Tacoma Rainiers Game Notes: vs. Salt Lake (6:05 p.m.)
April 5, 2022 - Pacific Coast League (PCL)
Tacoma Rainiers News Release
The Pacific Coast League is BACK with a 150-game schedule in 2022.
Tacoma Rainiers (0-0) vs. Salt Lake Bees (0-0)
Tuesday, April 5, 2022, 6:05 p.m. PT | Cheney Stadium: Tacoma, WA
RHP Darren McCaughan vs. RHP Janson Junk
TIMMY!: For a consecutive season, the Rainiers will be led on Opening Day by a manager in his first year at the position. (2021 manager Kristopher Negron is now Seattle Mariners 1B coach.) Tim Federowicz (catcher) is a veteran of over 1,000 professional games (7th round draft pick of the Red Sox in 2007), including 163 in Majors with the Dodgers, Cubs, Giants, Astros, Reds and Rangers from 2011-19. Like Negron, Federowicz has transitioned into coaching direct from the playing field, splitting last season between the Triple-A OKC Dodgers and the United States Olympic Team, where he picked up a silver medal at the Tokyo games alongside 2021 Rainiers outfielder Eric Filia.
As a collegian at the University of North Carolina, Federowicz helped guide the Tar Heels to the College World Series in each of the three years he played (2006-08). At UNC, he was teammates with future Mariners Kyle Seager and Dustin Ackley. He also played against the Rainiers (26 games) with Albuquerque, El Paso, Iowa, Sacramento, Fresno and Nashville.
MISTERS WORLDWIDE: The 2022 Rainiers coaching staff features two members born outside of the United States, each with extensive experience on their native country's national team. Pitching coach Alon Leichman has been both a player and coach for Team Israel in the Olympics, World Baseball Classic, and numerous other European tournaments, a native of Kibbutz Gezer, Israel.
Hitting coach Brad Marcelino was born in Great Britain (Essex, England), lived in the UK until he was 11 years old, and first played in international competition for the British National Team when he was 17 in 1999. As of 2022, he is the all-time leader in games played for the British National Team. More information on both Leichman and Marcelino can be found on pages 12-13 of the 2022 Tacoma Rainiers media guide.
A WINNING BUZZ: Salt Lake is one of three current PCL member cities that the Tacoma franchise (est. 1960) has an all-time winning record against (363-349-1, since 1960); the others are Las Vegas (284-275, since 1983) and Round Rock (44-26, since 2005).
The Rainiers won 11 of their final 13 meetings against the Bees last season.
PACIFIC TIME: The "Pacific Coast League" moniker has been restored to the circuit the Rainiers are the defending champion of. In the aftermath of the 2021 re-organization of Minor League Baseball by MLB, affiliated leagues temporarily adopted generic names, and Tacoma will be the lone "Triple-A West" Champion. Despite the one-off named season, the PCL and its history/records remains one continuous league, including 2021 (established in 1903).
EAST MEETS WEST: The two anchors of the Rainiers' 2021 championship lineup have each moved on to lucrative roster spots in Nippon Professional Baseball, the Japanese Major Leagues. 2021 Triple-A West MVP 1B/OF Jose Marmolejos is with the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles. 2021 Rainiers Team MVP 3B Jantzen Witte joined the Saitama Seibu Lions.
LOCAL JUNK: Tonight's Salt Lake starting pitcher Janson Junk is a native of Federal Way, WA and a graduate of Decatur High School, its first alum to reach the Major Leagues. Junk pitched three seasons at Seattle University (2015-17) before being the Yankees' 22nd round draft pick in 2017. Last season on July 30, Junk was traded by the Yankees to the Angels while at Double-A, in a trade deadline deal along with RHP Elvis Peguero in exchange for RHP Andrew Heaney.
Junk's contract was selected by the Angels on September 3 for the remainder of the MLB season. The now 26-year-old made four starts down the stretch (vs. TEX, @ CHW, vs. HOU, @ TEX) in his big league debut. Entering this season Junk owned a 3.87 minor league ERA over 69 appearances (46 starts) and 281.2 MiLB IP (259 K).
LA FAMILIA DE TACOMA: The Rainiers' opening day roster features nine players who played for Tacoma last season: RHP Darren McCaughan, LHP Ian McKinney, RHP Penn Murfee, INF Kevin Padlo, OF Taylor Trammell, OF Marcus Wilson, RHP Fred Villarreal, INF Donnie Walton and RHP Asher Wojciechowski. That number may grow in the coming days as MLB spring training ends and that season begins. OF Dillon Thomas and RHP Zack Weiss, both of the 2021 championship Rainiers as well, are each expected to see action in this series for Salt Lake, after signing with the Angels as free agents this past offseason.
Pacific Coast League Stories from April 5, 2022
- Space Cowboys Game Notes at SAC - Sugar Land Space Cowboys
- Tacoma Rainiers Game Notes: vs. Salt Lake (6:05 p.m.) - Tacoma Rainiers
- El Paso Chihuahuas Announce 2022 Opening Day Roster - El Paso Chihuahuas
- Opening Day Roster Set for 2022 Salt Lake Bees - Salt Lake Bees
- OKC Dodgers Game Notes - April 5, 2022 - Oklahoma City Comets
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