Offense shows no sting versus Bees, River Cats fall 7-1

West Sacramento, Calif. - The Sacramento River Cats (22-25) could not get anything going at the dish on Thursday night as they dropped their second straight to the Salt Lake Bees (21-25) by a final of 7-1. Two Bees pitchers combined to hold Sacramento to a season-low three hits.
The River Cats fell behind early but responded in the third, tallying two of their three hits to push across their only run of the night. Abiatal Avelino drove in Levi Michael on a soft ground ball to second to tie the game at one. Salt Lake would score six unanswered runs, however, to arrive at the final score of 7-1. Sacramento was held to their lowest hit total this season, one lower than their previous low of four from May 8 against Fresno.
Two bright spots for the River Cats tonight were left-hander Sam Selman and right-hander Ray Black. Selman continued his dominant 2019 campaign, tossing 1.2 innings of scoreless baseball to go along with three strikeouts. Ray Black returned to the bullpen after a 30-game stint on the injured list with a mild right elbow strain. Black looked sharp, touching 98 with his fastball and recording a scoreless eighth inning.
Sacramento ace righty Tyler Beede (2-1, 2.60) aims to earn a series split in the final game of the homestand. Salt Lake will counter with lefty Patrick Sandoval (0-0, 4.70). First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m. (PT). Catch all of the action live online at rivercats.com, on the MiLB First Pitch app, or on Money 105.5 FM.
Additional Notes

• Lefty Sam Selman lowered his ERA to 1.59 with another brilliant outing. He has the lowest ERA on the club in his 17.0 innings and has struck out an incredible 14.3 batters per nine innings this season.
• Mike Gerber extended his current hit streak to six games, while Austin Slater and Aramis Garcia had their five-game hit streaks halted on Thursday.

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The Sacramento River Cats are the Triple-A affiliate of the three-time World Champion San Francisco Giants. The team plays at Raley Field in West Sacramento, consistently voted one of the top ballparks in America. Season Tickets, Mini-Plans, and Flex Plans can be purchased for the River Cats' 20th season by calling the River Cats Ticket Hotline at (916) 371-HITS (4487). The only place to guarantee official River Cats tickets is at www.rivercats.com. For information on other events at Raley Field, visit www.raleyfield.com.