Erasmo, Rainiers Try To Win Series Against Local Pitcher

Tacoma won on Sunday, 7-5, and has taken two of three so far here in New Orleans. The final game of the series is tonight at 5:00 (Pacific), weather permitting.

We have an interesting pitching match-up tonight.

Erasmo Ramirez makes another rehabilitation start for the Rainiers. After working three innings in his last start, we can expect to see a little more tonight. The Mariners have been very cautious bringing him back, as the pitch counts in his first two starts have been just 23 and 33. We’ll see if the rotation concerns in Seattle cause them to substantially bump up Ramirez’s pitch count tonight.

Tacoma will be facing Marlins prospect Jeff Brigham, who is a local product from Thomas Jefferson High School (Class of 2011) and the University of Washington. The Dodgers drafted him in the 4th round in 2014, and then traded him to the Marlins at the deadline as part of a 12-player deal in 2015.

Brigham overcame an injury to have a breakthrough season this year, going 4-1, 1.18 in seven starts at Double-A Jacksonville before his recent promotion to New Orleans. He’s 2-0 with a 1.93 ERA for the Cakes.

I recorded an interview with Brigham on Saturday and we’ll play it on the radio pregame show tonight at 4:45.

RAINIERS ROUND-UP

YESTERDAY: Tacoma used a five-run rally in the fourth inning to take the lead, eventually beating New Orleans 7-5 on Sunday afternoon. The big rally included four runs after there were two outs, and after Zach Vincej was called safe at the plate on a tag call that was disputed by New Orleans.

ROSTER MOVES: LHP Steven Moyers was sent back to Class-A Clinton. He did a nice job filling in, tossing two scoreless innings on Saturday. The Mariners optioned RHP Casey Lawrence back to Tacoma, he’ll report later this week.

TODAY: Tacoma (53-54) at New Orleans (50-57), 5:00 (Pacific).

OPPONENT AFFILIATION: Miami Marlins.

SEASONS SERIES: Tacoma leads, 2-1.

PITCHERS: RHP Erasmo Ramirez (0-1, 1.23) at RHP Jeff Brigham (2-0, 1.93)

Look for Ross Detwiler to follow Erasmo’s rehab outing tonight.

HOT HITTERS: Seth Mejias-Brean has a ten-game hitting streak, and he has gone 11-for-21 on the current road trip… John Andreoli is batting .320 (8-for-25) on the current road trip… yesterday Kirk Nieuwenhuis hit his first home run since April 18.

OPPONENT NEWS: New Orleans just beat Reno two-of-three, and is 8-10 since the All-Star break… Peter Mooney has hit three homers over his last eight games… Tomas Telis has a five-game hitting streak… Austin Dean is 5-for-13 during this series.

FAMILIAR FACES: Jeff Brigham graduated from Jefferson High School in Federal Way and pitched for the University of Washington… pitchers Tyler Cloyd and Mike Kickham are former Rainiers.

BROADCAST: The pregame show starts at 4:45 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 New Orleans Advocate. The Cakes were not pleased with a missed call at home plate.
• The Mariners scored seven runs in the first inning and beat the Angels yesterday – while everybody else in the American League West race lost.
• On his blog, Bob Dutton tackles the Felix Hernandez dilemma.
• New reliever Sam Tuivailala reported to the Mariners yesterday.
• A couple of PCL players appear on this week’s edition of the Baseball America Prospect Hot Sheet.

Around the PCL (home team in CAPS):

Omaha 5, FRESNO 4 (11) – tied 3-3 after nine, each team scored their automatic runner in the tenth, and Omaha did so in the top of the 11th before Michael Mariot escaped the inherited jam in the bottom of the inning to seal the win.

Reno 8, ROUND ROCK 0 – Jake Buchanan held the Express to two hits over seven innings, while his Reno teammates mashed 17 hits. Kevin Cron went 5-for-5 with a homer.

SACRAMENTO 7, Iowa 4 – utility man Myles Schroder hit a pair of home runs to lead the River Cats.

COLORADO SPRINGS 7, Albuquerque 2 – Andres Blanco hit a grand slam in the first inning to lead the Sky Sox to an easy win. The Isotopes are reportedly about to add top prospect Brendan Rodgers.

