Salt Lake Takes Series Opener As Injuries Hit Tacoma’s Bullpen

The Rainiers lost the opener of the homestand on Wednesday night, falling to Salt Lake 7-6 despite a strong comeback attempt in the eighth and ninth innings.

After surging to a season-best three games over the .500 mark and pulling within two games of first place, the Rainiers have taken a step back. The team has lost three in a row to settle back to 27-27 on the year. The Rainiers now trail first place Fresno by five games.

Injuries have started to hit the Tacoma bullpen. The Rainiers have lost a reliever to a mid-game injury in each of the last two games, and now the club is short in the bullpen.

On Tuesday in Las Vegas left-hander Dario Alvarez left the game mid-batter after throwing three pitches, with tightness in his lat area.

Yesterday right-hander Tucker Healy was struck in the knee by a line drive and had to be helped off the field by trainer Tom Newberg.

Neither player was immediately placed on the seven-day disabled list, but that seems imminent. Look for the Rainiers to add at least one relief pitcher from elsewhere in the organization prior to tonight’s game.

RAINIERS ROUND-UP

YESTERDAY: The Rainiers fought valiantly in a ninth inning comeback bid, but ultimately fell short in a 7-6 series-opening loss to Salt Lake on Wednesday night. John Andreoli had two hits and two walks, and Zach Vincej had two hits with a pair of RBI.

ROSTER MOVES:  Yesterday both John Andreoli and Zach Vincej joined the active roster, catcher David Freitas was recalled by Seattle, infielder Cesar Izturis Jr. was sent to extended spring training, catcher Manny Pazos joined Tacoma from extended, and outfielder Cameron Perkins was placed on the disabled list.

TODAY: Salt Lake (32-22) at Tacoma (27-27), 7:05.

OPPONENT AFFILIATION: Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

SEASONS SERIES: Salt Lake leads, 1-0.

PITCHERS: RHP Osmer Morales (3-2, 5.80) at RHP Christian Bergman (4-3, 3.57)

HOT HITTERS: Adam Law has hit safely in each of his first four Triple-A games… Jansiel Rivera has gone 5-for-9 in his first two Triple-A games… Zach Vincej is 7-for-17 with four extra-base hits in his last five games.

OPPONENT NEWS: Salt Lake leads the PCL in batting average, home runs, and runs scored – but the Bees have played 45 of 54 games in hitter’s parks, including eight each at Albuquerque and at El Paso… Jabari Blash has reached base via hit or walk in 29 straight games, and he leads the PCL with 15 home runs… David Fletcher leads the league with 22 doubles, and his 73 hits is second in Minor League Baseball… Jose Miguel Fernandez is fifth in the PCL with a .358 batting average.

FAMILIAR FACES: The Bees have three ex-Rainiers on the club: outfielder Jabari Blash, infielder Dustin Ackley, and pitcher Dylan Unsworth.

BROADCAST: The pregame show starts at 6:50 on South Sound Talk 850 AM. The broadcast also streams online via the TuneIn app – just click here.

PCL SCOREBOARD: Follow all Pacific Coast League games in real-time with links to Gameday screens right here.

Links:

• It was a rough night for Mariners pitchers on Wednesday in a 7-6 loss to Texas.
• The Mariners are trying to work through mechanical changes with Felix Hernandez.
• Gordon Beckham remade his swing during extensive offseason workouts with his father-in-law.
• Sue Kidd reviewed the Cheney Stadium concessions.
• Lookout Landing has an info-packed State Of the Farm report.
• One day after getting the save against Tacoma for Las Vegas, Puyallup native Tim Peterson made his major league debut for the New York Mets.
• Reno signed a two-year extension of its Player Development Contract with the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Around the PCL (home team in CAPS):

Fresno 12, ALBUQUERQUE 11 (11) – a wild extra innings game, with each team scoring three runs in the tenth inning before Fresno’s lone run in the top of the 11th stood up. Albuquerque catcher Jan Vazquez hit a leadoff two-run homer in the bottom of the tenth inning. Story from Albuquerque.

EL PASO 4, Sacramento 3 – shortstop Javy Guerra is pulling out of his long slump. He had two hits, including the walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the ninth.

RENO 8, Las Vegas 5 – Reno hit five homers to Las Vegas’s zero, and all five of Reno’s tater came off Las Vegas starter Aaron Laffey.

COLORADO SPRINGS 13, Iowa 3 – a six-run fifth inning opened up a close game for the Sky Sox, who had six players collect multiple hits.

Omaha 8, OKLAHOMA CITY 5 – shortstop prospect Adalberto Mondesi is finding his groove after missing most of the season to date with an injury; he had two hits including a homer.

ROUND ROCK 8, Nashville 1 – Tommy Joseph is pushing his way onto the home run leaderboard, launching No. 11 for the Express.

Memphis 3, NEW ORLEANS 2 – Redbirds starter Daniel Poncedeleon struck out eight over six innings, allowing one run. Tyler O’Neill was optioned back to Memphis today. Story from New Orleans.

It’s Bee Season At Cheney

The Rainiers open a five-game homestand against the Salt Lake Bees tonight, with first pitch set for 7:05.

This is the first game of the year between the Mariners and Angels affiliates, which will play each other 16 times this season.

Salt Lake comes into town sitting in first place in the Pacific-South division, and the team leads the league in most hitting categories. But the Bees have played all but eight of their games this season in high-elevation ballparks.

The Rainiers won their road trip to Las Vegas, but ultimately it was something of a disappointment. Tacoma won the first three games of the five-game series and had a chance to really wipe out the 51s – only to see Las Vegas win the final two games.

We’ll have baseball for you at Cheney Stadium through the weekend, with the series concluding on Sunday.

