Dubón homers, Ondrusek struggles in Final Stretch opening defeat

Bees 9, River Cats 5

Sacramento infielder Mauricio Dubón lines a ball against Reno on July 31, 2021. (Rachel Sollazzo)

By Maverick Pallack

September 24, 2021

Salt Lake City, Utah. — A second consecutive three-error game, and two four-run innings, were too much to overcome for the Sacramento River Cats (52-66) as they fell to the fifth-place Salt Lake Bees (50-70) in the first game of the Triple-A Final Stretch. Right-hander Logan Ondrusek (1-2) surrendered four

Salt Lake City, Utah. — A second consecutive three-error game, and two four-run innings, were too much to overcome for the Sacramento River Cats (52-66) as they fell to the fifth-place Salt Lake Bees (50-70) in the first game of the Triple-A Final Stretch.

Right-hander Logan Ondrusek (1-2) surrendered four runs in each of his first 2.0 innings of work, finishing his day with eight runs (six earned) on seven hits and two walks, with six strikeouts in 5.0 innings.

Sacramento shortstop Mauricio Dubón was the bright spot offensively, going 3-for-3 with a walk, three runs, and a home run.

The River Cats took a 4-1 lead in the fifth inning with RBIs coming from catcher Ronnie Freeman, designated hitter Jason Krizan, and second baseman Thairo Estrada. Krizan’s RBI was his team-leading 71st of the season, which is six more than his career-best set in 2016 and 2019 (65).

In his first rehab start since being placed on the injured list Sept. 1, San Francisco right-hander Johnny Cueto tossed 1.2 innings with one earned run on four hits and one walk, while striking out one.

The River Cats look to bounce back on Friday with veteran right-hander Matt Shoemaker (3-3, 5.70) on the mound. He’ll take on lefty Thomas Pannone (5-11, 7.67) at 5:35 p.m. (PT). Listen to Johnny Doskow call the game live online at rivercats.com or on the MiLB First Pitch app.

Additional Notes

Sacramento left fielder Mike Tauchman went 1-for-3 with a triple, a run, and an RBI on Thursday. In 17 games this month, Tauchman is 21-for-59 (.356) with 13 runs, 12 RBIs, and nine extra-base hits.
Any 2010s Cincinnati fans that happened to be listening to the River Cats got a real blast from the past, as Cueto and Ondrusek both pitched on Thursday. Cueto pitched for Cincinnati from 2008-2015, while Ondrusek was in the Reds’ bullpen from 2010-2014, relieving Cueto 49 times during their Cincinnati tenure.
Salt Lake center fielder Jake Gatewood continued to torch Sacramento pitching, going 4-for-4 while knocking in four of the Bees’ nine runs, and scoring another. In 23 games vs the River Cats, he has 14 runs, seven home runs, and 26 RBIs.