Aces Drop Penultimate Home Game of 2026

RENO, Nev. – Seven runs by the end of the third inning had the Reno Aces in the driver seat as they looked to capture a series victory, but the Albuquerque Isotopes responded with a nine-run fourth en route to a 21-9 defeat for Reno on Saturday.

Through three frames it looked as if the Aces (31-36/63-79) could maintain an edge, exploding for five runs in the second and two more in the third. After Joe Fernandez and A.J. Vukovich singled their way aboard to start the second, it was Matt O’Neill to drive them home with a double out to center field.

A walk kept the line moving for Santiago Espinal, who clobbered his second homer of the year deep over the wall in left center for their final runs of the frame. That blast had given Reno the lead after the Isotopes (31-37/70-73) plated two in the top half of the frame.

While Albuquerque pulled level in their next at-bats with a trio of runs in the away half of the third, the Aces once more grabbed an advantage with a two-run third. O’Neill delivered yet again with a single to center for another RBI, while Gavin Conticello notched the first RBI of the inning with a single through the middle into center.

Unfortunately for the Aces, the rest of the game was nearly all Isotopes as Albuquerque poured on nine runs in the top of the fourth, two more in the fifth, one in the sixth, and four in the ninth. That included every batter scoring at least once in the fourth frame.

Reno continued to battle through the end of the contest, pushing across two more runs in the eighth thanks to a pair of RBI singles, one from Demetrio Crisantes and the other from Trent Youngblood. For Youngblood, it was his Triple-A debut and finished the game 2-for-2.

Making the second start of his rehab assignment was Ryne Nelson, who worked 1.2 innings while allowing two runs on four hits with a pair of strikeouts. However, the loss was tagged to Jose Cabrera, who allowed a new Triple-A season high with nine runs on seven hits, striking out only two while walking three.

Despite the loss, the Aces managed to produce 16 hits in the contest, with three apiece from Vukovich and O’Neill. In those three knocks, O’Neill logged a pair of doubles with a run scored and three RBI. Meanwhile, Vukovich scored once in addition to a two-bagger of his own.

Reno will try to end their 2026 season on a high note as their series finale tomorrow with Albuquerque also doubles as their final home contest of the 2026 season, with first pitch tossed at 1:05 p.m. PT.