Kristian Robinson, Hillsboro Hops Fall Short, 6-5, to Dust Devils
Kristian Robinson and the rest of the Hops batters smacked plenty of balls around the field but came up short on the scoreboard. After losing the first two games of the series to the visiting Hillsboro Hops, the Tri Cities Dust Devils won the last two, including tonight’s game 6-5, to even the series. The game included two lead changes and three ties before the Dust Devils went ahead late and held on for the win.
Hops Threatened Late
Dust Devil Deivy Mendez took the mound for the ninth. Out of the Dominican Republic, Mendez ran into trouble with the Hops threatening to at least tie the game up. Hops Kristian Robinson led off the final inning with a single and quickly moved around the base paths. But, Robinson was thrown out at home trying to score. Not to be discouraged, Lucas Herbert also reached base but was eventually thrown out at home trying to score.

Photo: Craig Mitchelldyer-Hillsboro Hops
That was the final out of the game. Deivy Mendez (S, 1) earned the save with the help of the team defense and preserved the win for fellow bullpen mate Jake Sims (W, 1-0).
The winning run came the previous inning for the Dust Devils. In the bottom of the eighth, Reinaldo Ilarazza laid down a sacrifice bunt to score teammate Tyler Benson from third. The game that featured one triple, three doubles and 13 singles. A sacrifice bunt scored the winning run.
Most of the Scoring Done Early
In the early part of the game, scoring came in bunches. The Hops scored two in the first to take the lead and three in the fifth to tie the game. The Dust Devils also scored two in the first to tie the game and three runs in the second to take the lead. The other twelve half-innings contained zeroes and 24 strikeouts.
Ten hits spread out among eight Hops batters. One batter did not get a hit but still managed to score twice in the game. Two batters, Jesus Marriaga and Kristian Robinson led the team with two hits apiece.
Robinson, Gillette and Leyton Double-Time at the Plate

Photo: Craig Mitchelldyer-Hillsboro Hops
The Hops batters hit three more doubles to add to the team total of twelve. Currently, the Vancouver Canadians lead the league with 15 doubles. Both Kristian Robinson and Lucas Herbert continue to lead their team with batting averages of ,435 and .429 respectively.
Michel Gelabert started on the mound for the Hops and was hit early and hard for five runs in the first two innings. In contrast, Jake Polancic and Jacon Stevens followed with three innings of one hit ball. Closer Trevor McKenna (L, 0-1) allowed the go ahead run for the loss.
Standings
As a result, the loss dropped the Hillsboro Hop (4-3) into a three-way tie for first place in the Southern Division with the Eugene Emeralds and the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes. The win kept the Tri Cities Dust Devils (3-4) in a tie for second place with the Everett Aquasox but both teams gained on the Northern Division leading Spokane Indians and are now two games behind the top of their division.
Furthermore, the Dust Devils split the series with the Hillsboro Hops, (2-2). The Hops will head back to Hillsboro for the home opener with the Vancouver Canadians. Tickets are still on sale and there will be their annual season opening fireworks after the game. Also, the Canadians will travel to Eugene for another four game series.
Check out results of other games this season as well as past years.
Box Score
By
Greg Stoker
@GDStoker