Tacoma Rainiers Game Notes - vs. El Paso
July 18, 2025 - Pacific Coast League (PCL)
Tacoma Rainiers News Release
TODAY'S GAME - 7/18 vs. El Paso
FIRST PITCH - 7:05 PM (PT) at Cheney Stadium - Tacoma, WA
PITCHING MATCHUP - Tacoma RHP Casey Lawrence (3-2, 4.29) vs. El Paso LHP Wes Benjamin (3-5, 5.93)
ROSTER MOVES: The Tacoma Rainiers, in conjunction with the Seattle Mariners, have made the following roster moves:
ADD C Harry Ford (#6) - reinstated from the Temporary Inactive List
ADD LHP Josh Fleming (#21) - reinstated from the Temporary Inactive List
ADD LHP Tayler Saucedo (#16) - optioned to Tacoma
DEL RHP Michael Mariot - placed on the Development List
DEL C Jacob Nottingham - placed on the Development List
DEL RHP Daniel Bard - Retired
BROADCAST - TV: Bally Live App/MiLB.TV RADIO - KIXI 880
THE RAINIERS: Come out of the All-Star Break with a nine-game homestand, opening a three-game series tonight against El Paso, the only trip for the Chihuahuas to Tacoma this year...the Rainiers went into the All-Star Break by taking five out of six games from the Reno Aces, plating eight runs in the ninth inning to take a 13-9 victory in the finale...the win gives Tacoma a 1.0 game lead in the second half PCL standings...Tacoma took a 2-0 lead in the first inning as Samad Taylor scored on a groundout and Tyler Locklear crossed home plate by way of a Reno error...after the Aces tied the game in the bottom of the fourth inning, Tacoma took the lead back in the top of the fifth thanks to back-to-back doubles from Leody Taveras and Spencer Packard to lead 4-2...the Aces scored three runs in the seventh inning to take a 5-4 lead, but the Rainiers responded right away with the tying run in the eighth inning as Blake Hunt cracked his fourth home run of the season...the Rainiers broke the game open in the ninth inning, plating eight runs...a bases-loaded walk to Locklear, along with a three-run triple from Taveras and a Jack López three-run home run gave Tacoma a 13-5 lead...the Aces rallied four runs in the ninth, but that was as close as they'd get in a 13-9 Rainiers' victory.
RHYLAN CRUISES AT CHENEY: As the Rainiers come out of the All-Star Break with their next nine games at home, OF Rhylan Thomas will look to continue his hot hitting at Cheney Stadium...Thomas is hitting .345 (59x171) in 44 home games this season, the fourth-best home batting average of any PCL hitter...Thomas' .345 average is the third-best for any Rainier in a single season at Cheney Stadium (minimum 150 at-bats)...he trails only the .355 (76x214) that Matt Mangini hit in 2010 and the .392 (65x166) that Shin-Soo Choo hit in 2006...Thomas' 59 hits at Cheney Stadium are currently tied for the 25th-most by a Rainier since 2005, 20 shy of the 79 hits Bryan LaHair recorded in 2007.
TAVERAS FOR THREE: In Sunday's 13-9 victory over Reno, OF Leody Taveras recorded his second bases-loaded triple of the season as part of Tacoma's eight-run ninth inning... ...he is the only Triple-A player and just one of three minor leaguers to collect multiple bases-loaded triples this season...he's only the second Rainier since 2005 to log multiple bases-loaded triples (also: Matt Mangini, May 31, 2010 and June 27, 2011, both at Las Vegas)...Taveras is the first Rainier (since 2005) to hit two in the same season.
SAMAD STUNS AGAIN: Samad Taylor followed up his big birthday performance by reaching base in all six plate appearances on Saturday night in Reno...Taylor is just the fourth Triple-A player this season to reach base in all six plate appearances and just the eighth Rainier to do so since 2005...the last Rainier to accomplish the feat was Sam Haggerty, who did so on August 1, 2023, one of two times he reached all six times that season...Taylor is one of two Triple-A players this season to do so with three hits and three walks and also one of two to record multiple extra-base hits in the game.
