River Cats split Sunday twin bill with El Paso

West Sacramento, CA - The Sacramento River Cats (46-57) split Sunday's doubleheader with the El Paso Chihuahuas (58-44), taking the first game 5-1 before dropping the second 4-0. It was a tale of two teams as the offense tallied 11 hits in six innings in part one of the twin bill but couldn't get anything going in part two.

Game One

Blach was stellar again for the River Cats, going the distance in the seven-inning contest. The complete game was Blach's second this season, moving him into a three-way tie for the most in the Pacific Coast League. He's won his last five starts, posting an 0.97 ERA (37 innings, 4 runs) over that time and now leads the PCL with 11 wins.

Andrew Susac has been on a roll since the All-Star Break and continued to impress at the plate today, going 3-for-3 with a triple and a run scored. In nine games since the break, Susac is hitting .342 (13-for-38) with four home runs.

Travis Ishikawa homered for the River Cats, his fourth of the season, and picked up his 20th and 21st RBI. Rehabbing San Francisco Giants outfielder Hunter Pence was 1-for-3 with an RBI single while infielder Ehire Adrianza went 1-for-3 with a run scored and a stolen base. As a team, the River Cats racked up 11 hits in just six innings.

Game Two

The second part of the doubleheader was quite the opposite as the River Cats struggled to generate any kind of momentum to back their starter Vin Mazzaro. The Sacramento offense managed just three hits in the game and found themselves on the wrong side of a shutout for the seventh time this season.

Making his second straight start, Mazzaro threw five innings for Sacramento, giving up four runs on five hits and two walks while striking out three. All four of El Paso's runs came in the third inning on back-to-back home runs from the Chihuahuas. With two on, Hunter Renfroe drove one deep to left field to put El Paso up 3-0. Former River Cats and Giants catcher Hector Sanchez followed with a solo shot.

The River Cats get a day off tomorrow before heading north to Reno, Nevada to take on the Reno Aces, Triple-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks, on Tuesday. Starters for both games have yet to be determined, but first pitch is set for 7:05 p.m. (PT) and the game can be heard live online at rivercats.com.

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The Sacramento River Cats are the Triple-A affiliate of the 2014 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 2016 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.