El Paso 4, OKLAHOMA CITY 2 – Diego Goris came through with a pinch-hit two-run double in the top of the sixth inning to give the Chihuahuas the lead. Recap from Oklahoma City. The Oklahoman also has a detailed story on lefty Manny Banuelos, who has had a nice season after a velocity spike. He pitches at Cheney Stadium on Friday.

Nashville 9, SALT LAKE 5 – veteran infielder Steve Lombardozzi went 3-for-5 with two runs scored and three RBI, helping Nashville overcome a two-homer game by Salt Lake’s Michael Hermosillo. The paper in Salt Lake City has a feature on Hermosillo.

Memphis 9, LAS VEGAS 4 – Adolis Garcia, Lane Thomas, and Carson Kelly each had three hits for the Redbirds. Story from Las Vegas.

—

Tuesday is an off day, and the Rainiers will spend most of it flying home from New Orleans. No blog update on Tuesday; we’ll be back on Wednesday.

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Rain Drowns Out Rainiers Comeback Hopes

Man, when things are going bad, they just go bad, don’t they?

Saturday night in New Orleans the Rainiers were trailing 5-0 going to the seventh inning. The finally wore out the opponent’s tough starter, and had gotten into the bullpen.

Tacoma scores three runs in the top of the seventh, all with two outs on a two-run double by Gordon Beckham and an RBI single from John Andreoli.

Momentum, right? It’s 5-3 and a comeback is now in the works.

Nope.

The skies opened up: thunder, lightning, big rain, and after an hour and 20 minutes the umpires called the game. It was a final, 5-3 New Orleans in a rain-shortened seven-inning game.

Even Mother Nature is ganging up on us.

—

We had a wonderful Minor League Moment prior to Saturday’s game.

A three-wheeler used by the New Orleans grounds crew to drag the infield broke down right in front of the Tacoma dugout on the third base side. It stalled out on the field of play, and needed to be moved.

Apparently the three-wheeler is very heavy. Another, larger tractor was brought over to tow it – and that wasn’t enough. About ten Baby Cakes employees (interns, we’ll assume) helped push the three-wheeler along as it was being towed down the warning track to the left field corner, where the gate to get it off the field is located.

Along the way both vehicles rolled over the pitcher’s mound in the visiting bullpen, located down the left field line. Some treads dug into the mound, and the grounds crew had to work on the hill before Rainiers starter Mike Morin could throw his warm-ups.

This caused about a ten minute delay prior to the first pitch. The official reason for the delay as listed by Minor League Baseball was “Venue.” Apparently there is not an official designation for “broken tractor on the field.” Maybe there should be.

RAINIERS ROUND-UP

YESTERDAY: Tacoma dropped the rain-shortened seven-inning game in New Orleans, 5-3. The Cakes scored all five runs in the third inning, netting four of them after there were two outs. Tacoma was shut out by Zac Gallen before rallying against the bullpen in the seventh inning, bringing some hope before the rain ended the game early. Tacoma has lost 12 of the last 14 games.

ROSTER MOVES: Yesterday the Rainiers placed LHP Daniel Schlereth on the disabled list with a hamstring problem, and outfielder Andrew Aplin was placed on the Temporarily Inactive List due to a family matter. LHP Steven Moyers was promoted from Class-A Clinton, and catcher Garrett Kennedy was activated.

TODAY: Tacoma (52-54) at New Orleans (50-56), 11:00 AM (Pacific).

OPPONENT AFFILIATION: Miami Marlins.

SEASONS SERIES: Tied, 1-1.

PITCHERS: RHP Christian Bergman (6-8, 5.38) at RHP Tyler Cloyd (2-3, 4.88)

Bergman and Cloyd were teammates for the Rainiers last season.

HOT HITTERS: Seth Mejias-Brean has a nine-game hitting streak, and he has gone 8-for-16 on the current road trip… John Andreoli has reached base in 25 of his last 26 games.

OPPONENT NEWS: New Orleans just beat Reno two-of-three, and is 8-9 since the All-Star break… Peter Mooney has hit three homers over his last seven games… touted prospect Isan Diaz was promoted from Double-A a week ago; he hit his first Triple-A homer on Wednesday.

FAMILIAR FACES: Jeff Brigham graduated from Jefferson High School in Federal Way and pitched for the University of Washington, he’s expected to start Monday… pitchers Tyler Cloyd and Mike Kickham are former Rainiers.

