Victor Juarez shows promise in first High-A start, Spokane Indians edged by Eugene 7-6

Victor Juárez, the Spokane Indians’ starting pitcher on Friday, had a tough introduction to High-A, allowing three runs to his first six batters. He settled down, though, and kept his team in the game.

The Indians made it close, but never took the lead, and fell to the Eugene Emeralds 7-6 in a Northwest League baseball game at Avista Stadium. The six-game series is tied at 2-all.

Juárez signed with the Colorado Rockies as an international free agent in 2019. In 2021, he played for the Rockies’ Dominican Summer League team and their Arizona Complex League team.

After some success, Juárez was assigned to Low-A Fresno last season, where he went 6-5 with a 4.98 ERA and 1.311 WHIP with 100 strikeouts and 33 walks over 103 innings in 21 starts.

But here’s the thing: Juárez is just 19 years old. The native of Monterrey, Mexico, who starred for the Mexico entry in the 2016 Little League World Series, won’t turn 20 until June 19.

“He’s just a kid,” Indians pitching coach Ryan Kibler said. “But he’s probably got the best feel for pitching that we’ve got on the staff.”

“I don’t feel any more pressure for my age,” Juarez said through a translator. “I feel the same thing as the other guys. My competition is when I’m on the mound.”

In his first start of the season, Juárez went 3⅔ innings and allowed three runs on four hits and three walks. He struck out six, hit a batter and allowed one home run.

“At the start I felt a lot of emotion,” Juarez said. “But then I was able to make an adjustment.”

Juárez got off to a rough start. He walked the leadoff batter, Grant McCray, and McCray stole second without a pitch when Juárez apparently lost concentration.

Juárez came back to get two outs but made a mistake to cleanup hitter Logan Wyatt, who crushed a fastball over the caboose in right field and into the parking lot.

Kibler went out to talk to the teenager. 

“I told him to go one pitch at a time. I told him to breathe – just tried to get him to slow down.”

Luis Toribio walked and scored from first on a single to center that a diving Braiden Ward couldn’t hold.

The teenager bounced back in a big way in the second, getting a foul pop to the catcher and a pair of strikeouts – one on a fastball and the other on a breaking ball.

“First inning, maybe a little nervous, trying to do a little too much,” Kibler said of Juarez. “They got to him early, hit a mistake, and he got moving a little fast – age might have came into play a little bit right there.”

The Indians (2-2) got on the board in the third. With one down, Nic Kent singled, stole second and went to third on a throwing error by the catcher. Ward’s perfect bunt single scored Kent.

Ward took off on the next pitch and Benny Montgomery singled through the hole. Manager Robinson Cancel at third base waived Ward home and he beat the throw easily to make it 3-2.

Juárez retired nine in row, but he ran out of gas with two down in the second. A single, walk and hit by pitch loaded the bases and ended his evening after 80 pitches, 47 for strikes.

“Maybe hit the wall a little bit,” Kibler said. “That 19-year-old has a real feel for pitching. He knows what he wants to do. He’s got some confidence. He competes. He was on fire out there tonight.”

Luis Amorosa entered the jam and struck out Aeverson Arteaga to leave the bases loaded.

The Emeralds (3-3) extended their lead to 5-2 in the sixth on a sacrifice fly and Arteaga’s RBI single.

Sterlin Thompson’s two-run homer in the bottom half, his first of the season, made it a one-run game again. The Indians tied it when Yanquiel Fernandez scored on a wild pitch with two down.

“It felt great,” Thompson said. “Once I saw it up, I knew it was a home run. It’s good to get the first one of the year.”

Thompson is hitting .533 through four games.

“I’m trying to just make hard contact every time, stick with my approach and be hit to all fields and just be the hitter that I am and the home runs will come.”

Jimmy Glowenke led off the Emeralds’ eighth with a single, went to third on Jean Perez’s error at second and scored on Jared Dupere’s single. Toribio singled into the right-field corner to drive in another run, but he was thrown out trying to stretch it into a double.

The Indians answered in the bottom half. With two down, Fernandez doubled and Braxton Fulford walked. Zach Kokoska singled to center to score Fernandez, but Jordan Beck fouled out .

Eugene starter Carson Ragsdale, in his second start attempting to return from thoracic outlet surgery, went 4⅔ innings and allowed two runs on four hits with seven strikeouts and no walks.