first full professional season, it’s a chance to figure out what “being a pro” means.
But that doesn’t mean there won’t be growing pains along the way. And it’s understandable that some may struggle with the grind from time to time.
Starting pitcher Konner Eaton – one of the Northwest League’s best this season – didn’t make it past the first inning Saturday night and the Spokane Indians lost to the Vancouver Canadians 12-2 at Avista Stadium on Saturday.
The Canadians (25-22) have taken four of the first five games against the Indians (22-25) this week. Spokane is 12 games behind first-place Eugene with 19 games to play.
Eaton has been at or near the top of the leader board in all pitching categories among qualifiers this season including starts, innings and strikeouts.
But he only made nine appearances – all out of the bullpen – in his draft year last season. In 2025, Eaton has made 23 starts and thrown 120-plus innings and he may be starting to show signs of the extended workload, already doubling his previous career-high in innings pitched for a season.
In his start against Eugene last week, Eaton allowed four runs over four innings and he gave up a season-high tying five walks three starts ago.
Eaton struggled against the Canadians from the first batter, as JR Freethy led the game off with a double. Nick Goodwin knocked him in with a single, Arjun Nimmala reached on an infield single, then both runners moved up on a wild pitch.
Eddie Micheletti’s RBI single made it 2-0, and another run scored on a fielder’s choice. Carter Cunningham walked, then Tucker Toman was hit by a pitch to load them up again.
Eaton recovered to strike out No. 9 hitter Matt Scannell with his 41st pitch of the inning.
The 22-year-old starter didn’t return for the second inning. He gave up three runs on four hits and a walk in his shortest outing of the season. Eaton has allowed three or more runs in four of his last six starts.
Reliever Alan Perdomo took the hill in the second and didn’t fare any better, allowing a grand slam to Cunningham, the 24-year-old first baseman’s 13th homer of the season.
Lefty Albert Pacheco got through the third unscathed but loaded the bases with two down in the fourth. Consecutive singles by Toman, Scannell and Freethy plated four more runs to make it 11-0.
Three Indians pitchers threw 132 pitches in the first four innings.
The series concludes Sunday at 1:05 p.m.