BROADCAST: The pregame show starts at 10:45 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 New Orleans Advocate has a game recap with notes, and a feature on Rainiers reliever Nick Rumbelow (because he pitched for LSU).
• Felix Hernandez got knocked out in the third inning and the Mariners were trounced by the Angels last night, causing fans to wonder what to do about Felix?
• Ryan Divish did a brief Q&A about the trade deadline.
• Down (up?) at Short-Season Everett, recent Mariners draft pick Cal Raleigh switch-hit home runs in a game last night against Salem-Keizer.

Around the PCL (home team in CAPS):

FRESNO 3, Omaha 2 – one day after allowing 31 baserunners and 15 runs, Fresno’s Brady Rodgers and Rogelio Armenteros held the Storm Chasers to two runs and snuck away with a win.

Reno 3, ROUND ROCK 1 – Aces pitcher Matt Koch, Anthony Vasquez, and Jake Barrett combined on a four-hitter.

Iowa 2, SACRAMENTO 0 – I-Cubs starter Luke Farrell and two relievers combined to pitch a six-hit shutout.

El Paso 2, OKLAHOMA CITY 1 – Chihuahuas infielder Dusty Coleman snapped a 1-1 tie with a homer in the top of the ninth inning. Story from MiLB.com. For the guys on the crew: The Oklahoman has an article on the Bricktown Ballpark grounds crew.

SALT LAKE 11, Nashville 6 – the Bees connected for 18 hits and worked over the Sounds. Story from Salt Lake City.

COLORADO SPRINGS 5, Albuquerque 3 – the Sky Sox waited out a 2 hour, ten minute rain delay in the fifth inning to hang on and beat the ‘Topes.

LAS VEGAS 9, Memphis 5 – five players had two hits for the 51s, including former Rainiers infielder Patrick Kivlehan who raised his average to .292. Story from Las Vegas.

Bad Streaks End In New Orleans

Everything bad ended on Friday night in New Orleans.

The nine-game losing streak is over.

The eight-game streak of scoring three runs or fewer is over.

The seven-game streak of games without a home run is over.

Tacoma took down New Orleans, 4-2, and the players had to re-learn how to shake hands behind the mound after a win.

There was nothing easy about this win in “The Big Easy.”

The Rainiers slowly built a 3-0 lead, as starting pitcher Bryan Evans escaped jams inning after inning. Cameron Perkins ended the home run streak by pulling a liner to left in the sixth inning, making it 3-0.

New Orleans leadoff man Austin Dean hit a two-run single in the bottom of the seventh inning, and the Cakes had the tying and go-ahead runners in scoring position with one out, but Tyler Higgins escaped that jam with the lead intact.

Ian Miller‘s sacrifice fly in the top of the ninth gave Tacoma an insurance run, but of course things got dicey in the bottom of the inning.

The Cakes put two runners on base and had the winning run in the batters box with one out, but Shawn Armstrong was able to retire the final two batters and earn his tenth save of the season – and end the Rainiers longest losing streak of the 21st century.

RAINIERS ROUND-UP

YESTERDAY: Tacoma ended its longest losing streak of the last 19 years with a 4-2 win over New Orleans. It was a true team effort, with the lineup knocking out 11 hits and three relievers helping secure a win for starter Bryan Evans.

TODAY: Tacoma (52-53) at New Orleans (49-56), 4:00 (Pacific).

OPPONENT AFFILIATION: Miami Marlins.

SEASONS SERIES: Tacoma leads, 1-0.

PITCHERS: RHP Mike Morin (3-2, 3.72) at RHP Zac Gallen (6-5, 3.80)

It’s a “bullpen day” for the Rainiers. They’ll be counting on multiple-inning performances from Morin, Tucker Healy, and Darin Gillies among others.

HOT HITTERS: Seth Mejias-Brean has an eight-game hitting streak, and he has gone 7-for-13 on the current road trip… Cameron Perkins has a five-game hitting streak.

OPPONENT NEWS: New Orleans just beat Reno two-of-three, and is 7-9 since the All-Star break… Peter Mooney has hit three homers over his last six games… touted prospect Isan Diaz was promoted from Double-A a week ago; he hit his first Triple-A homer on Wednesday.

FAMILIAR FACES: Jeff Brigham graduated from Jefferson High School in Federal Way and pitched for the University of Washington, he’s expected to start Monday… pitchers Tyler Cloyd and Mike Kickham are former Rainiers.

