Late Sacramento Surge Sinks Salt Lake in Saturday Night Loss

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Late Sacramento Surge Sinks Salt Lake in Saturday Night Loss

June 22, 2025 - Pacific Coast League (PCL)
Salt Lake Bees News Release


SOUTH JORDAN, UT. - The Salt Lake Bees dropped game five of the series 9-3 on Saturday night as a five-run ninth from Sacramento helped the River Cats pull away to claim at least a split in the series.

Sacramento River Cats 9, Salt Lake Bees 3

WP: Carson Ragsdale (3 - 3)

LP: Dakota Hudson (3 - 4)

Game Summary

Sacramento threatened early, putting runners on second and third with no outs in the opening frame after a double from Luis Matos. Bees starter Dakota Hudson locked in, putting a halt to the Rivers Cats rally escaping the jam with three straight punchouts to keep it scoreless.

Hudson opened the second with his fourth consecutive strikeout before issuing back-to-back walks to put two on for the second straight inning. He came within an out of escaping again, tying his season high with his fifth strikeout, but back-to-back RBI singles from Wade Meckler and Luis Matos gave Sacramento a 2-0 lead.

Tucker Flint sparked the third inning with the Bees' first hit of the night-a leadoff double off the left-center field wall. He advanced to third on a flyout by Sebastian Rivero and came around to score on Yolmer Sánchez's grounder to first, cutting the deficit in half.

The River Cats extended their lead adding on two more in the fifth with three consecutive hits to start the inning as Luis Matos led off with a solo shot to center while Bryce Eldridge drove in Grant McCray with an RBI double.

For the second time in the game, the Bees cut the River Cats' lead in half-this time on a two-out, opposite-field home run by Matthew Lugo to make it 4-2 after seven innings.

The Bees bullpen held Sacramento scoreless from the sixth through the eighth, but the 15.2-inning scoreless streak came to an end in the ninth. The River Cats batted around, sending 11 to the plate and scoring five runs on just two hits while taking six walks. Devin Mann opened the damage with a two-run double, and Grant McCray delivered the dagger with a two-run single to stretch the Sacramento lead to 9-2.

Salt Lake showed signs of life in the bottom of the ninth, snapping the Sacramento bullpen's hitless outing as Niko Kavadas crushed his team-leading 13th home run of the season. The rally continued with a walk from Carter Kieboom and a double to center by Chad Stevens, putting two in scoring position with one out. But the threat fizzled after J.D. Davis struck out and Scott Alexander entered to induce a game-ending flyout from Tucker Flint, sealing the 9-3 final.

Game Notes

Salt Lake dropped game five of the series moving to 28-45 on the year and falling to 3-2 in the series.

The Bees were held to single-digit hits for the fourth straight game, managing just five-marking the 10th time this season they've been limited to five or fewer, with four of those coming against Sacramento.

Salt Lake scored three runs on Saturday night, marking the sixth time in the last nine games they've been held to five or fewer. It was also the fifth time this season they've been limited to three or fewer runs against the River Cats, dropping to 1-29 when scoring three or less.

The Bees bullpen extended its scoreless streak to a season-best 15.2 innings before the River Cats broke through with five two-out runs in the ninth. Endrys Briceño and Jack Dashwood combined for three shutout innings out of the pen-Briceño's first scoreless outing of the season and Dashwood's sixth consecutive scoreless appearance. Since May 14, Dashwood holds a stellar 0.71 ERA in 12.2 innings pitched.

Niko Kavadas launched his team-leading 13th home run of the season in the ninth, extending his on-base streak to 12 games-the third time this year he's reached that mark. He's now reached safely in 41 of his last 44 games. Kavadas also drew a walk for the fourth straight game, giving him seven in the series and 51 on the season, ranking third in the PCL behind Alex Freeland (54) and Zack Short (53).

Kyren Paris recorded his third triple of the season-setting a new Triple-A career high-while going 1-for-4 on the night. The hit snapped a three-game hitless streak and marked Salt Lake's 23rd triple of the year, second-most in the Pacific Coast League behind Albuquerque's 27.

Matthew Lugo extended his hitting streak to five games, belting his fifth home run of the season and finishing 1-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored. Lugo is now one homer shy of matching his Triple-A career high, having hit six last season between Worcester and Salt Lake.

Dakota Hudson saw his 2-0 record against Sacramento come to an end, falling to 3-4 on the season with the loss Saturday night. Despite the outcome, Hudson recorded a season-high eight strikeouts-his most in a game since June 20, 2023, with Memphis against Iowa. He allowed four runs on nine hits, marking his third straight outing giving up at least eight hits while logging five or more strikeouts for the fifth time in 11 starts.

Up Next

Salt Lake and Sacramento will wrap up the series on Sunday afternoon as Brett Kerry will go for the second time in the series facing off against Juan Mercedes as the Bees will become the Abejas as we highlight the various cultural aspects of the U.S. Hispanic and Latino community. Copa de la Diversión is an initiative by Minor League Baseball to promote the sport and connect teams with Hispanic/Latino communities. First pitch is slated for 12:05 p.m. at The Ballpark at America First Square.

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