River Cats offense tamed by Tacoma in 2-1 defeat

West Sacramento, CA - Matt Gage gave the Sacramento River Cats (33-53) six strong innings Friday night but the club's bats were unable to back him in their 2-1 loss to the Tacoma Rainiers (45-51)

The left-hander Gage made his second career Triple-A start and was superb, giving up two runs (one earned) over 6.1 frames Friday night. The 24-year-old allowed leadoff singles in three of those innings but was able to work out of trouble and did not allow a walk. He tied a season-high with seven strikeouts while throwing 96 pitches, 66 of which were strikes.
The offense was unable to support him however, managing just one run in the third inning thanks to an Orlando Calixte RBI double. Calixte's replacement, Juan Ciriaco, was the only other Sacramento hitter to collect a base knock and the team was held to one run or fewer for the third time in seven games this month.
The River Cats will play a doubleheader tomorrow with the first game starting in the bottom of the first inning due to a suspension on April 7. Left-hander Andrew Suárez (2-2, 4.01) will get the ball for Sacramento in game one and the Rainiers will counter with right-hander Casey Lawrence (2-0, 3.52). First pitch is set for 4:30 p.m. (PT) and game two will begin thirty minutes after the conclusion of game one. Both games can be heard live on the air on ESPN 1320 and online at rivercats.com.
Postgame Notes
Gage: Matt Gage had his third game this season with seven strikeouts…had seven strikeouts twice while pitching with Double-A Richmond…of his seven hits allowed tonight, only one went for extra bases.
Calixte: Third baseman Orlando Calixte finished 1-for-2 tonight with Sacramento's only RBI…leads the team with 34 RBI on the year…played in his team-leading 66^th game tonight.
Ciriaco: Juan Ciriaco extended his hitting streak to four games, the longest active streak for Sacramento…is hitting .533 (8-for-15) with three RBI over that span.
Turn Two: The River Cats turned three double plays tonight and now lead the league with 103…have turned nine double plays in seven July games.
Swing and Miss: Sacramento struck out 12 times tonight against Tacoma pitchers…the River Cats are third in the PCL with 719 strikeouts this season.
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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. 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.