2 early runs burn River Cats in shutout defeat

West Sacramento, Calif. — Fans in attendance at Sutter Health Park were treated to a quality pitchers’ duel as the Sacramento River Cats (19-21) fell 2-0 to the Tacoma Rainiers (14-26) on Orange Friday.

The two teams combined for six total hits and 21 strikeouts. A run in the second and third innings off Sacramento right-hander Tristan Beck (0-2) proved to be the difference.

Sacramento brought the tying run to the plate with two outs in the ninth when right fielder Stuart Fairchild lined a double to center field. Tacoma lefty Nick Ramirez was able to buckle down, however, and get pinch-hitter Heliot Ramos for the final out.

Despite receiving the loss, Beck had the best start of his young Triple-A career. The 25-year-old struck out six while allowing three hits and one walk in a season-high 6.0 innings for the River Cats.

The Sacramento bullpen was excellent, striking out five without allowing a base-runner in 3.0 scoreless innings.

Rehabbing San Francisco left-hander Jake McGee struck out two in a perfect seventh inning of relief. He has struck out five of the six batters he has faced in two outings for Sacramento.

Right-handers Yunior Marte (one strikeout) and Wei-Chieh Huang (two strikeouts) each threw a scoreless inning.

Left-hander Michael Plassmeyer (0-4, 5.80) looks to break the losing streak, taking on right-hander Daniel Ponce de Leon (3-2, 5.45) at 6:37 p.m. (PT) on Saturday. Watch the game on CW-31 with Johnny Doskow and Steve Sax, or listen to Greg Wong online at rivercats.com or on the MiLB First Pitch app.

Additional Notes

• Left fielder Ka’ai Tom, third baseman Donovan Walton, and catcher Jhonny Pereda combined to nail a runner at the plate in the second with a perfect relay.
• Friday marked the third straight game with a shutout, with the last two being defeats for Sacramento. The River Cats have been outscored 21-8 in four games against Tacoma, and have just six total hits in the last two games.