The Bellingham Bells have won eight of their last 10 games heading into the final three-game series of the regular season. Bellingham won a pair of home games versus the Wenatchee AppleSox Aug. 1–3 at Joe Martin Stadium, falling one game short of a second-consecutive sweep.
Game three loss cost the Bells (13-10 second half, 33-17 overall) their seven-game win streak, causing them to fall out of contention for the West Coast League North Division second-half championship. Their first-half title, however, has already secured them a playoff berth.
Bellingham’s pitchers were key to the season’s second-half recovery, and right-hander Ryan Beitel has the second-highest ERA among WCL pitchers who have pitched at least 38 innings this season (1.64).
Wenatchee (17-7, 36-15) leads the overall and second-half standings in the North Division, but Bellingham won the regular-season series 4-2. The Bells will conclude the regular season with a road series at the Port Angeles Lefties (4-20, 12-39) on Aug. 4–6 at Civic Field in Port Angeles.
Here’s what happened in the Bells’ series with Wenatchee.
Bells’ 12-hit, 12-run day propels rout of AppleSox in game 1
Bellingham Bells’ Ty Saunders makes the throw to first base to complete a double play. (Andy Bronson/Cascadia Daily News)
Bellingham drove in a season-high 12 runs while shutting down Wenatchee’s offense in a 12-1 win over the AppleSox on Tuesday, Aug. 1.
The Bells’ 12 hits were dispersed across just seven batters, as four Bellingham players finished the game with at least two hits. Right fielder Andrew Valdez led the charge, going 3-for-4 batting with two runs scored and an RBI.
Wenatchee, which was held to just four hits, fell behind 2-0 after two innings and saw that deficit triple after the Bells added two scores in each of the fourth and fifth innings. A four-hit inning in the bottom of the sixth led to another run for Bellingham, pushing its lead to 7-0.
Shortstop Ty Saunders sparked the Bells’ best play of the night when he doubled to left-center field in the bottom of the eighth, driving in first baseman Daryl Ruiz, third baseman Riley Parker and catcher Colton Bower.
Saunders, who finished 2-for-4 batting with a run scored and three RBIs, helped spur what became a five-run inning for Bellingham in the eighth. The AppleSox added their only run of the game in the top of the ninth to avoid the shutout.
Left-hander Daniel Paret threw four innings for the Bells, allowing two hits and no runs or walks while striking out three. Bower finished the game 2 for 3 at the plate with two runs scored and an RBI.
6 Bells pitchers contribute to game 2 win
Bellingham Bells’ Daryl Ruiz hits a two-run homer in the bottom of the sixth inning to propel the Bells past Wenatchee. (Andy Bronson/Cascadia Daily News)
On the heels of the game one rout, the Bells came one step closer to their second-straight sweep after a 3-2 win over Wenatchee on Wednesday, Aug. 2.
Bellingham deployed six different pitchers in the game, and five of them pitched just one inning. Right-handers Isaac Yeager, Evan Otte, Eli Knowlton, Caleb Kassie, Marques Brown and left-hander Will Anderson all saw action, with Yeager pitching four innings and allowing three hits, one earned run and a walk while striking out three.
Wenatchee outhit the Bells 7-6, but a two-run home run by Ruiz in the bottom of the sixth inning — his first of the season — was the difference in the game. Before that, the AppleSox had controlled a 2-1 lead since the top of the fifth.
West finished the game 2-for-3 batting with a run scored, while Ruiz went 1 for 4 with a run scored and two RBIs.
Wenatchee takes game 3, avoids sweep
The AppleSox scored three unanswered runs over the game’s latter eight innings to beat the Bells, 3-1, on Thursday, Aug. 3.
Bellingham’s only scoring play in the game came in the bottom of the first inning on a single by Ruiz that scored first baseman Coleman Schmidt. The Bells’ slim lead didn’t last long, as Wenatchee tied the game 1-1 in the top of the second and shut out Bellingham the remainder of the game, scoring additional runs in the fifth and ninth innings.
AppleSox right-hander Jadon Williamson earned the win, pitching 5.2 innings while surrendering just two hits and no runs or walks while striking out seven. Wenatchee outhit the Bells 8-6 in the game but left a staggering 13 runners on base.
Right-hander Hunter Long and left-hander Sheldon Egger combined to throw 7.2 innings for the Bells, allowing eight hits, two earned runs and five walks while retiring eight batters.
