South Medford grad hits two home runs as Medford tops Yakima Valley
It wasn’t much of a concern heading into the American Legion AAA Northwest Regional, but it was certainly a curiosity for Medford Mustangs coach Nate Mayben about how many of his team’s hits would carry over from the state tournament.
The Mustangs provided that answer in short order during Wednesday’s first game of the eight-team regional, using a three-run home run by Jace Miller in the bottom of the first inning to ignite a 12-hit effort in a 9- -7 over Yakima Valley Pepsi Pak.
Miller later hit a solo home run and Medford was able to hold off a strong leadoff pitch from Cody Borraggine before holding off what turned into a nail-biter in the final at Hladky Memorial Stadium in Gillette, Wyoming.
The defending Oregon state champion Mustangs advanced to play the winner of Wednesday’s final game between host Gillette and Montana’s Billings Royals. Game time for this bracket contest will be Thursday at 6:00 PM (Pacific).
“Getting that first win is nice and obviously it just puts your mind at ease and you’re not against the wall again on Day 2,” said Mayben, whose team is making its first Northwest Regional appearance in three years “You know you’ve got at least two more games to work on, so it’s a good way to start. And it was nice to get one from (Yakima Valley), they’ve gotten a few over the years.”
Just as the Mustangs (38-7) were able to storm into the state tournament undefeated, Medford used the early offense to take control of Wednesday’s game against the Washington state champions.
After Borraggine sent Yakima Valley (38-7) down in order in the top of the first, he was able to drop a perfect pitch for a single to start Medford’s offense against Pak ace Steven Johnson and Tanner Douglas then they followed with a one-out single to right-center.
That brought Miller to the plate, and Medford’s leadoff hitter didn’t disappoint with a full-length single over the fence in left-center for a quick 3-0 lead.
“Having that three-run home run, it was nice to be able to get a little breather there early and set up Borraggine,” Mayben said. “Jace was just on fire, man, for a long time. He hit the ball hard.”
Miller, who entered the regional batting .511 with 52 RBIs, also turned a 2-1 pitch from Johnson in the fifth inning for another homer down the left-field line to give his team a 7- 2. The South Medford High product and recent University of Portland signee finished 2-for-4 with two runs and four RBI.
For his part, Borraggine allowed five hits with five strikeouts and two walks in 4 ⅔ innings before exiting after 78 pitches with a 6-2 lead. The former North Medford High standout will still be available if the Mustangs make it to championship day Sunday under pitch count limitations.
“Cody was Cody,” said Mayben from the left. “He did a great job, that’s what he does when he goes out. Obviously, we wanted to start him in the first game because of his consistency, and then he just goes out and does what he does.”
A two-out double by Aiden Horsley plated Cameron Sewell in the third and Horsley later came in to score on a throwing error by Yakima Valley third baseman Derek Wolff to build a 5-0 lead.
Yakima Valley, which beat Medford to open the 2018 Northwest Regional, scored a pair of runs on a Cade Gibson single past second baseman Johnny King in right field to close the gap in the top of the fourth.
That’s when the bottom of Medford’s batting order came up big, with Frankie Rutigliano doing a nice job of staying behind before driving a ball to center field. On the next pitch, King sent another single through the hole on the left side of the infield and both runners moved into scoring position on a sacrifice bunt by Borraggine.
Later, Sewell had an RBI grounder and Medford was able to answer the Pak with a run, a standard that would prove crucial in the end. The Mustangs scored in the next half-inning after Yakima Valley produced runs in each at-bat before falling short in the bottom of the seventh.
“We just kept responding and that was huge,” Mayben said. “It was a good job of adding every inning. We had really good plate appearances from our guys and good approaches. We were wondering where our bats would be after a week off, but we picked up right where we left off.”
Yakima Valley had won 11 straight entering Wednesday’s contest, outscoring its five opponents 58-11 to claim its fourth state title since 2017 and eighth overall, and it wasn’t ready to see it end without fighting
Pak scored two more runs in the top of the sixth to make it 7-4, but Medford answered again in the bottom of the frame when Douglas singled up the middle to drive in Borraggine and Sewell with one out.
“That turned out to be huge,” Mayben said of the catchy comebacker that barely clipped relief pitcher Luke Jenkins. “You never know in these games. This is a batsman’s stadium, you can tell with the air, so you just have to keep adding because you never know.”
Yakima Valley used RBI efforts from Gibson, John Sullivan and Drew Johnson in the top of the seventh to make things a little more interesting than the Mustangs would have liked, but Sewell was able to get a ground out to Miller for escape further damage. .
Douglas finished 2-for-4 with a run and two RBI, Horsley was 2-for-3 with a run and an RBI and King 2-for-3 to pace Medford.
Drew Johnson and Goodrich each had three hits for Yakima Valley, and Gibson was 2-for-4 with three RBIs.
Sewell had to be called up in relief in the sixth inning and eclipsed the 30-pitch plateau to return the next day, so he won’t be available to pitch until Friday.
“It would have been nice to keep him under 30,” Mayben said, “but it doesn’t really mess up any pitching plans. Now he just has to take it off tomorrow and he can come back. And (relief pitcher) Beau Aldrich doesn’t he got over 30, so he can come back tomorrow. We’re still in a good place in terms of pitching going into Day 2.”
Yakima Valley Pepsi Pak0002023—7121
Medford Mustangs 302112x—9121
S. Johnson, Jenkins (6) and Chapman; Borraggine, Aldrich (5), Sewell (6) and Robbins. W — Borage (6-2). L – Johnson. 2B — YV: Goodrich; M: Horsley, Robbins, King. HR – M: Miller 2.
Do you have an idea for local history? Contact reporter Kris Henry at 541-776-4488, khenry@rosebudmedia.com, www.facebook.com/krishenryMT or www.twitter.com/Kris_Henry
Andy Atkinson / Mail Tribune Medford Mustangs third baseman Jace Miller, shown earlier this season, connected for a pair of home runs Wednesday in the American Legion AAA Northwest Regional in Wyoming.
