AquaSox update: J-Rod and Everett cool off in Spokane

It would probably have been an understatement to say that the Everett AquaSox were red-hot on the Spokane show last week.

They’d won eight games in a row and were fresh from a dominant six-game game against Tri-City after beating the Dust Devils by a whopping 65-16 points. These included routes of 20-3, 15-1, and 13-3 – with their 20-run explosion in the series finals marking Everett’s most runs in a single game since 2009.

But in the past week the AquaSox fell back to earth.

Everett (12-6) lost 4-2 in his series against the Spokane Indians, including losses in each of the first three games. It was the Sox’s first series loss in the young season.

Here is The Herald’s weekly AquaSox update:

BATS COOL OFF … TEMPORARY

After Everett’s bats wiped out tri-city pitching in the previous series, it suddenly went cold against Spokane. During their three games in which they lost the skid to open the series, the AquaSox made just seven runs in total.

But in the second half of the series, Everett’s lineup regained form. The AquaSox has completed 24 runs in the last three games, 11 of them at the victory on Sunday. It was the fifth time in 18 games this season that Everett had run double digits.

The AquaSox has completed a total of 125 runs this season, 25 more than the closest team in the High-A West with six teams. They also lead the league in terms of batting average (.253), base percentage (.370), batting percentage (.459), home runs (23) and extra base hits (76).

J-ROD WATCH

Julio Rodriguez, ranked number 3 in the sport by Baseball America, faced Tri-City in Spokane last week after a sensational series.

During the homestand from May 11th to 16th at Funko Field, the 20-year-old from the Dominican Republic showed why he is considered one of the most valuable young talents in baseball. He’s completed five home runs and three doubles in those six games and finished the streak 11:26, which made him a breeze as the High A West Player of the Week.

But just when it looked like he might have outgrown that level of minor leagues, Rodriguez seemed mortal for the past week.

The much acclaimed AquaSox outfielder only went 5:25 against Spokane, with no additional hits and nine hits. Rodriguez has a 25.3% strike rate this season, with 22 strike rates in 87 record appearances. This is undoubtedly an area where the Seattle Mariners are looking to improve their potential future right outfield player.

Overall, Rodriguez still has strong stats this season. He beats .303 with five home runs, one triple, five doubles, a base percentage of .391, and a slugging percentage of .592. In the High-A-West, he ranks fifth in the batting average and third in the slugging percentage.

LARSEN CONTINUES THE HOT START

Jack Larsen continued his impressive start to the season with another strong streak. The AquaSox outfielder, a 26-year-old former vacant free agent from the University of California at San Diego, went 7v23 with three home runs and two doubles games last week.

Larsen leads the High-A-West in both the batting average (.355) and the slugging percentage (.661) and is third in the base percentage (.429). He has 11 extra base hits with four home runs and seven doubles.

Larsen’s production on the plate this season is a significant increase from his last minor league season with Advanced-A Modesto in 2019, when he averaged 0.237, a base percentage of 0.335, and a slugging percentage of 0.402.

OTHER STANDOUTS

Emerson Hancock: The number 6 in last year’s draft for Major League Baseball made another fine appearance last Thursday. At his third start of the season, Hancock allowed only one inexperienced run and one hit in 4 2/3 innings while hitting four batters and leaving two. It was the longest gig of the season for Hancock, whose workload gradually increased with each start. For the season, he has an earned run average of 0.96 in 9 1/3 innings with 11 strikeouts, four walks and a batting average of 0.133 opponents.

Isaiah Campbell: The 2019 second round draft pick threw 5 2/3 innings of relief in his third appearance of the season on Sunday. He only allowed one run and two hits while posting four strikeouts and one walk. For the season, he has a 1.32 ERA in 13 2/3 innings with 15 strikeouts and only three walks. He has a whip of 0.73 (walks plus hits per innings) and a batting average of 0.149 opponents.

Brendan McGuigan: The 25-year-old former vacant free agent allowed his first run of the season last week but has yet to score in nine innings served this year. McGuigan has beaten 16 of the 29 batters and only allowed two walks.

Austin Shenton: Bellingham High School alum put on a massive performance on Sunday with a grand slam, two doubles and five RBIs. He went 9-for-25 on the series and drives a seven-game series. For the season, he beats .258 with a home run, one triple and eight doubles.

NO KIRBY

George Kirby, the Mariners’ 2019 first-round draft pick and number 78 in baseball according to MLB.com, has not promoted the AquaSox in the past week. Kirby had started the Friday games of Everett’s first two series. He was brilliant in his last start on May 14th, throwing five goalless innings of no-hit ball and withdrawing 14 of the 15 batters he faced while posting eight strikeouts and only one walk.

STANDINGS UPDATE

During the first 18 games of the 120-game season, the AquaSox are in a three-way relationship with the Eugene Emeralds and Vancouver Canadians at the top of the High-A West. The three teams are each 12-6, which is five games better than the next closest team in the six-team league.

NEXT

The AquaSox are continuing their 12-game road trip with a 6-game series against Vancouver that runs Tuesday through Sunday. The series will take place in Hillsboro, Oregon, where Vancouver plays its home games as the US-Canada border is closed to unnecessary travel.

After that, the AquaSox will return to Everett for a 12-game homestand at Funko Field starting June 1st.