RIVAS ON A ROLL: INF Leo Rivas is on a 23-game on-base streak (dating back to June 15), tying Harry Ford (April 9-May 14) for the longest by a Rainier this season...over the streak Rivas is hitting .416 (32x77) with two doubles, one triple and five home runs, driving in 19 and while drawing 20 walks, owning a 1.210 OPS...Rivas is also on a season-best, 15-game hitting streak, dating back to June 25...in that time, Rivas has hit .464 (26x56) with two doubles and three home runs, driving in 13...since Rivas' first game since being optioned to Tacoma on June 3, he is the PCL leader in on-base percentage at .481, ranking fifth in the PCL with 24 walks and with a .346 batting average, ranking sixth with a 1.019 OPS
JULY JAMMING: Since the calendar turned to July, the Rainiers have been one of the best teams in Triple-A, going 10-2, best record in the circuit...offensively, Tacoma leads all Triple-A teams with a .313 batting average, 120 runs, 139 hits, 79 walks drawn and with a .422 on-base percentage...the Rainiers' .879 OPS in July is the third-best in Triple-A...on the mound, the Rainiers' 29 walks issued are the fewest in Triple-A.
SAMAD STANDS ALONE: UTL Samad Taylor, who leads the PCL with 75 runs scored, is the only Triple-A player (and one of two in the minor leaguers - GBO's Konnor Griffin), to record 15 doubles, 10 home runs, 50 RBI, 20 steals and 70 runs scored...the only Major League player to amass those totals this season is Elly De La Cruz...Taylor, who amassed those totals in 2024 (19 2B, 11 HR, 75 RBI, 50 SB, 93R) is one of only three Rainiers in the last 20 years to accomplish that feat in a season, joining Mason McCoy, who did so in 2022, and Shin-Soo Choo, who did so in 2005...Taylor is one of two Triple-A players since 2005 to get to that mark in 90 games, the other being Collin Cowgill, who did so for Reno in 2011.
TYLER'S LOCKED IN: INF Tyler Locklear is on a season-best, 11-game hitting streak that dates back to July 1...in that time, Locklear is hitting .447 (21x47) with four doubles, three home runs and 18 RBI...since June 1, Locklear's 10 home runs are the second-most in the PCL,, his 48 hits are the third most, his 22 extra-base hits are tied for the second-most and his 40 RBI are the third-most... since June 1, he ranks fourth in the league in slugging percentage at .650 and third with a 1.078 OPS
MARINERS UPDATE: The Seattle Mariners had a busy All-Star Break as they drafted Kade Anderson with the third overall pick on Sunday... Cal Raleigh won the Home Run Derby on Monday night, beating Junior Caminero in the finals...Raleigh is the first former Rainier to win the derby since Ken Griffey Jr. (who appeared with Tacoma in 1995 on a Major League rehab assignment) won the 1999 derby...in the All-Star Game on Tuesday, Raleigh went 1-for-2, Randy Arozarena went 0-for-3, while Bryan Woo threw a perfect inning of relief and Andres Muñoz retired two of the three batters he faced, but the National League won 7-6 in the home run derby finish.
Pacific Coast League Stories from July 18, 2025
- Tacoma Rides Eight-Run Second Inning to Victory Over El Paso - Tacoma Rainiers
- OKC Comets Earn 5-2 win Over Sacramento River Cats - Oklahoma City Comets
- Albuquerque Drops Series-Opener to Reno, 15-1 - Albuquerque Isotopes
- English Homers Twice, Giesting Deals as Aces Steamroll Isotopes in 15-1 Win - Reno Aces
- Alexander's Dominant Start Leads Sugar Land to Shutout Win - Sugar Land Space Cowboys
- Salt Lake Suffers Second Consecutive Shutout in 2-0 Loss to Sugar Land - Salt Lake Bees
- Tacoma Rainiers Game Notes - vs. El Paso - Tacoma Rainiers
- OKC Comets Game Notes - July 18, 2025 - Oklahoma City Comets
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
