UPDATED: Tue., June 20, 2017, 9:07 p.m.

Its still early in the season, but one trait the Spokane Indians are demonstrating is the power of chemistry. No, not the academic version of chemistry taught in high school or college, but something more like the intangible internal feeling that distinguishes a typical team from a family team.

This was seen throughout the Indians five-game season-opening home stand against Boise.

Its the kind of unique quality that brings a team together when its trailing late in a game. It comes together to use chemistry to make deficits shrink. They simply refuse to quit.

Spokane manager Matt Hagen said the teams belief in itself has been one of the things that has really stood out in the first week.

We really do have a good team chemistry, especially for the first series of the year, Hagen said.

And thats something he said will be helpful later in the summer.

At some point this season, well be getting some players in from the draft and my hope is that those guys can jump right into what we have going on already and that theyll feel right at home, he said.

Aside from the physical challenges related to the daily grind of a baseball schedule, this level of baseball can be tough from a players perspective because many of these players are not only young, but inexperienced in the rigors of professional baseball. Ten of the Indians are 20 years old or younger, giving Spokane one of the youngest teams in the Northwest League.

And none are from here. Some arent even from the United States. With players from Nevada to Nicaragua, theyre a long way from home and spending all of their days with people theyve basically just met.

Spokane infielder Kole Enright, from Florida, said thats part of what has made the team closer.

I love the guys we have from Venezuela, the Dominican Republic and from Nicaragua, he said. Were a team. Thats part of what you sign up for when youre coming into a diverse sport like baseball.

Its a closeness that was even seen during the teams opening-night game. Down 4-0 entering the sixth inning, the Indians battled and fought to tie the game in the seventh at 4-4.

After the game, several players said they knew theyd come back, even though the Indians eventually lost 5-4. They talked about bonding during earlier games in the Arizona League.

It was evident again in Sundays doubleheader.

In the first game, the Indians lost 3-1. The following game, the Spokane offense exploded for seven runs in the first inning en route to a 10-0 win.

After the game, Indians catcher Isaias Quiroz said, Were a big, energetic team. Were always on each others backs, helping each other out. Doesnt matter if were down by 10 or up by 10, were always going to have each others back. We wont let each other ever quit.

That never-say-die attitude surfaced again in Mondays final game of the series against Boise.

Heading into the seventh inning, the Indians trailed 4-1. A few hits later, the Indians tied it up and then added an eighth-inning Yohel Pozo home run.

That is when the teams character was tested again. After a leadoff single to open the ninth, Boise clubbed a potential heartbreaking ninth-inning two-run home run to put the Hawks up 6-5.

How did the Indians approach the bottom of the ninth?

With a single. Then a game-tying triple. That was followed by a single to complete the ninth-inning walk-off win over Boise, 7-6.

The players piled on each other.

Cole Ragans, starting pitcher and the Texas Rangers eighth-ranked prospect, said this group of guys already feels like a team.

Thats what were made of, he said. This is what everyone should expect of us. Most of us have played with together in the AZL so we know what to expect from each other. We like each other and were gonna come out and play like that every game down to the last pitch.

Spokane catcher Clay Middleton agreed.

We just dont give up, he said as the team celebrated around him. This is a relentless group very, very relentless. This team is never out of the fight. We believe in each other.

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Chemistry defines Spokane Indians early in the season - The Spokesman-Review