BROADCAST: The pregame show starts at 3:45 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 New Orleans Advocate does a nice job covering the Baby Cakes, and here is their story in today’s issue.
• The Mariners lost an extra-innings game for the first time this season, dropping a 4-3 decision in Anaheim.
• Once again, James Paxton thinks he will be ready to make his next start.

Around the PCL (home team in CAPS):

Omaha 15, FRESNO 4 – the Storm Chasers had 23 hits no homers: 17 singles and six doubles. They also drew eight walks, for a whopping total of 31 baserunners. Nicky Lopez led the way going 5-for-6 with a walk, scoring three runs. Story from MiLB.com.

Reno 3, ROUND ROCK 0 – Taylor Clarke and two relievers combined to limit the Express to four hits, while Kristopher Negron belted his 12th homer.

Iowa 4, SACRAMENTO 2 – I-Cubs outfielder Mark Zagunis went 3-for-4 with a double, a homer, and three runs batted in.

El Paso 8, OKLAHOMA CITY 2 – infielder Diego Goris hit a go-ahead grand slam in the sixth inning for the Chihuahuas. That gave Brett Kennedy another win, and he is now 10-0 with a 2.56 ERA for the year. There was a lengthy cat delay.

SALT LAKE 8, Nashville 6 – Jose Fernandez had three hits including a double and a homer, driving in three runs, and helping Griffin Canning earn his first Triple-A win. Story from Salt Lake City.

Albuquerque 9, COLORADO SPRINGS 1 – Triple-A All-Star Game MVP Josh Fuentes hit two doubles and a homer, driving in four runs to lead the Topes to the win.

Memphis 8, LAS VEGAS 3 – Tyler O’Neill hit another one – his PCL-leading 26th homer of the year – but his employers are probably happier about the two walks he drew. He’s at .315-26-61 for Memphis this year. Story from Las Vegas.

Still Searching For A Win: On To New Orleans

Well, the Rainiers losing streak reached nine consecutive games on Thursday night. Round Rock completed the three-game sweep with a 4-2 win, in which they snapped a 2-2 tie with three consecutive two-out hits in the bottom of the eighth inning against Rainiers relief ace Shawn Armstrong. Armstrong had gone 14 straight outings without allowing an earned run.

This is the Rainiers longest losing streak of the 21st century. It’s got to end sometime, right? Maybe a change of venue will help. The Rainiers traveled to New Orleans this morning and will face the Baby Cakes in a four-game series at The Crib.

New Orleans has a pretty good offense at the moment, which is troubling for a Rainiers team that has scored three runs or fewer in eight straight games. But the Cakes are six games under .500 for the year, so teams are beating them.

What we really need is a shutout. The Rainiers pitching staff has been pretty solid throughout this skid; perhaps they have a shutout in them to stop it.

—

The Mariners just made a trade, acquiring major league reliever Sam Tuivailala from the St. Louis Cardinals for Class-A Modesto reliever Seth Elledge.

This should impact the Rainiers in a positive way, as the M’s will send someone down (presumably a pitcher) when Tuivailala reports.

Tuivailala is a high-velocity right-hander who has taken a while to settle into the majors; we have seen him face Tacoma several times while pitching for Memphis. He’s out of minor league options so this has been a make-or-break year for him, and he has responded by posting a 3.69 ERA in 31 games for St. Louis.

RAINIERS ROUND-UP

YESTERDAY: Hanser Alberto and Nick Torres had back-to-back two-out RBI singles in the eighth inning, snapping a 2-2 tie and leading Round Rock to a 4-2 win over the Rainiers on Thursday night. Ian Miller had two hits for Tacoma and was involved in both Tacoma runs; he also stole his 25th base of the season.

TODAY: Tacoma (51-53) at New Orleans (49-55), 5:10 (Pacific).

OPPONENT AFFILIATION: Miami Marlins.

SEASONS SERIES: 0-0.

PITCHERS: RHP Bryan Evans (2-1, 4.95) at LHP Dillon Peters (2-5, 5.91)

HOT HITTERS: John Andreoli had his streak of reaching base via hit or walk in 23 straight games end last night… Seth Mejias-Brean has a seven-game hitting streak, and Ian Miller has hit safely in seven of his last eight games (an under-publicized postgame scoring change on Wednesday ended his six-game streak).

