Sacramento surges to series lead on Thursday
Tacoma, WA (6/1/23) – The Tacoma Rainiers (26-28) tried to make their second five-run comeback in as many nights, but the bid fell short and Tacoma dropped a 7-3 decision to the Sacramento River Cats (25-29) on Thursday at Cheney Stadium. The Rainiers remain winless on Thursdays this season, an
Tacoma, WA (6/1/23) – The Tacoma Rainiers (26-28) tried to make their second five-run comeback in as many nights, but the bid fell short and Tacoma dropped a 7-3 decision to the Sacramento River Cats (25-29) on Thursday at Cheney Stadium. The Rainiers remain winless on Thursdays this season, an 0-8 record (0-4 home). Sacramento leads the weeklong series 2-1.
The River Cats, for the third straight game, made it onto the scoreboard first. Two RBI knocks with two out (single from Jacob Nottingham in the first inning, 2-run double from Luis Matos in the second) gave Sacramento an early 3-0 lead.
Tacoma got a run back in the fourth frame after Brian O’Keefe laced a double into the left field gap to score Cooper Hummel (BB). The walk was Hummel’s 32nd of the season in only 31 games played. Hummel is one of only two Tacoma batters on the roster who has more walks than games played (Jack Larsen, 21 BB in 20 GP).
Sacramento quickly added more runs. The River Cats plated a run in the fifth inning off an RBI single from Clint Coulter and further padded their lead with a 2-run homer from Matos to get the game to 6-1. Matos is now 10-for-16 this series (HR, 5 RBI, 3 R, BB).
Zach DeLoach tightened the gap for Tacoma, hitting a 2-run shot to score O’Keefe (1B) in the home half of the seventh to cut the lead to four. The round-tripper extended DeLoach’s on base streak to 18 games. The outfielder is hitting .358 (24-for-67) during the streak.
Jacob Nottingham, who was with Tacoma before being traded to San Francisco on 5/24, put the final nail in the coffin by hitting a solo homer in the eighth inning to get to the 7-3 final score. Nottingham had four hits in the game (2 RBI, 2 R).
River Cats RHP Drew Strotman earned the winning decision (5.0 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 4 K).
Pat Valaika, who hit the walk-off winner on Wednesday, continued his strong series, getting on base twice (3B, BB). The infielder is 3-for-5 during the six game set so far (HR, 3 RBI, 2 R).
Game four of the series, the 10th in a 12-game homestand, will be on Friday against Sacramento at Cheney Stadium, with first pitch scheduled for 7:05 p.m. Tacoma’s starting pitcher is to be announced. LHP Kyle Harrison, who leads all of Triple-A with 61 strikeouts, is scheduled to start for the River Cats.
Rainiers broadcaster Mike Curto will have full coverage on TacomaRainiers.com. All 2023 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 a MiLB.TV subscription.
About the Tacoma Rainiers
The Tacoma Rainiers are the Triple-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners. The Rainiers are a member of the Pacific Coast League and have been a Mariners affiliate since establishing the Rainiers moniker in 1995.
The most up-to-date news and notes about the Tacoma Rainiers and Cheney Stadium can be found by following the Rainiers on Twitter (@RainiersLand), Instagram (@tacomarainiers) and liking the team on Facebook.