Tacoma Rainiers Game Notes: at Reno (6:35 p.m. PT)
May 31, 2022 - Pacific Coast League (PCL)
Tacoma Rainiers News Release
Tacoma Rainiers (16-31) @ Reno Aces (26-22)
Tuesday, May 31, 2022, 6:35 p.m. PT | Greater Nevada Field: Reno, NV
LHP Tommy Milone (1-0, 1.17) vs. LHP Tommy Henry (2-2, 4.14)
MORE LIKE _ELENIC: Rainiers OF Jarred Kelenic has struck out only twice in his last 20 at-bats, and following a torrid 10-for-19 homestand (hit in all 5 games, May 24-29) with 2 HR, 6 RBI, 2 BB and 7 runs, he's raised his average to .348 in 11 games since being optioned to Tacoma on May 13. His OPS is 1.052 (.400/.652) since.
HE'S AN O'K PLAYER: Tacoma catcher Brian O'Keefe has reached base with either a walk or base hit in 16 of the 17 games he's played this season, after returning from a broken hamate bone on 4/27 at Las Vegas. O'Keefe is batting .310 with a .971 OPS (.437/.534), with two home runs and 12 walks since returning to action. This is his second season in the Seattle Mariners organization, a 2019 Rule 5 Draft selection (minor league phase) from the St. Louis Cardinals.
IT AIN'T EASY BEING: Tacoma corner infielder Zach Green is leading the Rainiers with 31 RBI (T-7th PCL), 19 extra-base hits (T-9th) and nine home runs (T-10th).
A TRIPLE-A RANKING: Of the 30 clubs at the highest level of Minor League Baseball, the Rainiers are second in stolen bases with 71 (Buffalo, 74), tied for fourth in home runs (66 with Sacramento; El Paso and Memphis have 75) and are one of 14 teams with at least 10 triples.
DARREN DAY (IS TOMORROW): On the eve of his next start (and club-high 10th), Rainiers RHP Darren McCaughan is leading the PCL in innings pitched with 49.1, and is striking out just shy of a batter per inning (48 K, T-5th PCL).
COULDN'T ROLL ME A SEVEN: Despite the Rainiers winning the division by five games over second-place Reno last season, at 82-123 (.400) since 2009, the Aces are by far Tacoma's worst matchup in that span, since the Reno franchise relocated from Tucson, Arizona following the 2008 season. Last season, Tacoma posted a winning record at Greater Nevada Field for the first time, on their 12th try.
SIX IN THE (BIGGEST LITTLE) CITY: Tacoma has dropped all but one of their series this season; seven series of six games and they lost the final four of their rain-shortened five-game set at home last week against Las Vegas. The Rainiers lone week-long triumph of 2022 to date was taking four of six at Sacramento from May 17-22, which included Tacoma's first three-game win streak (May 19-21).
This tough opening stretch is in stark contrast to how last season ended; Tacoma's 9/27/21 loss at Round Rock during the "Triple-A Final Stretch" marked their first losing series (2-3) since losing four of six vs. Reno, July 1-6. Prior to, the Rainiers had tied or won 11 consecutive six-game series, and compiled a 50-28 record after July 8, en route to the 2021 "Triple-A West" regular season championship. Tacoma finished 2021 winning or tying 12 of 13 series.
The six-game series was first introduced during the pandemic-shortened 2021 season. The Rainiers will play their first three game series on this road trip (June 7-9 at Salt Lake) since the 2019 season: August 19-21, 2019 vs. Salt Lake at Cheney Stadium was shortened to two games (rain). Tacoma was swept in three games during their most recent visit to Oklahoma City, August 7-9, 2019. The Rainiers will host Round Rock for only three games June 10-12; Tacoma's most recent three-gamer at Cheney Stadium was taking two of three from Omaha July 30 through August 1, 2019.
HOT START: Tacoma is 4-0 in road series openers this season, accounting for a quarter of their 16 wins (4/12 at Albuquerque, 4/26 at Las Vegas, 5/3 at Salt Lake and 5/17 at Sacramento).
A LOT OF BASEBALL TO BE PLAYED: At 16-31, Tacoma does not have the worst record in Triple-A entering today's action: They're a half-game better than 15-31 Syracuse (International League) and only a half game worse than Charlotte and Louisville (17-31), also of the IL. At a .340 winning %, the Rainiers are just below a 100-loss pace in 2022, following the expansion of the Triple-A schedule to 150 games.
The most recent MiLB-affiliated team to lose 100 games was the 1996 Bakersfield Blaze of the then Class A-Advanced California League, who went 39-101. Managed by Yankees great Graig Nettles, that Bakersfield club was a co-op team, meaning they received players from 11 different organizations to fill out their roster over the course of the season, when such things were still allowed. The '96 Blaze lost their final 22 games of the year, still a Cal League record.
UNI WATCH: The 2022 Tacoma Rainiers have the following win-loss record by uniform top: Home white (5-7), red (7-14), navy blue (1-2), road grey (2-3), "La Familia de Tacoma" (1-2, Copa de la Diversion), speciality auction (0-3).
Pacific Coast League Stories from May 31, 2022
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- Tacoma Rainiers Game Notes: at Reno (6:35 p.m. PT) - Tacoma Rainiers
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- Hunter Brown Named Pacific Coast League Pitcher of the Week - Sugar Land Space Cowboys
- National Transplant Games Athlete and Liver Recipient to Run Bases at June 3 Reno Aces Game - Reno Aces
- Liberato's Slam Helps Chihuahuas Take Series Opener - El Paso Chihuahuas
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