Three Up Three Down as River Cats and Rainiers Split Six

Sacramento opened the series by grabbing the first three games, only to watch Tacoma answer with three straight victories of its own. The result was a six-game split that changed personality several times, from early offense to late rallies to a pitching duel and, finally, a Tacoma bullpen clinic.

TUE. 18 - Sacramento 9, Tacoma 5 | W Ryan Walker | L Gunner Mayer | Save None

Sacramento struck first and built a 5-1 lead through three innings, with Will Brennan supplying a two-run homer and Marcelo Mayer driving in another run. Tacoma answered with four runs in the fourth, using three straight singles, a sacrifice fly, two bases-loaded free passes and a hit batter to pull even at 5-5. Sacramento moved back ahead when Nate Furman drew a bases-loaded walk in the bottom half. Two more runs scored in the sixth after an attempted double-play throw got away, and Bo Davidson added an RBI double in the seventh. Ryan Walker earned the win while Gunner Mayer took the loss.

WED. 19 - Sacramento 9, Tacoma 6 | W Alex Carrillo | L Peyton Alford | Save None

For more than five innings, Sacramento could not put a runner on base. Houston Roth threw three perfect innings and Peyton Alford kept the streak going until Diego Velasquez doubled with one out in the sixth. Two batters later, Scott Bandura turned the game with a three-run homer that gave Sacramento a 3-2 lead. The River Cats then scored six times in the seventh, with Grant McCray, Will Brennan, Adrián Sugastey, Furman and Bandura all contributing run-producing hits. Tacoma scored four times over the final two innings, but the early perfection had turned into Sacramento’s fourth straight victory.

THU. 20 - Sacramento 2, Tacoma 1 | W Cesar Perdomo | L Gabe Mosser | Save Eric Cerantola

Cesar Perdomo controlled the third game with seven scoreless innings, retiring the final 17 hitters he faced. Sacramento broke a scoreless tie in the fifth when Furman delivered an RBI single, then Davidson added a solo homer in the sixth. Gabe Mosser was strong for Tacoma, allowing two runs over six innings while scattering nine hits. Michael Arroyo prevented the shutout with a leadoff homer in the ninth, cutting the margin to one, but Eric Cerantola finished the inning for the save. Sacramento had won three straight and appeared to have command of the series.

FRI. 21 - Tacoma 6, Sacramento 5 | W Reid VanScoter | L Alex Carrillo | Save Troy Watson

The series shifted in the fourth game. Sacramento led 3-0 after two innings, helped by an Adrián Sugastey solo homer, but Tacoma erased the deficit in the fifth. Davidson put Sacramento back ahead 4-3 with a solo homer, only for Tacoma to tie the game again in the seventh. Lazaro Montes then supplied the decisive swing, launching a two-run homer in the eighth for a 6-4 lead. Eddys Leonard answered with an RBI double in the bottom half, but Tacoma protected the one-run edge. The victory also gave Rainiers manager John Russell his 300th win with Tacoma.

SAT. 22 - Tacoma 15, Sacramento 11 | W Troy Taylor | L Braxton Roxby | Save None

The fifth game became the offensive centerpiece of the series. Tacoma finished with 18 hits and four home runs, but Sacramento still managed a seven-run fifth inning that turned a 7-3 deficit into a 10-7 advantage. Tacoma immediately tied the game on J.P. Crawford’s three-run homer in the sixth. The Rainiers moved ahead in the seventh, then scored four more in the eighth, highlighted by Andy Ibáñez’s two-run homer and Nolan Jones’ two-run double. Montes reached base in all five of his plate appearances, while Ryan Bliss and Crawford each collected three hits. Sacramento scored once in the ninth, but the comeback stopped there.

SUN. 23 - Tacoma 3, Sacramento 1 | W Domingo González | L Seth Lonsway | Save Troy Watson

Tacoma finished the series by limiting Sacramento to one run on three hits. Michael Arroyo drove in the first run in the third, Stuart Fairchild doubled home another in the fourth, and Ryan Bliss homered to lead off the fifth. Sacramento’s lone run came on a Shay Whitcomb RBI single in the fourth. From there, Tacoma’s relievers allowed little room for a response. Domingo González worked a perfect seventh and recorded the first out of the eighth, while Troy Watson retired Sacramento in order on seven pitches in the ninth for his second save of the series. Three Sacramento wins followed by three Tacoma wins left the clubs exactly where six games of back-and-forth baseball had taken them: even.