Adam Moore’s three-run homer and the Rainiers outstanding bullpen may have been the biggest factors in Tacoma’s 8-2 win over Salt Lake on Saturday night – but everybody is talking about Carlos Peguero’s home run.
Leading off the second inning against Sale Lake starter Eric Hurley, Peguero launched our first true tape-measure home run of the season, sending a drive deep down the right field line.
The ball soared high over the fence, cleared the little road behind the right field wall, went over the hill and some trees atop it, and landed on the elevated surface of the Foss High School track and football field.
I didn’t believe my eyes at first. I figured it must have crashed into those trees that grow on the hill, to the right of the tennis courts. But I didn’t see the ball hit the trees… and then, a few minutes later, a man appeared up on top of the hill on the track, waving the baseball in his hand.
It was an amazing blast – one of the deepest we have seen to the right field side of Cheney in recent years. I was immediately reminded of a home run I didn’t see – I had to miss a series against Colorado Springs in 2009, and when I got back the first thing everybody told me was that Bryan LaHair had homered into the tennis courts.
If the fan who emerged with the baseball reads this blog – where did you find it? Give us the scoop!
And speaking of fans… the person who took this action shot of Peguero’s swing should win some sort of award.
It’s no surprise that Peguero hit this bomb. Last season he hit one in Salt Lake City that my hastily assembled three-man panel of experts measured at 507 feet.
Oh yeah – the rest of the game. Moore lined a three-run shot in the third, knocking out Hurley and giving Tacoma a 6-1 lead. Oliver Perez made his Tacoma debut, tossing three impressive innings, throwing strikes and hitting 93 mph on the gun. Chance Ruffin closed it out with two scoreless frames in his own Rainiers debut.
It was a good night.
Tacoma tries to make it three straight wins and a series win in a day game today at 1:35. The forecast is for snow…. Forrest Snow, that is. The right-hander will face Salt Lake LHP Brad Mills, the change-up artist who was with Las Vegas the last two seasons. Pre-game starts at 1:20 and we’ll have the broadcast on 850 AM and streaming online right here.
Links:
- Leading off is the Rainiers game story from The News Tribune. Doug Pacey focused on the hitting heroics of Carlos Peguero.
- You just can’t stop Chone Figgins and the Mariners offensive juggernaut – the beat Oakland 8-7 last night. The Mariners are 3-1!
- John McGrath and I both love baseball box scores. True story: box scores are the only reason I purchase an actual, physical copy of a newspaper these days.
- Larry Stone’s first Sunday baseball package is up – his notebook, power rankings, and thumbs up-and-down.
- In the PCL, Reno got an excellent start from Joe Martinez but ended up losing to Colorado Springs, 5-2. Tacoma and Reno are both 2-1.
- Sacramento beat up on Las Vegas yesterday. The Vegas newspaper focused on reigning PCL batting champ David Cooper.
- The Fresno Bee is debating the greatest players in Fresno’s PCL history. They’ve been in the league for 14 years now.
- Big first baseman Mike Bianucci is red-hot for Round Rock – he’s homered in three straight games. But so has Matt Adams of Memphis…
- New Orleans went to 3-0 on the year with another win over Nashville.
- I was surprised to see former Rainiers reliever Jared Wells turn up on the Colorado Springs Sky Sox roster. The 30-year-old has tossed one scoreless inning so far.
- Here’s an update on injured former Rainiers star Mike Morse.
- Happy 26th birthday to former Rainiers ace Felix Hernandez!
Off to the ballpark for our first day game of the season.