OPPONENT NEWS: New Orleans just beat Reno two-of-three, and is 7-8 since the All-Star break… Triple-A veterans Cristhian Adames and Tomas Telis have four-game hitting streaks… Peter Mooney has hit three homers over his last six games… touted prospect Isan Diaz was promoted from Double-A a week ago; he hit his first Triple-A homer on Wednesday.

FAMILIAR FACES: Jeff Brigham graduated from Jefferson High School in Federal Way and pitched for the University of Washington, he’s expected to start Monday… pitchers Tyler Cloyd and Mike Kickham are former Rainiers.

BROADCAST: The pregame show starts at 4:55 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 story on the trade from the Times.
• The Seattle Times has an off-day story on the usage of Mariners closer Edwin Diaz, which seems to be a hot-button topic for some fans. If I’m the manager, I’m using Diaz in the top of the ninth inning of a tie game at home every single time.
• TJ Cotterill on how things are progressing with Dr. Lorena Martin.
• Former Rainiers star Adam Jones is the face of the franchise in Baltimore, but with his contract ending in two months recent trade talk has him feeling uneasy.
• Celebrity Rainiers fan and first pitch thrower-outer Isaiah Thomas is bringing his NBA weekend to Tacoma Community College soon.

Around the PCL (home team in CAPS):

FRESNO 5, Iowa 4 (10) – Tyler White singled home the winning run in the tenth. Earlier, A.J. Reed hit his 22nd homer of the season.

Reno 11, NEW ORLEANS 7 (10) – Before Reno scored four runs in the top of the tenth, Yasmany Tomas ripped a pinch-hit grand slam in the sixth. Story from New Orleans.

Omaha 10, SACRAMENTO 7 – Storm Chasers slugger Frank Schwindel went 3-for-4 with a three-run homer in the sixth inning that gave Omaha a 9-3 lead.

OKLAHOMA CITY 4, Albuquerque 1 – Dodgers starter Brock Stewart allowed just two hits and one run over seven innings. Recap from Oklahoma City.

Memphis 12, SALT LAKE 3 – the performance of the day: Adolis Garcia hit a three-run homer in the first inning, a grand slam in the sixth inning, and a solo shot in the eighth for a three-homer, eight-RBI game. Story from MiLB.com.

LAS VEGAS 8, Nashville 5 – PCL strikeout leader Drew Gagnon added ten to his total while pitching 5.2 innings, and Patrick Kivlehan hit two triples for Las Vegas. Story from Las Vegas.

El Paso at COLORADO SPRINGS – rained out and cancelled forevermore.

Rainiers Look To Avoid History In Round Rock

The Rainiers lost their eighth straight game on Wednesday night, dropping a 3-2 decision to the Round Rock Express. It was the seventh straight game in which the team has scored three runs or fewer – all occurring since the call-up of Dan Vogelbach.

This marks the sixth time that Tacoma has lost eight straight games, dating back through the 2000 season which is as far back as I have day-by-day results available at the moment. The Rainiers have not lost nine straight games during any of these 19 seasons.

In doing the research I was reminded that the best team in Tacoma Rainiers history (since 1995) had an eight-game losing streak. The 2001 club went 85-59 and won a share of the PCL Championship, but that club lost eight straight games in early August (seven during the Iowa-Omaha road trip, which appeared more than once during my look back at long losing streaks).

Let’s see if we can avoid No. 9 tonight. It’s time for this skid to end.

RAINIERS ROUND-UP

YESTERDAY: The losing streak didn’t end, but at least the Rainiers held a lead for the majority of the game. John Andreoli had two-out RBI hits in each of his first two at-bats, giving the Rainiers an early 2-0 lead. It was 2-1 at the seventh inning stretch before Round Rock’s Andy Ibanez lined a two-run homer to left field. The Rainiers lost, 3-2, and have dropped eight straight games. The club is under .500 for the first time since June 11 (32-33).

ROSTER MOVES: Yesterday the Rainiers added catcher David Freitas to the active roster, and placed catcher Garrett Kennedy on the Temporarily Inactive List.

TODAY: Tacoma (51-52) at Round Rock (50-53), 5:05 (Pacific).

OPPONENT AFFILIATION: Texas Rangers.

SEASONS SERIES: Round Rock leads, 2-0.

