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Ty Kelly’s Walk-Off Home Run Pushes Tacoma to Victory over Sacramento

River Cats tie game with 9th inning home run, Kelly makes Rainiers back-to-back winners
Ty Kelly (Jeff Halstead)
June 13, 2021

TACOMA, WA – Sacramento tied the game in the top of the 9th inning on Saturday on a solo home run by Arismendy Alcántra, but Tacoma second baseman Ty Kelly blasted a walk-off solo shot in the home half of the inning to give the Rainiers their second straight victory

TACOMA, WA – Sacramento tied the game in the top of the 9th inning on Saturday on a solo home run by Arismendy Alcántra, but Tacoma second baseman Ty Kelly blasted a walk-off solo shot in the home half of the inning to give the Rainiers their second straight victory over the River Cats at Cheney Stadium, 4-3.

With one out in the 9th inning, and Kelly facing a 1-1 count against Silvino Bracho, the 32-year-old belted the game-winner over the wall in right-center field. The walk-off victory is Tacoma’s (17-15) second of the season and their first since a 3-2 final over El Paso in 10 innings on May 10.

Tacoma jumped out to a 1st inning lead on a sacrifice fly by catcher Luis Torrens, scoring left fielder Jarred Kelenic for the game’s first run.

In the 3rd inning, Kelenic crushed his first home run since rejoining the Rainiers on Tuesday, a solo shot that flew just out of the reach of right fielder Bryce Johnson.

Sacramento (15-19) scored the next two runs against right-hander Taylor Guerrieri in the 4th inning on a two-run home run by top San Francisco Giants prospect Joey Bart.

The Rainiers recaptured the lead, 3-2, on a solo home run by Torrens in the bottom of the 8th inning. The opposite field home run was Torrens’ sixth of the season with Tacoma.

Lefty Williams Jerez served as Tacoma’s opener, pitching a scoreless first inning. Right-hander Zack Weiss delivered the next two innings with no runs and a pair of strikeouts.

With the game tied in the 6th inning, Justin Grimm came on and pitched back-to-back scoreless frames while striking out three River Cats. Jimmy Yacabonis also threw a scoreless inning in the 8th, lowering his season ERA to 1.96.

Southpaw Aaron Fletcher allowed the game-tying homer in the 9th inning but was credited with his first win on the season thanks to Kelly’s game-winner.

The Rainiers and River Cats will continue their six-game series on Sunday at Cheney Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for 1:35 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.