Sacramento left chasing Omaha in 7-1 defeat

Omaha, NE - The Sacramento River Cats (47-63) came in to Thursday night's game against the Omaha Storm Chasers (51-58) riding a four-game winning streak but were unable to recover after falling behind early in their 7-1 loss.

Omaha jumped on Sacramento starter Matt Gage in the first inning, tagging the left-hander for two runs. Gage kept the Storm Chasers off the board over his next two frames but ran into trouble again in the fourth. He surrendered five more runs over the fourth and fifth innings before being relieved by right-hander Dusten Knight and of Gage's seven hits allowed, six went for extra bases.
Right fielder Slade Heatchott gave the River Cats their lone run on the night by singling home Mac Williamson with two outs in the fifth inning. Heathcott collected two of the team's five hits tonight in his debut with Sacramento.
Right-hander Casey Kelly (5-2, 4.57) will make his second start for the River Cats in game two tomorrow night and will oppose Omaha's right-hander Christian Binford (4-8, 8.46). First pitch is set for 5:05 p.m. (PT) and the game can be heard live online at rivercats.com and will air 7:00 p.m. on ESPN 1320.
Postgame Notes
Heathcott: Slade Heathcott collected his first RBI with Sacramento tonight...also had an outfield assist and was a part of a double play in the third inning…in 93 games with Richmond before being promoted, he hit .262 with 12 home runs and 33 RBI.
Gage: Left-hander Matt Gage allowed a season-high seven earned runs and yielded his first home run of the season…threw two wild pitches and had two wild pitches total coming into tonight…now owns a 10.13 ERA in three road starts (15 ER, 13.1 IP).
Knight: Right-hander Dusten Knight allowed his inherited runner from starter Matt Gage to score…has now allowed three of 12 inherited runners to score this season…struck out four Omaha hitters over his 2.1 innings of relief and retired the final seven batters he faced.
Shaw: Left fielder Chris Shaw extended his hitting streak to seven games…owns a .346 batting average (9-for-26) over that span with five RBI and four runs scored.
Streak Snapped: The River Cats tied their season-high by winning four straight games…are now 1-4 in their last five games in Omaha and have been outscored 26-10.
*
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. River Cats Season Tickets, Mini-Plans, and Flex Plans can be purchased for the 2017 season by calling the River Cats Ticket Hotline at (916) 371-HITS (4487). For more information about the River Cats, visit www.rivercats.com. For information on other events at Raley Field, visit www.raleyfield.com.