RAINIERS ROUND-UP

YESTERDAY: The Rainiers played arguably their ugliest game of the 2018 season on Tuesday in Las Vegas, and still only lost by one run, 4-3. Tacoma made three errors, hit two batters with pitches, committed two passed balls, had a runner get picked off, and even mixed in a balk. Rob Whalen pitched pretty well, allowing two earned runs in six innings, and newcomers Adam Law and Jansiel Rivera had multiple hits.

ROSTER MOVES:  There will be some moves before today’s game. Notably, John Andreoli and Zach Vincej are expected to return to the active roster.

TODAY: Salt Lake (31-22) at Tacoma (27-26), 7:05.

OPPONENT AFFILIATION: Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

SEASONS SERIES: Tonight’s game if the first of 16 between the teams.

PITCHERS: RHP Parker Bridwell (1-0, 7.71) at RHP Casey Lawrence (3-1, 2.63)

HOT HITTERS: Adam Law has had multiple hits in each of his first three Triple-A games… Jansiel Rivera has gone 5-for-9 in his first two Triple-A games… Jayson Werth was 4-for-8 with five walks and five RBI at Las Vegas; eight of his last nine hits have gone for extra bases.

OPPONENT NEWS: Salt Lake leads the PCL in batting average, home runs, and runs scored – but the Bees have played 45 of 53 games in hitter’s parks, including eight each at Albuquerque and at El Paso… Jabari Blash has reached base via hit or walk in 28 straight games… David Fletcher leads the league with 22 doubles, he’s tied with teammate Jose Miguel Fernandez for fifth in the PCL with a .351 batting average… Juan Graterol has an eight-game hitting streak.

FAMILIAR FACES: The Bees have three ex-Rainiers on the club: outfielder Jabari Blash, infielder Dustin Ackley, and pitcher Dylan Unsworth.

BROADCAST: The pregame show starts at 6:50 on South Sound Talk 850 AM. The broadcast also streams online via the TuneIn app – just click here.

PCL SCOREBOARD: Follow all Pacific Coast League games in real-time with links to Gameday screens right here.

Links:

• Here’s the Rainiers game story from the Las Vegas newspaper.
• The Mariners didn’t pitch well and actually lost a baseball game on Tuesday night.
• Despite being against the strategy in general, the Mariners lead the American League in sacrifice bunts. Manager Scott Servais explains why.

Around the PCL (home team in CAPS):

FRESNO 2, El Paso 1 – new starter Josh James tossed a gem for Fresno, allowing one run over seven innings with nine strikeouts. Tacoma is back to four games out of first.

SALT LAKE 5, Reno 3 – old pal Dustin Ackley snapped a 3-3 tie with a two-run single in the bottom of the eighth inning. Story from Salt Lake City.

SACRAMENTO 8, Albuquerque 1 – the River Cats had 16 hits, including 4-for-5 performances by Ryder Jones and Myles Schroder.

MEMPHIS 3, Colorado Springs 2 – starter Kevin Herget earned the win for Memphis, going six innings and giving up two runs.

New Orleans 5, IOWA 1 – Marlins pitching prospect Sandy Alcantara turned in another one, lasting seven inning and allowing one run. Cito Culver hit a three-run homer. The Cubs top prospect was injured in the game; Iowa visits Tacoma in two-and-a-half weeks.

Oklahoma City at NASHVILLE and Round Rock at OMAHA – both rained out.

Last Day In Vegas – Noon Start

We have a getaway-day afternoon game today in Las Vegas, with the first pitch at 12:05.

Tune in early for the pregame interview with Las Vegas 51s president Don Logan, who talks about the new ballpark currently under construction and the upcoming team name change.

The Rainiers have won three of the first four games here in Vegas. A 4-1 road trip sure would be impressive.

RAINIERS ROUND-UP

YESTERDAY: After getting beat down by Tacoma in the first three games of the five-game series, Las Vegas had its day on Monday night. The 51s hit three homers among 12 hits and took down the Rainiers, 10-2. Adam Law had two hits and scored a run for Tacoma.

ROSTER MOVES:  Yesterday the Rainiers added left-handed reliever Matt Tenuta from Double-A Arkansas, and sent catcher Manuel Pazos back to extended spring training. No moves are anticipated today.

TODAY: Tacoma (27-25) at Las Vegas (21-31), 12:05.

OPPONENT AFFILIATION: New York Mets.

SEASONS SERIES: Tacoma leads, 6-2.

PITCHERS: RHP Rob Whalen (6-2, 5.24) at RHP Drew Gagnon (0-2, 6.22)

Whalen is in a three-way tie for the league lead in wins.

HOT HITTERS: Cameron Perkins has gone 8-for-17 during a four-game hitting streak, but he injured his finger on Friday and is day-to-day… Zach Vincej is 5-for-13 with two homers and five RBI in his last four games… Dan Vogelbach has reached base in his last 12 PCL games.

OPPONENT NEWS: Mets third baseman Todd Frazier is expected to begin a rehab assignment with Las Vegas today… Matt den Dekker has been a problem for Tacoma, going 15-for-33 with two homers against Tacoma pitching this season.

FAMILIAR FACES: The 51s have added two more ex-Rainiers since we saw them last weekend, upping their total to four. Pitcher Cody Martin and outfielder Ezequiel Carrera have joined Ty Kelly and Patrick Kivlehan. The 51s still have Emerald Ridge High School graduate Tim Peterson.

BROADCAST: The pregame show starts at 11:50 on South Sound Talk 850 AM. The broadcast also streams online via the TuneIn app – just click here.

PCL SCOREBOARD: Follow all Pacific Coast League games in real-time with links to Gameday screens right here.

Links:

• We start with the Rainiers-51s game story from the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
• The Mariners won yet another one-run game, taking down Texas 2-1. That’s nine wins in ten games for the M’s.
• The numbers don’t add up, but Matt Calkins says to enjoy the run.
• M’s prospect Kyle Lewis had a big game down at Class-A Modesto.
• MiLB.com has some PCL Notes to peruse.

