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PCL Tacoma Rainiers

Stout Stout On Sunday To Finish First

June 26, 2023 - Pacific Coast League (PCL)
Tacoma Rainiers News Release


Tacoma Rainiers' Eric Stout in action
Tacoma Rainiers' Eric Stout in action
(Tacoma Rainiers, Credit: Jeff Halstead)

El Paso, TX - Left-hander Eric Stout was superb on Sunday over five shutout innings in a spot start out of Tacoma's bullpen, as the Rainiers (37-38) finished the first half of the Pacific Coast League season with a 7-2 victory over the El Paso Chihuahuas (32-43). Concluding a 3-3 road trip, Tacoma's success in getaway days continued; the Rainiers improved to 8-4 on Sunday this season, and have won eight of their last 10 series finales.

For the third time in six games during the week at El Paso, Tacoma hit four homers. The power surge resumed in the first inning on Sunday with a Cade Marlowe solo shot to right-center, his seventh home run and third of the trip. Marlowe walked his next time up, and reached base in 10 consecutive plate appearances dating to Friday (triple, consecutive two-run homers, four straight singles, walk, solo homer, walk).

The lone tally was enough for Stout to leave with a lead and ultimately earn a winning decision in his second start of the season. Over 5.0 scoreless IP he surrendered only two hits, did not walk a batter and struck out eight (73 pitches, 48 strikes).

Tacoma's lead grew to 2-0 in the sixth; Brian O'Keefe doubled to right field with one out and scored when Taylor Trammell reached on an error. El Paso scored with the aid of an error and wild pitch in the seventh, making it again a one-run affair, but only briefly.

Chihuahuas southpaw Ryan Weathers was excellent in defeat (6.0 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 10 K), before Tacoma did most of their damage against the El Paso bullpen. The 10 strikeouts were a career-high for Weathers (101 pitches, 62 strikes).

The Rainiers went ahead 3-1 in the eighth, after O'Keefe (game-high 3 hits) began a two-out, bases empty rally with a single to left. Trammell walked and Jake Scheiner singled up the middle, scoring O'Keefe. Again the Chihuahuas trimmed the lead to a single run; former Rainier Luis Liberato muscled his seventh homer over the right-center wall, with nobody on in the home eighth.

In El Paso, where runs can be plentiful in the altitude and games can change on a dime, the Rainiers left nothing to chance in the visiting ninth. Tacoma homered three times (all to CF): Mason McCoy's ninth (second of road trip) was a two-run blast (Cooper Hummel HBP), and with two out, O'Keefe (13, second of trip) and Trammell (10) went back-to-back for the evening's final scoring plays and the eventual final score of 7-2. O'Keefe has homered in consecutive games played and Trammell has 13 home runs total as well, including his three in the Majors. Trammell, who homered three times in Thursday's 8-6 win, has gone yard five times in four games. Marlowe (403 feet) and Trammell (444 feet) hit the two furthest-traveling baseballs of the contest.

Tacoma has now hit back-to-back jacks in three consecutive games (Marlowe-O'Keefe on Friday, Trammell-Zach DeLoach on Saturday and O'Keefe-Trammell on Sunday).

Rainiers right-handers Taylor Williams (0.2 IP, 0 BB) and Matt Festa (1.0 IP, HBP, 0 BB) each worked scoreless, hitless outings with a strikeout to end it; Festa lowered his ERA to 0.67 in 27.0 Triple-A innings this season (2 ER). Those numbers pair nicely with his 0.70 WHIP with Tacoma, as PCL hitters are batting a meager .103 off Festa over his 23 appearances. El Paso mustered only three hits on Sunday, and Tacoma did not issue a walk as a staff for the third time this year (second time with 0 BB since Friday).

All PCL clubs are off on Monday and Tuesday. The second half starts on Wednesday (6/28), and will commence in Tacoma at 6:05 PT against the Salt Lake Bees, beginning a six-game homestand through July 3.

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.

Check out the Tacoma Rainiers Statistics




Images from this story

Tacoma Rainiers' Eric Stout in action
Tacoma Rainiers' Eric Stout in action
(Jeff Halstead)		   



Pacific Coast League Stories from June 26, 2023


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