PITCHERS: RHP Rob Whalen (7-4, 4.50) at RHP Tyler Wagner (1-4, 4.78)

HOT HITTERS: Andrew Aplin has reached base 41 times in his last 22 games, totaling 26 hits during that stretch… John Andreoli has reached base via hit or walk in 23 straight games… Ian Miller has a seven-game hitting streak, and Seth Mejias-Brean has a six-game streak.

OPPONENT NEWS: Round Rock just split a four-game series in Omaha… the Express are 7-7 since the all-star break, but they were hot before the break and are 20-11 overall since June 22… Hanser Alberto has hit safely in 20 of his last 23 games and is batting .405 in July… Drew Robinson has multiple hits in seven of his last nine games, and he has hit safely in 16 of his last 17 games.

FAMILIAR FACES: Adrian Sampson graduated from Skyline High School, pitched for Tacoma in 2015 and 2016, and made one start for Seattle in 2016… former Rainiers and Mariners outfielder James Jones just joined Round Rock, and he is now a relief pitcher… Round Rock hitting coach Howard Johnson had the same job for Tacoma in 2013, and Seattle in 2014-15.

BROADCAST: The pregame show starts at 4:50 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 toppled the Giants on Wednesday, 3-2, and are back to 20 games over .500.

Around the PCL (home team in CAPS):

FRESNO 9, Iowa 1 – Cy Sneed got back on track, delivering six scoreless innings and earning his ninth win of the season. Derek Fisher had three hits including a double and a homer, and Garrett Stubbs hit a three-run bomb.

NEW ORLEANS 8, Reno 0 – Jefferson High School and UW product Jeff Brigham tossed 6.2 shutout innings in his third career Triple-A start, and he’s now 2-0 with a 1.93 ERA for the Baby Cakes. He is penciled in to start against Tacoma on Monday. Story from New Orleans.

Omaha 5, SACRAMENTO 3 – Storm Chasers starter Trevor Oaks allowed one run in 7.2 innings, dropping his league-leading ERA down to 2.05.

LAS VEGAS 6, Nashville 3 (10) – outfielder Zach Borenstein hit a game-winning three-run homer in the bottom of the tenth inning. Story from Las Vegas.

SALT LAKE 7, Memphis 5 – the No. 8 and No. 9 hitters in Salt Lake’s lineup each homered, as Joe Hudson and Nolan Fontana went deep. Memphis starter and PCL wins leader Dakota Hudson pitched one inning and then was told to report to St. Louis. Story from Salt Lake City.

OKLAHOMA CITY 5, Albuquerque 0 – the Isotopes were shut out for just the second time this season, as Drew Hutchison and four relievers combined on a six-hitter. Notes from Oklahoma City.

El Paso 9, COLORADO SPRINGS 1 – veteran (and Cal Bear) Allen Craig went 5-for-5 with a double, two homers, and five RBI to support a strong start by El Paso’s Walker Lockett. Story from MiLB.com.

Unlucky Seven In Round Rock

Yesterday’s request to see some bats in Round Rock did not come to fruition, as neither the flying kind nor the wooden kind made an impact last night at the Dell Diamond.

Tacoma allowed four runs in the bottom of the first inning, a deflating open to the game for a team that has not scored four runs in any of its last six games.

The team did manage ten hits in the contest, but ultimately lost 7-2.

It was the seventh straight loss for the Rainiers, who are back to the .500 mark (51-51) after being a season-best seven games over .500 just a week ago. While still in second place in the division, the Rainiers are now eight games behind Fresno.

Seven straight losses, six with the team scoring three-or-fewer runs. The time is here. A more desperate signal is needed.

RAINIERS ROUND-UP

YESTERDAY: Tacoma lost its seventh straight game, 7-2 in the series opener at Round Rock. Drew Robinson hit a leadoff home run in the first inning and it was all downhill from there for the Rainiers. Round Rock led 4-0 in the first inning, 6-0 in the second, and 7-0 in the third as Christian Bergman had his roughest start of the season.

TODAY: Tacoma (51-51) at Round Rock (49-53), 5:05 (Pacific).

OPPONENT AFFILIATION: Texas Rangers.

SEASONS SERIES: Round Rock leads, 1-0.

PITCHERS: RHP Erasmo Ramirez (0-1, 1.54) at RHP Adrian Sampson (5-3, 4.86)

A rehabilitation start for Ramirez, who will hopefully pitch three or four innings before giving way to regularly scheduled starter Ross Detwiler.