Around the PCL (home team in CAPS):

FRESNO 11, El Paso 2 – the Grizzlies ended their offensive woes, banging out 16 hits. Kyle Tucker was 3-for-3 with two doubles and four RBI. Story from MiLB.com.

Reno 6, SALT LAKE 1 – the Bees five-game win streak ended. Kevin Cron had three hits, a homer, and three RBI. Story from SLC.

Albuquerque 4, SACRAMENTO 2 – Isotopes starter Sam Howard allowed one run over five innings to earn the win.

IOWA 5, New Orleans 4 – after the Cakes scored twice in the top of the ninth, Iowa won it in the bottom of the inning on Bijan Rademacher‘s sacrifice fly.

MEMPHIS 2, Colorado Springs 1 – Ryan Helsley won a pitcher’s duel against Brandon Woodruff, striking out ten over seven innings. Recap from Memphis.

OMAHA 3, Round Rock 2 – Paulo Orlando went 4-for-4 with three doubles and scored two runs. Story from Omaha.

NASHVILLE 3, Oklahoma City 2 – veteran infielder Steve Lombardozzi hit a walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the ninth.

Rainiers Red Hot Despite Revolving Roster

We had a real Rosterpalooza on Sunday, with the Rainiers making eight-and-a-half transactions. Players were in transit all over the country, with one in particular landing in Las Vegas less than two hours before game time.

Despite all of this, the Rainiers went out and walloped the Las Vegas 51s, 10-4.

Roenis Elias was the key, carrying a no-hitter into the seventh inning. But Tacoma would have won with a lesser pitching performance, due to the hitting contributions of players both new and old.

The roster moves were as follows:

• Mariners called up: catcher Chris Herrmann and reliever Dan Altavilla.
• Mariners optioned to Tacoma: catcher David Freitas and first baseman Dan Vogelbach. These players are expected to arrive today.
• Mariners designated for assignment: Taylor Motter, who was claimed by the Minnesota Twins today.
• Tacoma added: infielder Adam Law from Double-A Arkansas and catcher Manuel Pazos from extended spring training. Reliever Ryan Garton was activated from the disabled list.

The half-transaction involved shortstop Zach Vincej, who was summoned to Seattle to be ready in case Jean Segura needed to go on the concussion disabled list. That situation is still pending, apparently. At any rate, Vincej was not with Tacoma yesterday, and we’ll see about today later on I guess.

Adam Law flew from Little Rock, Arkansas to Las Vegas on Sunday morning and landed at the airport less than two hours prior to first pitch. In his Triple-A debut he went 3-for-5 with a walk and scored a run. I’m hoping to get him on the pregame show today to talk about his Sunday.

Tacoma is a season-best three games over .500 and pulled within two games of first place Fresno. Fresno is struggling to find its offense after losing some key players to call-ups, and the Rainiers are closing in.

RAINIERS ROUND-UP

YESTERDAY: The kids led the way, with Adam Law and Jansiel Rivera each collecting three hits in their Triple-A debuts as the Rainiers ripped Las Vegas, 10-4. Roenis Elias carried a no-hit bid into the seventh inning before it was broken up by Patrick Kivlehan‘s line drive double; Elias went 6.2 shutout innings. Seth Mejias-Brean homered in his third straight game, and Jayson Werth added three hits and four RBI.

ROSTER MOVES:  See above for yesterday’s move. Today the Mariners added recently acquired outfielder Denard Span, and John Andreoli was optioned to Tacoma. There will be more moves before tonight’s game!

TODAY: Tacoma (27-24) at Las Vegas (20-31), 7:05.

OPPONENT AFFILIATION: New York Mets.

SEASONS SERIES: Tacoma leads, 6-1.

PITCHERS: RHP Ashton Goudeau (1-1, 5.73) at LHP Blake Taylor (–)

It’s a bullpen day for the Rainiers, while Taylor is 22-year-old starter from Class-A St. Lucie who will be making his Triple-A debut.

HOT HITTERS: Cameron Perkins has gone 8-for-17 during a four-game hitting streak, but he injured his finger on Friday and is day-to-day… Zach Vincej is 5-for-13 with two homers and five RBI in his last four games… Seth Mejias-Brean has homered in three straight games… Dan Vogelbach has reached base in his last 12 PCL games.

OPPONENT NEWS: Mets third baseman Todd Frazier is expected to being a rehab assignment with Las Vegas tonight… Matt den Dekker has been a problem for Tacoma, going 12-for-29 with a homer against Tacoma pitching this season… Phillip Evans homered Friday night, and he has hit nine of his ten homers this season at Cashman Field.

FAMILIAR FACES: The 51s have added two more ex-Rainiers since we saw them last weekend, upping their total to four. Pitcher Cody Martin and outfielder Ezequiel Carrera have joined Ty Kelly and Patrick Kivlehan. The 51s still have Emerald Ridge High School graduate Tim Peterson.

BROADCAST: The pregame show starts at 6:50 on South Sound Talk 850 AM. The broadcast also streams online via the TuneIn app – just click here.

PCL SCOREBOARD: Follow all Pacific Coast League games in real-time with links to Gameday screens right here.

Links:

• The Rainiers game story from the Las Vegas newspaper includes the words “Tacoma Dominates” in the headline, so that’s good. The paper also has an article on Dominic Smith working on playing outfield.
• The Mariners finished a sweep of the Twins on Sunday, and moved 12 games over .500. This feels like it is getting real.
• Here’s a recap of yesterday’s roster moves from the major league perspective.
• Mariners 2017 first round draft pick Evan White makes an appearance at the very end of this week’s edition of the Baseball America Prospect Hot Sheet.

