Leonardo Reyes didn't have his best night at the plate Sunday, finishing 0-for-4 in five plate appearances.
But the Tri-City Dust Devils rightfielder made his final at-bat count in the 11th inning, lifting an 0-1 pitch from Daniel Vazquez just deep enough to center field to drive in Erik Wetzel from third base for a 3-2 Dust Devils' win over the Yakima Bears at Gesa Stadium.
"I was looking for something in the strike zone," said Reyes, a 20-year-old Venezuelan in his fourth year in the Colorado Rockies' system. "The pressure was on (Yakima), not on me. I just had to find a pitch and get it up in the air."
Tri-City (29-31) recorded its sixth win in its last seven games and remains in third place in the East Division, 111/2 games behind first-place Spokane (40-19). Cellar-dwelling Yakima (21-39) dropped 19 1/2 games behind the Indians.
"The guys are having fun," said Dust Devils manager Fred Ocasio. "I don't know if we can catch Spokane, but right now we're just trying to finish strong."
Reyes' game-winning RBI would not have been possible, however, without Patrick Rose, who picked on a 3-1 fastball from Bears reliever Bryan Woodall with one out in the ninth inning and drove it just over the left-field wall to tie the game at 2 and force extra innings.
"Home runs to me are accidents," Rose said. "That last at-bat I tried to go in nice and easy and see the ball in the strike zone. I happened to get ahead in the count and kept my hands loose. I stayed back on that fastball, which allowed me to get just enough of it and get the barrel on it."
All five Tri-City hits came from the top of the order, as Johnny Bowden led the way with two hits from the cleanup spot. The Dust Devils 5-9 hitters combined to go 0-for-19.
"We struggled to get anything going offensively," Ocasio said. "We only managed to get five hits, but their pitchers were a little wild. You've got to give credit to our pitchers for keeping us in it."
Tri-City starter Jonnathan Aristil pitched well in his 12th start this year, allowing two runs -- one earned -- on five hits through 5 1/3 inning. Four Dust Devils relievers -- Carlos Luna, Zach McClellan, David Parker and Brandon Miller -- were spectacular, allowing only one hit in 5 2/3 scoreless innings. Milller (3-3) picked up the win as Vazquez (0-2) took the loss for the Bears.
The Dust Devils took a 1-0 lead in the fourth inning after Wetzel drew a one-out walk, stole second, and advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt by Rose. Bowden then drove a single to center off Yakima starter T.J. Hose, scoring Wetzel.
Alfredo Marte singled for Yakima to lead off the sixth inning, and Anthony Smith doubled to center field, putting runners on second and third with nobody out. Aristil struck out Jimmy Principe and got Ramon Castillo to hit a soft grounder to Rose at third base. Marte scored on the play, but Dust Devils' first baseman Chris Vasami dropped Rose's throw, allowing Smith to score from second and the Bears to take a 2-1 lead.
Notes: Blackmon extended his hitting streak to seven games. ... LHP Christian Friedrich, who was 2-1 with a 3.25 ERA and 50 strikeouts in eight starts for Tri-City, has been promoted to Asheville, the Colorado Rockies' Class A affiliate in the South Atlantic League. Taking his place on the Dust Devils roster will be Taiwanese RHP Sheng-An Kuo, who was 9-7 with a 5.16 ERA in 21 starts with Asheville. Kuo, who will arrive in Pasco today, spent 2007 with Tri-City, going 5-4 with a 4.69 ERA in 15 starts. ... Former Dust Devils manager Ron Gideon was on hand for both weekend games as he made his yearly stop in Tri-Cities as the Rockies' Field Coordinator. Gideon, who had a 149-155 record in four years as Dust Devils' skipper, has already begun making preparations for the Rockies' fall instructional league, which begins Sept. 20 in Tucson, Ariz. ... Pasco resident and Kennewick High graduate Keith Best filled in as first-base plate umpire, replacing Tom Woodring, who was recovering from an injured knee.