Kelenic Shines in Four Hit Night, Rainiers Overpower Aces

TACOMA, WA – The Rainiers hitters were all over the Aces Monday night at Cheney Stadium, trouncing Reno 15-7 for their second consecutive victory. Tacoma cranked three big flies and got a tremendous performance from top prospect Jarred Kelenic who notched four hits on the night for the second time in his career.

Starter Logan Verrett (3-2) got off to a rough start as Reno (34-19) jumped out to an early 3-0 lead. Third baseman Drew Ellis launched a two-run blast and left fielder Stuart Fairchild’s RBI single were responsible for the damage.

Tacoma (28-23) responded quickly as catcher José Godoy got the Rainiers on the board with a double that scored right fielder Dillon Thomas. Two batters later Jantzen Witte hit a seed over the left center field fence, providing the Rainiers with a 4-3 lead that they would not relinquish.

1B José Marmolejos extended the Rainiers lead to 6-3 with his ninth big fly on the year, scoring center fielder Jarred Kelenic.

Reno put pressure on the Rainiers in the 4th and 6th innings as a pair of home runs from catcher Michael De La Cruz and Fairchild brought the score to 6-5. Rainiers starter Logan Verrett earned the win, finishing with a line of six innings, 12 hits, five runs, and seven strikeouts.

The Tacoma bats responded to the challenge as they put up crooked numbers across the next two innings. 2B Donovan Walton drove in his fifth RBI over the last three games via a bases load hit by pitch. In the ensuing at bat, Kelenic knocked in two additonal runs with a double into the right field corner, giving the Rainiers a four run cushion. Marmolejos drove in his third RBI of the evening when he laced a single into right and scored Thomas. He then came around to score when Godoy launched a moonshot for Tacoma’s third home run of the contest and widened the gap to 12-5.

Aces starter Zach Lee (2-2) exited the ball game after 5 1/3 innings, conceding eight runs off seven hits and was pegged with the loss.

Reno brought the score to within five as right fielder Jake McCarthy smoked the Aces’ fourth homer of the game and center fielder Ben DeLuzio poked an RBI single through the infield in the eighth.

The Rainiers added three insurance runs in the bottom half of the inning for good measure. A Thomas walk and a single off the bat of former Reno Ace Wyatt Mathisen tied the Rainiers season-high of 15 runs that was set May 13 at Salt Lake, slamming the door shut on any comeback hopes.

Top prospect Jarred Kelenic and José Marmolejos have now recorded multi-hit nights in the last two games. Kelenic finished 4-for-5 with a double, two runs and two RBI. Marmolejos was an impressive 3-for-4 with a home run, walk, four runs, and three RBI.

The Rainiers will play for a series split against the Aces tomorrow in the series finale with first pitch scheduled for 7:05 p.m. PT.

Rainiers broadcaster Mike Curto will have full coverage on TacomaRainiers.com. All 2021 Rainiers games, home and away, can also be heard for free on the MiLB First Pitch app. HD video broadcasts of every home game can be viewed with an MiLB.TV subscription. (Use code: RAINIERS to save $10 on an annual subscription.)

About the Tacoma Rainiers

The Tacoma Rainiers are the Triple-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners. The Rainiers are a member of the Triple-A West. Tacoma has been a Mariners affiliate since establishing the Rainiers moniker in 1995.

Single-game tickets for all remaining 2021 Rainiers home games are now available. Questions regarding season tickets can be directed to [email protected].

The most up-to-date news and notes about the Tacoma Rainiers and Cheney Stadium can be found at WeRTacoma.com, or by following the Rainiers on Twitter (@RainiersLand), Instagram (@tacomarainiers) and liking the team on Facebook.