Around the PCL (home team in CAPS):

El Paso 2, FRESNO 0 – Chris Huffman and four relievers combined on a six-hit shutout, and Luis Urias homered for the Chihuahuas.

Albuquerque 11, SACRAMENTO 2 – the ‘Topes had 16 hits, with Mike Tauchman‘s 4-for-5 leading the way. Tom Murphy homered and drove in four runs.

SALT LAKE 7, Reno 2 – new Bees infielder Matt Thaiss had three hits including a triple and a homer. Story from Salt Lake City.

Round Rock 8, OMAHA 3 – the Express singled ’em to death, with 15 of 17 hits going for one base. Scott Heineman, Andy Ibanez, and Nick Noonan each had three hits. Story from Omaha.

Oklahoma City 3, NASHVILLE 2 – the Dodgers rode a strong start by Manny Banuelos to victory.

MEMPHIS 5, Colorado Springs 0 – Austin Gomber tossed six more shutout innings and was named PCL Pitcher of the Week.

IOWA 5, New Orleans 4 (10) – after not scoring in the top of the tenth, New Orleans intentionally walked the bases loaded in the bottom of the inning before issuing the unintentional walk-off walk. Gross.

Rainiers Turn On Power In Vegas

Don’t worry, everybody. I respected the day game. But we still have to get right to the round-up, because these noon games come quickly no matter what city we are in!

RAINIERS ROUND-UP

YESTERDAY: The power switch has been turned on: four more homers for the Rainiers, making it seven in the first two games of this series, and Tacoma won in Las Vegas on Saturday night 11-5. Four runs in the top of the ninth inning broke open a close game. Seth Mejias-Brean, Zach Vincej, Mike Marjama, and Chris Herrmann each went deep.

ROSTER MOVES: We are going to have some roster moves before the game today, thanks to the injury-plagued yet still winning every day Mariners.

TODAY: Tacoma (26-24) at Las Vegas (20-30), 12:05.

OPPONENT AFFILIATION: New York Mets.

SEASONS SERIES: Tacoma leads, 5-1.

PITCHERS: LHP Roenis Elias (1-4, 6.29) at RHP Andrew Church (1-0, 1.80)

Shout out to Las Vegas manager Tony D for starting Church on Sunday. You have to respect that.

HOT HITTERS: Chris Herrmann has reached base in 18 straight games, and he has hit safely in six of the last seven (9-for-27)… Cameron Perkins has gone 8-for-17 during a four-game hitting streak, but he injured his finger on Friday and is day-to-day… Zach Vincej is 5-for-13 with two homers and five RBI in his last four games… Seth Mejias-Brean has homered in back-to-back games… Taylor Motter has four hits and six RBI in the last two games.

OPPONENT NEWS: Matt den Dekker has been a problem for Tacoma, going 12-for-26 with a homer against Tacoma pitching this season… Phillip Evans homered Friday night, and he has hit nine of his ten homers this season at Cashman Field.

FAMILIAR FACES: The 51s have added two more ex-Rainiers since we saw them last weekend, upping their total to four. Pitcher Cody Martin and outfielder Ezequiel Carrera have joined Ty Kelly and Patrick Kivlehan. The 51s still have Emerald Ridge High School graduate Tim Peterson.

BROADCAST: The pregame show starts at 11:50 on South Sound Talk 850 AM. The broadcast also streams online via the TuneIn app – just click here.

PCL SCOREBOARD: Follow all Pacific Coast League games in real-time with links to Gameday screens right here.

Links:

• Here is the Rainiers-51s game story from the Las Vegas paper, complete with a picture of frowning Vegas manager Tony DeFrancesco.
• The Mariners lost two players to injuries, played 12 innings, and won anyway on a Mike Zunino dinger. This team is crazy-hot right now.

Around the PCL (home team in CAPS):

El Paso 4, FRESNO 3 – the Chihuahuas scored four runs in the third inning and made it hold up, and Tacoma picked up a game in the standings and is three out.

SACRAMENTO 2, Albuquerque 0 – Madison Bumgarner was terrific in a 47-pitch rehab start, and the River Cats bullpen carried a no-hitter into the eighth inning. Story from MiLB.com.

SALT LAKE 11, Reno 8 – the Bees scored in the first six innings, as third baseman Jose Miguel Fernandez had three hits including a three-run homer. There is a lot going on in the headline of the story from Salt Lake City.

IOWA 2, New Orleans 1 – David Bote struck again, hitting a two-run homer in the seventh inning to lead the I-Cubs.

OMAHA 2, Round Rock 1 – starter Jonathan Dziedzic tossed six shutout innings for Omaha. Story from Omaha.

NASHVILLE 1, Oklahoma City 0 – Jake Smolinski‘s homer was the only run of the game.

MEMPHIS 4, Colorado Springs 0 – yet another Cardinals pitching prospect is on the rise. Dakota Hudson pitched eight shutout innings, striking out nine. His record is now 6-1, 2.30. Recap from Memphis.

Rainiers Win Opener In Vegas, Await Trade Fallout

Tacoma arrived in Las Vegas on Friday afternoon just in time to learn that the Seattle Mariners had made a potentially big trade, acquiring reliever Alex Colome and outfielder Denard Span from Tampa Bay in exchange for two lower-level pitching prospects.

Then the Rainiers went to Cashman Field, hit a bunch of homers, escaped some harrowing jams in the seventh and eighth innings, and beat the Las Vegas 51s, 8-6. The win moved Tacoma over the .500 mark and gives the team a leg up in the five-game series.

The trade figures to improve the Rainiers roster, via inertia.

Seattle sent Double-A (and former Rainiers) starter Andrew Moore and Low-A Clinton starter Tommy Romero to the Rays organization. Tacoma did not lose any players in the deal.

