PCL Sacramento River Cats

Early Home Runs, Three-Run Inning Spell Defeat for Cats

Published on July 19, 2023 under Pacific Coast League (PCL)
Sacramento River Cats News Release


WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. - The Sacramento River Cats stayed close during game two of its series with the Tacoma Rainiers despite Tacoma's best attempts to pull away, but in the end the Rainiers had just enough to outlast Sacramento with a 6-4 victory on Wednesday afternoon.

A groundout and strikeout seemed to set Mason Black (0-1) and the River Cats (40-51) on the path to a quick start in the first, but the Rainiers (46-46) staked an early lead thanks to a loud crack of the bat from Didi Gregorius. Sitting in a 1-0 count, Gregorius jumped on a sinker that was middle-in and sent it over the bullpens in right field.

Tacoma threatened again in the second with a pair of singles, one to begin the frame and one with two outs, but both runners were left stranded. Meanwhile, Sacramento had each of their first six hitters retired in order, and although they snapped that streak with a double from Armando Alvarez starting the third, three consecutive outs brought a quick end to the inning.

Mark Mathias' double with one out had a man in scoring position for the Rainiers in the fourth, which set up Pedro Severino with an RBI chance. The latter cashed in on his opportunity, depositing a ball over the wall in left field to increase Tacoma's lead to 3-0.

That three-run edge was immediately trimmed during Sacramento's swings in the bottom of the frame, which began with Marco Luciano collecting his first Triple-A hit by beating out a slow chopper to third base. He was immediately joined aboard by Isan Diaz, who snapped a 0-for-15 stretch with a double into the right-center gap.

Following was Joey Bart, who continued his hot stretch by singling into right center to drive in Luciano. That marked the 14th RBI in as many games for Bart, who has also logged hits in 13 of those contests. Next up was Heliot Ramos, who put a ball in the air deep enough to score Diaz from third, but only after a close play at the plate that saw Diaz dive just in front of a tag attempt after the throw was initially dropped.

The score remained a one-run contest until the away half of the sixth when the Rainiers added three insurance tallies, two of which came from the bat of Severino on a double into left-center field. That marked the fourth RBI of the day for Severino, who continued to add to his stat totals by swiping third base. That steal proved crucial, as it left him 90 feet from home with only one out and allowed him to score on a sacrifice fly from Sam Haggerty.

It took until the eighth for the River Cats to answer back, beginning their trip to the dish with a pair of singles from Ricardo Genoves and Will Wilson. The former of that duo scored when Fitzgerald doubled into left-center field, while Wilson later scored on an RBI groundout by Diaz.

That was the final scoring for either team, as a River Cats rally in the bottom of the ninth met an untimely demise when pinch hitter Ford Proctor grounded into a game-ending double play. That secured a 6-4 win for the Rainiers, giving them victories in each of the first two games of the series.

For the River Cats, they now find themselves in a season-long, seven-game losing streak, the longest such span since they dropped a franchise-record 11 games in a row last season from May 29 through June 10, 2022. Additionally, it marked the sixth straight home loss for Sacramento.

Black was charged with his first Triple-A defeat, allowing three runs on six hits while walking two and striking out six in 5.0 innings. Meanwhile, Rainiers' starter Tommy Milone did not factor into the decision as he was one inning short to qualify for the win, tossing 4.0 innings and giving up two runs on four hits with three strikeouts.

There to pick up the slack was Nolan Blackwood (3-3), who hurled two scoreless frames and struck out one. Tasked with preserving the win was Matt Festa, and he logged his 14th save by facing the minimum three hitters in the ninth despite hitting a batter.

Each of the first four spots in the lineup for the River Cats finished 1-for-4, as the quartet of Fitzgerald, Luciano, Diaz, and Bart totaled over half of the Sacramento hits. Three of those four produced an RBI (all but Luciano), while the trio of Alvarez, Genoves and Wilson all finished 1-for-3.

Game three of this series takes place Thursday evening, with first pitch at Sutter Health Park scheduled for 6:45 p.m.

Check out the Sacramento River Cats Statistics

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Pacific Coast League Stories from July 19, 2023


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