Written by Raptors Broadcaster Patrick McColl
On June 25, the Ridgefield Raptors began a stretch of their season in which 18 of their next 25 games would be played at home. Taking a quick break from their home cooked meals, the Raptors will travel to Corvallis on Tuesday to play a two-game series against the Knights.
Ridgefield (10-13) held its own over the past week, finishing with a .500 record in its six-game home stand against the Bend Elks and the Portland Pickles. The Raptors pitched back-to-back shutouts in the middle of the week. Ridgefield did not allow the Elks to score on Thursday and held down the Pickles to win 5-0 on Friday.
Utah Valley catcher and outfielder Luke Iverson has been the Raptors hottest hitter. The Pine View High School graduate finished the home stand with nine hits, one double, three RBI and two stolen bases. Iverson leads the ‘Raps with a .316 batting average and 12 RBI.
Corvallis (19-5) played the Cowlitz Black Bears on Wednesday and Thursday, splitting the two-game set with a 2-0 loss in Game 1 and 10-3 win in Game 2. Outfielder Brandon Cabrera earned two hits and a team high three RBI in Corvallis’ win against the Black Bears.
The Knights best achievement is their seven straight championships in the West Coast League (WCL). Corvallis head coach Brooke Knight is in his 16th season with the team and leads a roster that is second in the WCL in batting average (.266) and first in ERA (2.38). Utah starter Payton Riske has been amongst the best Knights on the mound, holding a 1.77 ERA in five starts. The Las Vegas native has 13 strikeouts and only four walks this season.
Game 1 against Corvallis is scheduled to begin at 6:35 p.m. while Game 2 is set for 7:15 p.m. from Goss Stadium at Coleman Field. After the short series, the Raptors will play the Knights at home on Independence Day.
Tickets to the home game against the Knights at the RORC are available on ridgefieldraptors.com. The live stream to listen to the games in Corvallis will be available on ridgefieldraptors.com/stream. #GoRaps