As a result, the Rainiers are likely to get two players currently on the major league roster when Colome and Span report to Seattle on Sunday.

Tacoma is currently carrying two teenagers from extended spring training as emergency fill-ins (infielder Cesar Izturis Jr. and outfielder Jansiel Rivera). It’s nice having them on the team, but the Rainiers don’t want to be using them in close games. The short-season leagues begin soon and these two kids need to join their proper teams and start playing every day against competition their own age and skill level.

Getting a couple of players back from the big league squad figures to help Tacoma immensely.

RAINIERS ROUND-UP

YESTERDAY: Tacoma hit three home runs – including two during a five-run third inning – and held on to beat Las Vegas 8-6 in the opener of a five-game road series. Taylor Motter homered and drove in four runs, while Seth Mejias-Brean and Cameron Perkins also went deep. Mike Morin pitched a clean ninth inning to earn his third save.

TODAY: Tacoma (25-24) at Las Vegas (20-29), 7:05.

OPPONENT AFFILIATION: New York Mets.

SEASONS SERIES: Tacoma leads, 4-1.

PITCHERS: RHP Christian Bergman (3-3, 3.29) at RHP Cody Martin (0-0, 0.00)

HOT HITTERS: Chris Herrmann has reached base in 17 straight games… Cameron Perkins has gone 8-for-17 during a four-game hitting streak… Zach Vincej is 4-for-10 with four RBI in his last three games..

OPPONENT NEWS: Matt den Dekker has been a problem for Tacoma, going 10-for-21 with a homer against Tacoma pitching this season… Phillip Evans homered last night, and he has hit nine of his ten homers this season at Cashman Field.

FAMILIAR FACES: The 51s have added two more ex-Rainiers since we saw them last weekend, upping their total to four. Pitcher Cody Martin and outfielder Ezequiel Carrera have joined Ty Kelly and Patrick Kivlehan. The 51s still have Emerald Ridge High School graduate Tim Peterson.

BROADCAST: The pregame show starts at 6:50 on South Sound Talk 850 AM. The broadcast also streams online via the TuneIn app – just click here.

PCL SCOREBOARD: Follow all Pacific Coast League games in real-time with links to Gameday screens right here.

Links:

• The Rainiers are finally playing a team with full coverage provided by the local newspaper. Here is the game story from Betsy Helfand of the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
• James Paxton pitched the Mariners to a 2-1 win over the Twins on Friday night, giving the M’s six wins in their last seven games. Seattle’s 30-20 record is the team’s best mark after 50 games since 2003.
• Here is Ryan Divish’s story on the trade in which the Mariners acquired Alex Colome and Denard Span.
• The fast start enabled the Mariners to make an early season trade to improve the team, Larry Stone writes.
• At USS Mariner, marc w has a dreary outlook on the trade.

Around the PCL (home team in CAPS):

FRESNO 5, El Paso 0 – Cy Sneed delivered eight shutout innings of two-hit ball for the Grizzlies.

Albuquerque 12, SACRAMENTO 2 – this was the crazy game of the day: tied 2-2 after eight innings, the Isotopes sent 14 men to the plate and scored ten runs in the top of the ninth inning.

SALT LAKE 9, Reno 6 – Jabari Blash and Rymer Liriano hit two-run homers in the fifth inning to open up the game for Salt Lake. Story from SLC.

IOWA 13, New Orleans 3 – Cubs catcher Taylor Davis had four hits and six RBI, and Efren Navarro had four hits and four runs scored. Story from MiLB.com.

OMAHA 11, Round Rock 1 – everyone in the Omaha lineup had at least one hit in the blowout win. Story from Omaha.

Colorado Springs 3, MEMPHIS 1 – Sky Sox first baseman Dylan Moorehomered twice, including the go-ahead two-run shot in the top of the ninth inning. Recap from Memphis.

Oklahoma City 5, NASHVILLE 2 – catcher Kyle Farmer had three hits, including a double and a homer for the Dodgers.

One Rule For A Holiday Weekend In Vegas

The Rainiers eight-game homestand concluded on Thursday night, and now the Rainiers hit the road for a brief five-game Memorial Day weekend series at Las Vegas.

Yup, a holiday weekend in Vegas. It’s going to be busy everywhere we go while in town.

Our hotel is right in the middle of downtown, where the annual Punk Rock Bowling festival is occurring. (Sadly, all of the good late night club shows are sold out).

The Las Vegas Golden Knights are in the Stanley Cup Finals, and the first game is in Vegas on Memorial Day.

On top of all of that, there are the usual crowds of tourists and revelers for a holiday weekend in Vegas.

Which brings me to my One Rule to have a successful Rainiers road trip to Las Vegas.

Most of us baseball people (players, coaches, and even radio guys) are night owls. Because of all of the night games, we are conditioned to sleep in, and stay awake late. We need to be at peak performance from 7 to 10 PM. After the game it is virtually impossible to go straight to bed, since we are still buzzing with adrenaline from the game.

Because Las Vegas is a 24-hour city, it’s perfect for us: there are plenty of places to eat late at night, and unwind after the game.

But it is also a city with no clocks, and you can look at your watch thinking it’s going to be 12:30 AM and it’s actually… wait a second, is it really 2:45?

Which brings me back to my One Rule for Rainiers Road Trips to Las Vegas:

1. Always Respect The Day Game

That’s it. That is the only important rule.

Day games in Las Vegas start at noon. I need sleep and a clear head to work. Ignore everything else happening in Vegas and get to bed early when there is a day game the next day.

Obey the One Rule, and everything will work out fine.

RAINIERS ROUND-UP

YESTERDAY: El Paso edged the Rainiers, 3-2, on a go-ahead RBI double by Luis Urias in the seventh inning. The Rainiers lost the El Paso series three games to one, and had to settle for a .500 homestand (4-4).

