Aug. 24—It's crunch time for the Spokane Indians.

Just 12 games remain in the regular season, and if they are going to play meaningful games the last week of the season — at least relative to the standings — they are going to have to make some headway this week.

To do so, they are going to have to get some better pitching. The Indians (25-28) dropped four of six to last-place Hillsboro last week, giving up 54 runs and a whopping 73 hits with 31 walks in 54 innings in the process.

Losing the series to Hillsboro didn't eliminate the Indians from postseason contention — but it won't be an easy challenge.

Entering play Tuesday, they sit five games behind first-place Eugene (30-23), but if the first-half champion Emeralds win the second half, the Indians can qualify for the playoff series by finishing second.

That sets up this week's series against second-place Vancouver (30-24) as critical.

Next up: Six games against the Canadians, who are 41/2 games ahead of the Indians and 14-10 at home in the second half. At the bare minimum the Indians need to take the series to stay competitive, but they just have to "stack wins" anyway they can right now.

Game time Tuesday through Thursday is 7:05 p.m., Friday is at 1:05, Saturday is at 5:05 and Sunday is at 1:05.

En fuego

Outfielder Robert Calaz has had a disappointing season — dropping from No. 5 on the Colorado Rockies preseason prospect list to No. 23 on the post-draft re-sort after hitting .203/.283/.298 through his first 88 games in High-A.

Sometimes, though, it's not how you start but how you finish. Calaz, still just 20 years old all season, showed the promise of his lofty preseason ranking this week by nearly doubling his home run total from the rest of the season in the past six games.

He hit solo homers on Tuesday and Sunday, but on Saturday he broke out with a 3-for-4 game with two homers, three runs and five RBIs — looking very much like the hard-hitting prospect the Colorado Rockies thought they had all along.

In his last seven games Calaz is 13-for-27 (.481) with seven RBIs, upping his season batting average by 20 points to .225.

On the mound

It was a rough week if you're a fan of pitching.

Jordy Vargas was the only starter to pitch to an ERA below 9.00 and while he was able to limit damage in his one start (one earned run over 42/3 innings), he still allowed five hits and four walks in his appearance.

Yuma Herrera was roughed up in both of his starts, allowing 16 runs — 14 earned — on 18 hits and three walks over 72/3 innings with six strikeouts.

Relievers Seth Clausen and Justin Loer were the only pitchers to keep opponents scoreless last week. Clausen made two appearances covering 22/3 innings, and Loer picked up the win in a 22/3 shutout inning stint.

On the move

At the start of last week's series, OF Jacob Humphrey was promoted to Double-A Hartford, while OF Cameron Nelson and RHP Francis Rivera were placed on the seven-day injured list.

OF Lorenzo Carrier and C Blake Penso were added to the roster.

Carrier was the Rockies' 14th-round pick out of University of Pittsburgh in this year's MLB draft. The 23-year-old from Bear, Delaware, got into three games last week and went 4-for-13 (.308) with two doubles.

Penso was brought up from Low-A Fresno for his second stint with the Indians this season. An undrafted free agent from UC Irvine, Penso has played in just eight games this season between Spokane, Fresno and the Rockies complex league team.

Prospects watch

All stats High-A.

Roldy Brito (No. 2): Hit .429/.467/.429 (6-for-14) with three runs, no doubles, no home runs, no RBIs, three stolen bases, one walk and two strikeouts in three games. YTD: .287/.319/.417, two HRs, eight RBIs, 17-for-18 SBs in 25 games.

Max Belyeu (No. 14): Seven-day injured list since July 2. YTD: .244/.348/.489, 12 HRs, 31 RBIs, 4-for-8 SB in 60 games.

Brody Brecht (No. 15): Seven-day injured list since May 23. YTD: 0-2, 5.23 ERA, 31 strikeouts/15 walks in 202/3 innings (seven starts).

Tanner Thach (No. 17): Hit .222/.250/.259 (6-for-27) with two runs, one double, no home runs, six RBIs, one walk and six strikeouts in six games. YTD: .244/.309/.405, nine 2Bs, six HRs, 31 RBIs, 2-for-2 SBs in 42 games.

Robert Calaz (No. 23): Hit .480/.536/1.000 (12-for-25) with eight runs, one double, hour home runs, seven RBIs, three walks and six strikeouts in six games. YTD: .225/.302/.361, 14 2Bs, nine HRs, 41 RBIs, 11-for-15 SBs in 96 games.

Ethan Hedges (No. 25): Hit .190/.292/.190 (4-for-21) with two runs, no doubles, no home runs, four RBIs, two walks and four strikeouts in five games. YTD: .261/.330/.413, 22 2Bs, 14 HRs, 67 RBIs, 3-for-6 SBs in 104 games.

Wilder Dalis (No. 27): Hit .462/.533/.462 (6-for-13) with one run, no home runs, one RBI, two walks, three strikeouts and one stolen base in four games. YTD: .294/.333/.382, no 2Bs, one HR, three RBIs, 4-for-4 SBs in 10 games.

Angel Jimenez (No. 28): One start, 31/3 innings, seven earned runs, seven hits, three walks, four strikeouts. YTD: 0-3, 9.37 ERA, 20 strikeouts/10 walks in 161/3 innings (five starts).