Quiala shines as River Cats return home with victory

West Sacramento, Calif. -- The Sacramento River Cats (41-40) began their five-game home series with the Albuquerque Isotopes (34-48) on a winning note, taking the opener 6-1 on the back of starting pitcher Yoanys Quiala.
The Cuban right-hander tossed seven scoreless innings and struck out a career-high nine batters. For Quiala, his previous mark of eight had been set on four occasions dating back to 2016.
The offense entered tonight's contest with 24 home runs in eight games against the Isotopes and continued that trend with two more on Saturday night. Outfielder Mike Gerber launched his 16th of the year in the first inning and third baseman Zach Green plunked one off the batter's eye in the second for his team-leading 18th. Green's hot streak gives him an astounding seven home runs in his last nine games.
The Dorados de Sacramento are back on the field Sunday afternoon and it'll be left-hander Ty Blach (2-4, 6.38) making his 14th start of the season. On the mound for the Mariachis de Nuevo México will be right-hander Jeff Hoffman (4-3, 7.52). First pitch is set for 1:05 p.m. (PT). Catch all of the action live online at rivercats.com, on the MiLB First Pitch app, on Money 105.5 FM.
Additional Notes
• Green, with his current home run barrage, leads the club with 18 homers despite missing 22 games earlier in the season. He's averaging one home run per 10.9 plate appearances. For comparison, Pacific Coast League leader Kevin Cron from Reno is averaging one per 9.3 plate appearances.
• The pitching staff was working on their fourth shutout of the season until allowing a run in the top of the eighth. Still, it's the seventh time they've surrendered just one run in a game this year. Most recently, they were on the losing side as the club fell 1-0 to the Iowa Cubs on June 16.