ROSTER MOVES: Yesterday Dan Altavilla reported to Tacoma, and pitcher Tyler Jackson was returned to extended spring training.

TODAY: Tacoma (24-24) at Las Vegas (20-28), 7:05.

OPPONENT AFFILIATION: New York Mets.

SEASONS SERIES: Tacoma leads, 3-1.

PITCHERS: RHP Casey Lawrence (2-1, 1.89) at TBA

HOT HITTERS: Chris Herrmann has reached base in 16 straight games… Cameron Perkins has six hits during a three-game hitting streak… Zach Vincej went 4-for-7 with four RBI in the last two games..

OPPONENT NEWS: Las Vegas missed the chance for a road sweep at Sacramento, dropping a 1-0 game in ten innings last night… Christian Colon brings a five-game hitting streak into tonight’s contest… Ty Kelly also has a five-game streak.

FAMILIAR FACES: The 51s have added two more ex-Rainiers since we saw them last weekend, upping their total to four. Pitcher Cody Martin and outfielder Ezequiel Carrera have joined Ty Kelly and Patrick Kivlehan. The 51s still have Emerald Ridge High School graduate Tim Peterson.

BROADCAST: The pregame show starts at 6:50 on South Sound Talk 850 AM. The broadcast also streams online via the TuneIn app – just click here.

PCL SCOREBOARD: Follow all Pacific Coast League games in real-time with links to Gameday screens right here.

Links:

• The Mariners five-game winning streak came to an end with a 4-3 loss in Oakland on Thursday.

Around the PCL (home team in CAPS):

SACRAMENTO 1, Las Vegas 0 (10) – Casey Kelly and Drew Gagnon locked down in a pitcher’s duel, with Ronnie Freeman driving home the game’s only run in the bottom of the tenth.

Reno 4, FRESNO 3 (10) – Aces reliever Jake Barrett worked two perfect innings, striking out five of the six batters he faced to escape the automatic jam in the tenth inning and earn the win.

Salt Lake 16, ALBUQUERQUE 11 – a typical getaway day game for the ‘Topes. Salt Lake had 19 hits with recently promoted Matt Thaiss hitting his first two Triple-A home runs. Story from MiLB.com.

Colorado Springs 4, NASHVILLE 0 – Willy Peralta is back from a brief stint with the Brewers and he pitched five shutout innings to earn his sixth win, tying Rob Whalen for the PCL lead.

OMAHA 11, New Orleans 10 – seven home runs were hit at Werner Park, including a walk-off job by Omaha’s Jack Lopez. Story from Omaha.

ROUND ROCK 5, Iowa 4 – the Express built an early 5-1 lead and hung on from there to get the win.

MEMPHIS 7, Oklahoma City 4 – rehabilitating Memphis starter Alex Reyes set a new PCL record by striking out nine straight batters – part of a seven inning, one hit, 13 strikeout performance. Story from MiLB.com.

Homestand Wraps Up Tonight

Tacoma’s eight-game homestand comes to an end with a 7:05 game against El Paso tonight at Cheney Stadium.

The Rainiers are 4-3 on the homestand, having won 3-of-4 against Las Vegas and 1-of-3 so far against El Paso. A win tonight would net a winning homestand and a split of the El Paso series.

Yesterday saw Tacoma claim a 5-4 win, with Ariel Miranda delivering his second consecutive strong start. It was an uplifting victory for the Rainiers, who have lost Dan Vogelbach and John Andreoli to major league call-ups, and Jayson Werth to what manager Pat Listach called a “very, very mild hamstring strain.”

Big congratulations to Andreoli, who played three full seasons in Iowa without getting called up by the Cubs. He played eight years in the minors and three-and-nearly-a-half seasons of Triple-A ball before getting his first call-up.

After tonight’s game the Rainiers head to Las Vegas for a five-game Memorial Day holiday weekend series. What could possibly go wrong?

RAINIERS ROUND-UP

YESTERDAY: Tacoma had two big two-out RBI hits from Zach Vincej to build a 5-2 lead, then held on when things got scary in the ninth for a 5-4 victory over El Paso on Wednesday afternoon. Ariel Miranda turned in another solid outing, going six innings and allowing two runs with zero walks. Mike Marjama had two hits including the go-ahead two-run single in the fourth inning.

ROSTER MOVES: Yesterday the Mariners called up John Andreoli (and he made some big contributions to a Mariners win in his MLB debut), and optioned reliever Dan Altavilla to Tacoma. Tacoma added teenagers Cesar Izturis Jr and Jansiel Rivera from extended spring training.

TODAY: El Paso (23-24) at Tacoma (24-23), 7:05.

OPPONENT AFFILIATION: San Diego Padres.

SEASONS SERIES: Tacoma leads, 4-3.

PITCHERS: LHP Dillon Overton (0-1, 3.86) at RHP Rob Whalen (6-2, 5.40)

HOT HITTERS: Chris Herrmann has reached base in 15 straight games, and he has a four-game hitting streak… Mike Marjama has a four-game hitting streak… Cameron Perkins has five hits in the last two days.

OPPONENT NEWS: After starting the season 15-5, the defending conference champions have lost 19 of the last 27 games… Shane Peterson has a six-game hitting streak, and he is 9-for-19 with a homer against Tacoma pitching this season… 20-year-old second baseman Luis Urias is 9-for-16 in this series… Brett Nicholas is 6-for-14 in this series.

FAMILIAR FACES: Former Tacoma pitchers Jonathan Aro and Dillon Overton are members of the El Paso pitching staff. Their pitching coach Bronswell Patrick pitched for the Tacoma Tigers in 1993-1994.

BROADCAST: The pregame show starts at 6:50 on South Sound Talk 850 AM. The broadcast also streams online via the TuneIn app – just click here.

PCL SCOREBOARD: Follow all Pacific Coast League games in real-time with links to Gameday screens right here.

