Northwest League -- Blackmon goes for extra bases to beat Bears

PASCO -- Charles Blackmon hasn't hit a home run this season but a penchant for extra-base hits has made Tri-City's leadoff batter one of the most feared sluggers in the Northwest League.

And Blackmon introduced himself to the Yakima Bears in a big way on Saturday night.

The Georgia Tech product hit two doubles, raising his league-leading total to 17, sparked a decisive inning with a triple and drove in two runs to lead the Dust Devils to a 5-4 victory over Yakima in their first meeting of the season.

Clinging to a 2-1 lead, Tri-City broke away with three runs in the bottom of the sixth at Gesa Stadium. Ryan Peisel and James Sims opened the frame with back-to-back doubles and Blackmon followed with fifth triple of the season for a 4-1 lead.

Blackmon, who finished 3-for-5 as a designated hitter, later scored on a throwing error to stretch the margin to 5-1. That run proved crucial because the Bears chipped away with runs in the seventh, eighth and ninth and had a shot to force extra innings.

In the ninth, David Cooper walked, reached second on a ground out and scored on a two-out fielding error to draw Yakima within 5-4. Anthony Smith reached second on the error and moved to third on a wild pitch, but Tri-City's Austin Chambliss got out of the jam by getting Jimmy Principe to ground out.

Tri-City's hard-hitting offense collected 12 hits off five Yakima pitchers and six were for extra bases -- five doubles and a triple.

Yakima's Jhoan Pimentel, batting eighth in the lineup, went 3-for-4 with an RBI single in the second for a 1-0 lead. Teammate Andrew Fie was 2-for-3 with his fifth triple of the season.

Cooper, Yakima's leadoff batter and shortstop, drew four walks to boost his league-leading total to 47.

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