Tacoma Rainiers Game Notes: at Salt Lake (5:35 PT)
May 2, 2023 - Pacific Coast League (PCL)
Tacoma Rainiers News Release
Tacoma Rainiers (14-12) @ Salt Lake Bees (11-16)
Tuesday, May 2, 2023, 5:35p.m. PT | Smith's Ballpark: Salt Lake City, UT
RHP Konner Wade vs. LHP Kenny Rosenberg
THE OPEN-R: The Rainiers are continuing last year's trend of starting series on a high note. Tacoma is 4-1 in 2023 lid-lifters (2-1 road), after going 18-9 in opening games a season ago (primarily six-game series). The Rainiers were 11-3 in road series openers last season, and 9-2 in road trip-opening games.
ORGAN-EYE-ZATION: The four full-season Seattle Mariners MiLB affiliates finished April with a combined record of 53-35 and a +96 run differential (Tacoma, Double-A Arkansas, High-A Everett and Class A Modesto). Only Dodgers (59-31) and Cubs (52-34) affiliates had a better opening month than the Mariners farm clubs. Seattle affiliates also went 31-12 in home games, best by four wins; Cubs' clubs went 27-15 (Rainiers were 9-2 at Cheney Stadium).
ON THE WONG SIDE: Rainiers infielder Kean Wong, the younger brother of Mariners second baseman Kolten Wong, was a frequent thorn in Tacoma's side as a member of the Salt Lake Bees (LAA) the last two seasons. Wong was a .352 hitter against Tacoma in 2021 and 2022 (50-for-142), homered 2x and drove in 21 runs against the Rainiers over 34 games the last two years. Kean signed with Seattle on 2/18/23 as a non-roster invitee to MLB Spring Training, and enters this series on a seven-game hit streak.
A FAMILIAR BUZZ: Right-handed reliever Zack Weiss (30 G) and infielder Kevin Padlo (26 GP) were each members of Tacoma's 2021 championship club. Padlo is the most recent Rainier to homer in four consecutive games, from September 5-13, 2021 around a call-up to Seattle, and played in 38 more games for Tacoma last season. Weiss debuted as a Major Leaguer with Cincinnati in 2018, and got into 12 MLB games with Los Angeles-AL last season. The well-traveled Padlo is a veteran of 23 big league games since his debut in 2021, with Tampa Bay, Seattle, San Francisco and Pittsburgh.
AMERICAN HONEY: Salt Lake (City) is one of five current Pacific Coast League locales that the Tacoma Triple-A franchise (est. 1960) has an all-time non-losing record against. The current iteration of the franchise joined the PCL in 1994, and has also been known as the "Buzz" and "Stingers" prior to Bees. Tacoma is 378-364-1 against all teams from SLC, since 1960. The Tacoma Tigers (Oakland A's) played against the Buzz in 1994 (10-6), before the Rainiers era and Seattle affiliation began in 1995.
IT'S BEEN DRIVEN BY FORD, LATELY: With three more homers and nine RBI last week at Las Vegas, Mike Ford sits atop the PCL leaderboard with 39 RBI already (24 GP); Las Vegas's Cody Thomas is second with 33. Ford leads the league in slugging at .730 with a robust 1.169 OPS (4th) and nine home runs, which ties Salt Lake's Trey Cabbage for second in the PCL; the Bees' Jo Adell (10 HR) tops the circuit. Ford has 16 extra-base hits (T-3rd) and 65 total bases (4th).
Ford's career-high 86 RBI came in 2017, over 126 games between Double-A Trenton and Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, with the New York Yankees organization.
YOU DOWN WITH OBP?: Tacoma ranks second in the Pacific Coast League with a .402 team on-base percentage (Reno, .407). Tacoma's 182 walks in 26 games (7 per game) lead all of Triple-A baseball, by *25* (El Paso, 157).
ET TU BB?: Tacoma infielder Cesar Hernandez already has four 3-BB games this year, is sporting a .469 OBP (22 GP), and leads all of Triple-A (by four) with 28 walks. Hernandez, a veteran of 1,186 MLB GP since 2013, won the 2020 AL second base Gold Glove, with Cleveland.
BRIAN O'FFENSE: Tacoma catcher/DH Brian O'Keefe has reached base safely in 16 of his 19 games thus far. O'Keefe is tied for fourth in the PCL in home runs with teammate Jake Scheiner (8), and is sixth in the league in slugging (.667) with a 1.071 OPS (8th).
RILEY ZERO'BRIEN: After 2.0 hitless IP with two strikeouts on Saturday (@ LV), Rainiers right-hander Riley O'Brien (0.79 ERA) has fired 9.1 shutout IP over his six most recent appearances, allowing only four hits while striking out 16 (4 BB). This stretch includes a save on 4/18 vs. El Paso at Cheney Stadium, when he inherited the bases loaded but closed an 11-7 Tacoma win with a strikeout. O'Brien also helped pitch the Rainiers to two "bullpen day" victories at Round Rock on 4/12 and 4/15, spinning 2.0 shutout IP each time as the opener, with four strikeouts and zero walks in each outing as well (3 total hits).
Pacific Coast League Stories from May 2, 2023
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- Rainiers Rally Late To Take Series Opener At Salt Lake - Tacoma Rainiers
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- Dodgers Drop Chihuahuas, 5-2 - Oklahoma City Comets
- Tuesday's Round Rock at Reno Game Postponed - Round Rock Express
- Rain in Reno Postpones Aces Series Opener against Round Rock - Reno Aces
- Tacoma Rainiers Game Notes: at Salt Lake (5:35 PT) - Tacoma Rainiers
- OKC Dodgers Game Notes - May 2, 2023 - Oklahoma City Comets
- Royce Huffman, Luke Scott to be Inducted into Round Rock Express Hall of Fame - Round Rock Express
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