Diaz Draws Cats level in Fifth but Aces Prevail

WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Coming back to tie the game courtesy a towering home run by Isan Diaz that erased an early 3-0 hole, the Sacramento River Cats nearly completed the comeback but saw a controversial call aid a Reno Aces rally that eventually swung game three in Reno’s favor 6-4 on Friday.

The game’s first base runner did not reach until the second, with the Aces (46-32) stranding a walk while the River Cats (35-42) left two aboard after a Brett Wisely bunt single and a Ricardo Genoves free pass. Still locked in a scoreless tie, Reno broke through in the third after they loaded the bases immediately with no outs, pushing across the night’s first run with a bases loaded walk while the other two crossed on a two-RBI single into center by Tristin English.

It was not long until Sacramento responded, countering with a pair of runs in the bottom of the fourth. Much like the Aces during their third, the River Cats put a man on each base with no outs to begin the inning, using a pair of traditional singles from Tyler Fitzgerald and Armando Alvarez before Wisely dropped his second bunt single of the night. Reno nearly escaped the jam after logging a pair of punchouts, but Michael Gigliotti came through in the clutch to put Sacramento on the board with his own two-RBI single to left-center field.

An inning later the River Cats officially drew level thanks to the bat of Isan Diaz, who showed his swagger on a no-doubt blast to right field on a full count to lead off the inning. It was Diaz’s second homer in as many games (yesterday’s was also a leadoff shot in the second), the second time Diaz has done so this season as he also left the yard in consecutive contests back on May 21 at Reno and May 23 against Oklahoma City. Overall, it was Diaz’s fifth homer in just eight games, and he is averaging one home run in every six at-bats.

Unfortunately, the game was not tied for long as the Aces reclaimed the lead with their swings in the sixth. It started after the River Cats were on the opposite end of a controversial call on a Reno stolen base, as the runner scored in the next at-bat on a double down the left-field line by Diego Castillo. Immediately Castillo stole third without a throw, putting him in prime position to cross the plate two batters later thanks to a single by Josh Rojas.

Reno threatened to add to its lead in the ninth by loading the bases with no outs yet again, this time doing so on a pair of singles and a walk against River Cats’ reliever Erik Miller. The southpaw has been steady nearly all season, and he did so again as he limited the Aces to a single run on a sacrifice fly, then benefitted from solid defense as Sacramento notched a double play on an attempted delayed steal to close the inning.

After not producing a base runner from the sixth through the eighth, Sacramento snapped that span in the ninth as they attempted a comeback. Will Wilson singled while Dalton Guthrie doubled down the left-field line to put a pair into scoring position, allowing Diaz to collect his second RBI of the night on a groundout to second. However, that was as close as the River Cats could come as Andrew Saalfrank preserved the contest at 6-4 to earn his first Triple-A save.

Each River Cats pitcher went at least two innings, but only Tanner Andrews held the Aces off the scoreboard by working 2.2 frames and allowing just a pair of hits. Charged with the loss was Joey Marciano (4-4), as he gave up the runs in the sixth that swung the contest towards the Aces. Stephen Nogosek (2-0) took the winning decision for Reno, tossing 1.2 hitless frames while Carlos Vargas and Tyler Zuber each notched a hold.

Sacramento outhit Reno in the contest (9-8) as each of the first five hitters in the River Cats’ lineup tallied knocks including multi-hit efforts from Armando Alvarez and Wisely. Diaz closed the night 1-for-5 thanks to his homer with him and Gigliotti driving in two runs apiece to account for the Sacramento offense.

Game four will take place on Saturday from Sutter Health Park with the Aces ahead in the series two games to one, with the first pitch scheduled for 6:37 p.m.