Links:

• Marco Gonzales and the Mariners bullpen pitched a 1-0 shutout at Oakland last night for the team’s fifth straight win.
• Here’s the story on John Andreoli‘s call-up.
• The Mariners agreed to a new 25-year lease at To Be Announced (Safeco) Field. This is great news, and also a reminder that the new stadium name is coming soon.
• Lookout Landing has one if its informative Sate of the Farm reports.

Around the PCL (home team in CAPS):

Reno 5, FRESNO 2 – Taylor Clarke tossed 5.2 shutout innings of one-hit ball to earn the win for Reno, Jimmie Sherfy nailed down a five-out save, and Christian Walker homered. Tacoma picked up a game and is four games behind first-place Fresno.

Las Vegas 4, SACRAMENTO 3 – Corey Oswalt pitched well, Kevin Plawecki and Cody Asche homered, and the remade Las Vegas 51s go for a four-game road sweep tonight.

Salt Lake 7, ALBUQUERQUE 6 – Jabari Blash pulled himself into a tie for the PCL home run lead by launching No. 14.

MEMPHIS 7, Oklahoma City 2 – leadoff man Oscar Mercado continues to impress in his first Triple-A season, going 3-for-5 with his sixth homer and raising his average to .329. Recap from Memphis.

OMAHA 5, New Orleans 4 – Baby Cakes ace Sandy Alcantara carried a 4-1 lead into the bottom of the eighth inning before running out of gas, as Omaha scored four runs to win it. Former Tacoma reliever Brandon Maurer nailed down the save for Omaha. Story from Omaha.

NASHVILLE 3, Colorado Springs 2 (10) – tied 1-1 after nine, the Sky Sox scored their runner but the Sounds struck for two runs with Josh Phegley getting the game-winning hit.

Iowa 2, ROUND ROCK 1 – David Bote‘s two-run homer in the seventh inning decided a pitcher’s duel between Iowa’s Duane Underwood and Round Rock’s Tyler Wagner. Story on Underwood from Iowa.

Set Your Alarm – Early Game Today!

We’re talking about your bedside alarm clock, not your fire alarm, silly.

Tacoma faces El Paso in an 11:35 AM game at Cheney Stadium today. The weather should be great and we’d love to see you at the ballpark.

Last night the Rainiers lost to El Paso, 11-6, and the team has dropped two straight games to get back down to the .500 mark on the year.

El Paso was coasting along with a 10-5 lead in the bottom of the eighth inning when the fire alarm went off at Cheney Stadium. The stadium was evacuated for safety purposes.

The players and umpires just kind of stood around and waited for the alarms to stop. It was really loud. At one point I looked out at the field and half of El Paso’s players were sitting down at their positions, which reminded me of a little league or tee-ball game in which a bored right fielder sits down and starts looking at dandelions.

Shortly after the fans had been evacuated to the parking lot, the alarms stopped and play resumed. But the fire department had to clear the building before allowing the fans back in, and that takes some time.

In an eerie experience, the remainder of the bottom of the eighth inning and all of the top of the ninth were played with no people in the seats. No fans, no public address announcer, no music… just silence.

The building was determined to be safe and the fans were let back in for the bottom of the ninth. It would have been amazing if after that oddity the Rainiers put together an incredible comeback, but that did not happen.

It was only the second time I’ve heard the alarm go off since the ballpark was renovated before the 2011 season (Did the old Cheney even have fire alarms? Let’s not go there). The first time was before the gates opened, if I recall correctly. This was definitely the first time the game on the field was effected by alarms.

Former Rainiers reliever Jonathan Aro was on the mound for El Paso when the alarm was triggered. From now on, he should claim that it was the heat from his fastball that set off the fire alarm.

RAINIERS ROUND-UP

YESTERDAY: After Tacoma furiously came back from an early 5-1 deficit with a four-run bottom of the second inning, the Rainiers had just one hit the remainder of the game and lost to El Paso on Tuesday night, 11-6. Cameron Perkins went 3-for-4 with a triple and two RBI, and Taylor Motter had a pair of RBI singles. El Paso’s Austin Hedges hit the go-ahead three-run homer in the fifth inning.

ROSTER MOVES: We expect some roster moves today.

TODAY: El Paso (23-23) at Tacoma (23-23), 11:35.

OPPONENT AFFILIATION: San Diego Padres.

SEASONS SERIES: Tied, 3-3.

PITCHERS: RHP Jesse Scholtens (0-1, 5.91) at LHP Ariel Miranda (4-0, 4.21)

HOT HITTERS: Chris Herrmann has reached base in 14 straight games… Ian Miller has a four-game hitting streak.

OPPONENT NEWS: After starting the season 15-5, the defending conference champions have lost 18 of the last 26 games… Shane Peterson has a five-game hitting streak, and he is 8-for-18 with a homer against Tacoma pitching this season… 20-year-old second baseman Luis Urias is a highly touted prospect… Brett Nicholas is 5-for-9 in this series.

FAMILIAR FACES: Former Tacoma pitchers Jonathan Aro and Dillon Overton are members of the El Paso pitching staff. Their pitching coach Bronswell Patrick pitched for the Tacoma Tigers in 1993-1994.

BROADCAST: The pregame show starts at 11:20 on South Sound Talk 850 AM. The broadcast also streams online via the TuneIn app – just click here.

PCL SCOREBOARD: Follow all Pacific Coast League games in real-time with links to Gameday screens right here.

Links:

• The Mariners suffered more injuries and still won another game, beating Oakland 3-2 on Tuesday night. They have won four straight and are a season-best nine games over .500.
• MiLB.com has a feature on El Paso reliever Robert Stock, who has had an interesting journey to Triple-A.

