River Cats Ride Pitching to 2-0 Start

WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Strong pitching efforts have spurred the Sacramento River Cats to a 2-0 start, as on Saturday the Sacramento staff shut down the Albuquerque Isotopes offense for most of the night while the River Cats used timely hitting for a 5-1 win.

There was only one blip on the radar for the River Cats (2-0) pitching staff on the night, which came in the bottom of the first when starter Kyle Harrison was tagged for a solo home run in the second at-bat of the game by Ryan Ritter. From that point on the Isotopes found little room to work, logging just two hits from the second through the ninth innings.

Harrison would leave after the fourth and did not factor into the decision, but his work set in motion a chain where River Cats pitchers retired 14 Albuquerque batters in a row and 19 of 20 overall. Taking the baton from Harrison was fellow 2024 San Francisco Giant Sean Hjelle (1-0), who made his first Triple-A appearance since April 17, 2024. He went on to retire all six hitters he faced, picking up his first Triple-A victory since Sept. 14, 2023 against Sugar Land.

In fact, the Sacramento bullpen did not allow a hit all night, facing just one over the minimum after Joey Lucchesi issued a walk in the seventh. On for the final inning was Kai-Wei Teng, who punched out two of the three hitters he faced.

The River Cats quickly bounced back from the early 1-0 deficit, striking back in the top of the first with a pair of RBI knocks. A Grant McCray walk and stolen base had a runner in scoring position, but a pair of fly outs threatened to leave him stranded. Clutch two-out hitting kicked in, as Wade Meckler singled home McCray with a liner into left while Max Stassi doubled into the right-center gap to push Meckler across.

It took until the home half of the seventh for the River Cats to score the game’s next run, though their promising inning delivered only a single tally. Two walks and a hit by pitch loaded the bases up, and while a sacrifice fly scored runner from third, the runner from second was cut down at home after trying to score when the relay throw was briefly dropped.

Brett Auerbach drove in the insurance tallies, unleashing his second homer of the season when he hammered an Evan Justice offering deep over the wall in left center that drove also scored Jake Lamb.

In all it was another seven hits for the River Cats after tallying eight the night prior, with both Meckler and Stassi logging a pair of knocks. None drove in more than Auerbach’s two-run homer, his second in as many games, and Lamb finished 1-for-3 with a walk.

The River Cats will aim for the sweep in this short three-game set to open the year, with the series finale getting underway at Sutter Health Park beginning at 1:05 p.m.