Rainiers Blank Chihuahuas in Final Home Game of 2026

TACOMA, WA (September 13, 2026) — Connor Joe’s solo home run in the fourth inning was the winning run for the Tacoma Rainiers (37-32/70-74) as they shut out the El Paso Chihuahuas (23-46/58-86), taking the series victory with a 1-0 win in the final game at Cheney Stadium this season. Nolan Kingham tossed 5.0 shutout innings in the start, earning his first victory with the Rainiers.

Pitching dominated the first three innings of the game. Tacoma had a pair of baserunners in the first and second inning, but could not score as they went down in order in the third inning. El Paso left the bases loaded in the first inning when Nolan Kingham struck out Gage Workman to end the frame.

Connor Joe’s (10) one-out, solo home run in the bottom of the fourth inning broke the deadlock, giving Tacoma a 1-0 lead.

Kingham was lights-out Sunday afternoon, tossing 5.0 shutout innings in the start. He allowed four hits and three walks while striking out three en route to his first win with Tacoma. Peyton Alford took over in relief for the Rainiers in the top sixth inning, spinning a pair of scoreless innings in the sixth and seventh innings. Watson got the ball for the eighth inning and kept the Chihuahuas off the board while navigating around a pair of two-out walks.

Tacoma called on Nick Garcia to close it out in the ninth inning. He worked around two walks, striking out two of the three batters he faced to secure the 1-0 victory for the Rainiers in the finale.

Tacoma hits the road for the final series of the season, taking on the Round Rock Express for a six-game set. First pitch on Tuesday is set for 4:45 PM (PST).

POSTGAME NOTES:

• The Rainiers won Sunday’s game 1-0, the third 1-0 game Tacoma has been a part of this season (2-1 record)...Sunday’s game was the seventh Triple-A game this season to finish 1-0, with the lone run accounted for by a home run…Sunday’s game was the 10th Rainiers game since 2005 to finish 1-0, with the lone run accounted for by a home run, going 8-2 in those games.

• INF Leo Rivas extended his on-base streak to 26 games with a pair of walks on Sunday, tied for the longest on-base streak by a Rainiers player this season (also: Connor Joe, 26G from July 28-August 29)...Rivas has reached base at a .468 clip over his streak, improving to .491 since the start of September, the fourth-best in the PCL.

• OF Nolan Jones recorded his first outfield assist with Tacoma in the fifth inning, cutting down Bryce Johnson at second base…Tacoma’s 15 outfield assists since the start of July are the second-most in Triple-A, trailing Albuquerque’s 16.

• RHP Nick Garcia earned the save in the finale, tossing a scoreless ninth inning while walking two and striking two out…in Garcia’s 21 appearances at Cheney Stadium this season, he holds a 1.27 ERA (4 ER/28.1 IP), the second-lowest ERA at home by a Rainiers reliever since 2005 (min. 20 G), trailing only LHP Bobby LaFromboise, who owned a 0.29 ERA (1ER/30.2 IP) in 22 appearances at Cheney Stadium in 2013...he lowered his ERA this season to 2.67, the lowest among all PCL pitchers with at least 35 appearances.