Around the PCL (home team in CAPS):

FRESNO 4, Reno 3 – without closer Jimmy Sherfy, Reno used Braden Shipley to protect a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the ninth… and Fresno rallied to win, with Alejandro Garcia‘s two-run single ending the game.

Las Vegas 10, SACRAMENTO 7 – Vegas used 13 hits (12 singles and one double) to overcome Hunter Pence‘s grand slam and win at Raley Field.

ALBUQUERQUE 4, Salt Lake 3 – the Isotopes bullpen of Jerry Vasto and Scott Oberg pitched 3.1 shutout innings to secure the win, putting Albuquerque in first place in the Pac-South. Story from Albuquerque.

ROUND ROCK 5, Iowa 4 – Express infielder Andy Ibanez homered twice – doubling his season total – and had the go-ahead two-run shot in the seventh inning.

OMAHA 9, New Orleans 2 – the Storm Chasers banged out 15 hits and coasted to the win. Story from Omaha.

NASHVILLE 4, Colorado Springs 2 – starting pitcher Chris Bassitt struck out seven over five innings to earn the win for the Sounds.

Oklahoma City 10, MEMPHIS 3 (10) – don’t think we can blame this one on the new extra innings rules. Tied 2-2 after nine innings, Oklahoma City scored eight runs in the top of the tenth inning. Kyle Farmer homered and drove in four runs.

Rainiers Look To Bounce Back Tonight

The Tacoma offense had an off night on Monday, collecting six hits in a 4-2 series-opening loss to El Paso. Chris Herrmann‘s opposite-field two-run homer in the fifth inning accounted for all of Tacoma’s runs.

It was a wasted strong outing by Tacoma starter Christian Bergman, who has been consistently terrific for the Rainiers. He allowed just three hits over seven innings, with a two-run homer by Shane Peterson in the fourth inning the only runs on his ledger.

The second game of the four-game series is tonight at 6:05. El Paso has lost its last six series, so the Rainiers are going to have to win three straight games beginning tonight if they are going to extend that streak.

El Paso has a bizarre, unsustainable trend going right now: they are 8-16 in home games, and 14-7 in away games. That’s just silly. These Chihuahuas are making a mockery of the game!

Just kidding. The Rainiers will try to even the series tonight.

RAINIERS ROUND-UP

YESTERDAY: El Paso took the series opener on Monday evening, 4-2, in a battle of two-run homers. El Paso’s Shane Peterson and Luis Urias hit two-run homers, while Tacoma had just one of them (Chris Herrmann). Christian Bergman had another great start, allowing two runs over seven innings on just three hits with no walks and eight strikeouts.

ROSTER MOVES: Today the Mariners placed Dee Gordon on the disabled list (broken big toe) and recalled Dan Vogelbach. Vogelbach was crushing the PCL and he leaves a big hole in the Tacoma lineup.

TODAY: El Paso (22-23) at Tacoma (23-22), 6:05.

OPPONENT AFFILIATION: San Diego Padres.

SEASONS SERIES: Tacoma leads, 3-2.

PITCHERS: RHP Chris Huffman (2-3, 5.80) at LHP Roenis Elias (1-3, 4.87)

HOT HITTERS: Chris Herrmann has reached base in 13 straight games, and he has homered in back-to-back games… Kirk Nieuwenhuis had his six-game hitting streak come to an end last night.

OPPONENT NEWS: After starting the season 15-5, the defending conference champions have lost 18 of the last 25 games. They have lost six straight series coming into this one… Shane Peterson has a five-game hitting streak, and he is 8-for-18 with a homer against Tacoma pitching this season… 20-year-old second baseman Luis Urias is a highly-touted prospect.

FAMILIAR FACES: Former Tacoma pitchers Jonathan Aro and Dillon Overton are members of the El Paso pitching staff. Their pitching coach Bronswell Patrick pitched for the Tacoma Tigers in 1993-1994.

BROADCAST: The pregame show starts at 5:50 on South Sound Talk 850 AM. The broadcast also streams online via the TuneIn app – just click here.

PCL SCOREBOARD: Follow all Pacific Coast League games in real-time with links to Gameday screens right here.

Links:

• The Mariners were off yesterday, so the Times has a story on how the Mariners might fill the hole created by the Robinson Cano suspension.
• Former Rainiers outfielder Tyler O’Neill has homered in three straight games and the St. Louis Cardinals fans are digging it.

Around the PCL (home team in CAPS):

Reno 4, FRESNO 2 – in a battle of solid PCL starting pitchers Jake Buchanan out-dueled Mike Hauschild. Tacoma remains four games behind first place Fresno.

Las Vegas 9, SACRAMENTO 1 – Las Vegas scored in each of the first six innings at Raley Field. The Mets signed former Rainiers pitcher Cody Martin; he started and delivered four shutout innings.

ALBUQUERQUE 6, Salt Lake 4 – this game was tied 4-4 going to the bottom of the eighth inning, when Raimel Tapia‘s leadoff triple started a two-run rally. Story from Albuquerque which questions the lack of competitive concern in the PCL’s 2018 schedule.

Iowa 6, ROUND ROCK 5 – in his first game since being acquired from the Atlanta Braves, Lane Adams had two hits, a double, and two RBI to lead the I-Cubs.

MEMPHIS 2, Oklahoma City 1 – the top two teams in the American Conference started a series with Austin Gomber tossing an eight-inning gem for the Redbirds.

New Orleans 9, OMAHA 5 – the Baby Cakes snapped a 5-5 tie by scoring four runs in the top of the ninth inning. Rafael Ortega had three hits including a two-run homer in the ninth. Story from Omaha.

NASHVILLE 5, Colorado Springs 4 – former Rainiers reliever Dean Kiekhefer just signed with Oakland and pitched 1.2 shutout innings, striking out three of the five batters he faced while protecting a slim lead in the late innings of his Nashville debut.