Peña, Shaw power River Cats past Missions

SAN ANTONIO, Texas -- The Sacramento River Cats (59-50) finished the month of July on a high note, defeating the San Antonio Missions (68-41) 5-2 thanks to three home runs and a nice start from 24-year old Casey Meisner.
Catcher Francisco Peña led the charge for the Sacramento offense Wednesday night, going 3-for-4 with a pair of home runs and three runs batted in. Chris Shaw added his 14th homer of the season, going back-to-back with Peña in the fourth inning to give the River Cats a 3-1 lead at the time.
Meisner was promoted from Class-A Advanced San Jose to start tonight's game, a roster move made in anticipation of the ensuing transactions surrounding the Major League Baseball-wide trade deadline. It was Meisner's second spot start for the River Cats in the past three weeks (July 15 at Salt Lake), and the right-hander delivered again, picking up his second Triple-A win and tossing six innings, giving up two runs on four hits.
With the victory over San Antonio and another loss from Fresno, the Sacramento lead in the Pacific Northern division grew to six games. The River Cats finish the month of July with a 17-10 record.
The River Cats have not yet announced a starter for Thursday's series finale, and the Missions will send righty Burch Smith (6-3, 2.53) to the mound. First pitch is set for 5:05 p.m. (PT). Listen to all of the action live online at rivercats.com, on the MiLB First Pitch app, and on Money 105.5 FM (PT) beginning at 6:00 p.m.
Additional Notes

• Former Missions infielder Mauricio Dubón was part of a trade that sent him to the San Francisco Giants for left-hander Drew Pomeranz and righty Ray Black. Mauricio batted second and played shortstop for the Missions in last night game, but swapped jerseys and batted second and played shortstop for the River Cats in tonight's contest.
• In last night's ball game, the River Cats broke the franchise single-season home run mark when outfielder Steven Duggar took Thomas Jankins deep in the fourth inning for the team's 179th home run of 2019. Chris Shaw and Francisco Peña combined for three homers on Wednesday to bring the team total to 182 on the year.

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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. Season Tickets, Mini-Plans, and Flex Plans can be purchased for the River Cats' 20th season by calling the River Cats Ticket Hotline at (916) 371-HITS (4487). The only place to guarantee official River Cats tickets is at www.rivercats.com. For information on other events at Raley Field, visit www.raleyfield.com.