Spokane Indians lose seventh in a row; Mariners prospect Cole Emerson shines in 5-1 Everett win

The Spokane Indians were eliminated from the first-half title chase last week during a six-game losing streak on the road against first-place Vancouver.

With three games remaining in the Northwest League first half entering play on Tuesday, the Indians were relegated to playing for pride, and perhaps playing spoiler to the Everett AquaSox, who started the week one game behind the Canadians.

The spoiler role didn’t fit so well on Tuesday.

Seattle Mariners top prospect Cole Emerson went 3 for 5 with a home run, two doubles and three RBIs and the AquaSox beat the Indians 5-1 in the opener of a six-game High-A Northwest League series at Avista Stadium

Everett (35-29) moved one-half game behind Vancouver pending the Canadians’ late result. The fifth-place Indians fell to 29-35, 6½ games out.

“We just gotta keep fighting. Keep fighting,” Indians manager Robinson Cancel said. “You know, we’re going through a rough stretch right now, and it’s part of the game. We just need to come back tomorrow and play hard.”

Spokane has scored two runs or fewer in five of its past seven games. The Indians managed just six hits and drew one walk against four Everett pitchers.

“It seems like everything’s not going our direction,” Cancel said. “You know, when we were in Vancouver, our pitching was a little off. We threw a lot of walks and that led to them scoring a lot of runs, and it was hard for us to play comeback from those deficits. But we’re gonna come back tomorrow and do our practice, do our thing that we need to do, get ready for the game, and hopefully, we come out of this.”

It was scoreless until the top of the third. Everett catcher Josh Caron reached on an infield single. With two down, Emerson lined one the opposite way off the left-field foul pole for a two-run home run, his sixth of the season, off Indians starting pitcher Michael Prosecky.

The damage could have been worse, but center fielder Caleb Hobson made a diving catch on Lazaro Montes’ sinking line drive to end the inning.

AquaSox starting pitcher Marcelo Perez (4-2) kept the Indians hitless until two down in the fourth, when Aidan Longwell crushed a 1-0 pitch halfway up the batter’s eye in straight center field for his ninth homer of the season.

Braylen Wimmer doubled and Cole Messina walked, prompting pitching coach Matt Carasiti to visit the mound. Perez battled back to get Andy Perez to pop out to end the inning.

Everett added a run in the sixth without the benefit of a base hit. Luis Suisbel led off with a walk, stole second, went to third on a deep fly out to right and scored on a fly out to foul territory in deep left.

Suisbel added to the lead in the eighth with a solo home run, his 10th of the season, off reliever Stu Flesland (Mt. Spokane High).

Emerson beat the throw for an RBI double in the eighth to cap his big night.

Prosecky (5-5) went six innings and allowed three runs on five hits.

He struck out six and walked one. He threw 95 pitches, 58 for strikes.

“(Prosecky) gave us a shot,” Cancel said. “Six innings, three runs, a quality start. We just didn’t hit today.”