HOT HITTERS: Andrew Aplin has reached base 40 times in his last 21 games, totaling 26 hits during that stretch… David Freitas has a ten-game hitting streak in the PCL, playing his last game in this league on July 3 … John Andreoli has reached base via hit or walk in 22 straight games… Ian Miller has a six-game hitting streak, and Seth Mejias-Brean has a five-game streak.

OPPONENT NEWS: Round Rock just split a four-game series in Omaha… the Express are 6-7 since the all-star break, but they were hot before the break and are 19-11 overall since June 22… Hanser Alberto has hit safely in 20 of his last 22 games and is batting .420 in July… Drew Robinson has multiple hits in seven of his last eight games, and he has hit safely in 15 of his last 16 games.

FAMILIAR FACES: Adrian Sampson graduated from Skyline High School, pitched for Tacoma in 2015 and 2016, and made one start for Seattle in 2016… former Rainiers and Mariners outfielder James Jones just joined Round Rock, and he is now a relief pitcher.

BROADCAST: The pregame show starts at 4:50 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 dropped a one-run decision to the Giants last night, 4-3.
• James Paxton was unable to make his anticipated start last night, as his back tightened up on him again.
• Former Mariners skipper John McLaren is managing a Chinese team which is playing games in an independent league in Texas. Interesting stuff.

Around the PCL (home team in CAPS):

FRESNO 2, Iowa 1 – Josh James struck out 11 batters over six innings of two-hit ball, out-dueling Duane Underwood Jr. and beating the I-Cubs.

NEW ORLEANS 4, Reno 1 – former Rainiers pitcher Tyler Cloyd carried a perfect game into the seventh inning, eventually settling for a combined one-hitter for the Baby Cakes. Story from New Orleans.

Omaha 6, SACRAMENTO 2 – Nicky Lopez had four of Omaha’s 12 hits, and starting pitcher Jake Kalish struck out ten over six innings.

Nashville 11, LAS VEGAS 4 – right fielder Ramon Laureano and shortstop Jorge Mateo each had four hits for the Sounds, whose hitters enjoyed a rare (for them) trip to Cashman Field. Story from Vegas.

COLORADO SPRINGS 13, El Paso 1 – the Sky Sox connected for 20 hits, led by Jett Bandy going 4-for-4 with a double and two homers. All of your favorite Sky Sox had multiple hits.

Memphis 14, SALT LAKE 4 – Tyler O’Neill homered two more times, giving him five in his last two games and 25 for the season. Rangel Ravelo also homered twice as the Redbirds enjoyed some High Elevation Baseball™. Story from Salt Lake City.

OKLAHOMA CITY 3, Albuquerque 1 – former Rainiers reliever Logan Bawcom is starting for the Dodgers these days, and he allowed one run over five innings. Brian Schlitter picked up his 14th save. Yasiel Puig is on rehab with Oklahoma City.

Rainiers Hope Bats Come Alive In Round Rock

The Rainiers start their biennial series at the Dell Diamond in Round Rock, Texas tonight and they are hoping the offense starts producing.

Tacoma’s bats were silent in the three-game weekend series against Salt Lake, batting .180 over the series and scoring a grand total of three runs while getting swept by the Bees.

Speaking of bats, there have been times during previous trips to Round Rock when bats – I’m talking about the flying mammals here – have been spotted swooping around the roof above the radio booth. If that brings good luck for Tacoma’s wooden bats, I welcome the flying kind.

RAINIERS ROUND-UP

YESTERDAY: Tacoma was off yesterday after dropping a 3-2 decision at home on Sunday to Salt Lake. The Rainiers were swept in a series for the first time this season.

ROSTER MOVE: On Sunday the Mariners activated Mike Zunino from the disabled list and optioned catcher David Freitas to Tacoma.

TODAY: Tacoma (51-50) at Round Rock (48-53), 5:05 (Pacific).

OPPONENT AFFILIATION: Texas Rangers.

SEASONS SERIES: 0-0.

PITCHERS: RHP Christian Bergman (6-7, 4.95) at LHP Michael Roth (4-3, 4.61)

HOT HITTERS: Andrew Aplin has reached base 39 times in his last 20 games, totaling 25 hits during that stretch… David Freitas has a ten-game hitting streak in the PCL, playing his last game in this league on July 3 … John Andreoli has reached base via hit or walk in 21 straight games.

OPPONENT NEWS: Round Rock just split a four-game series in Omaha… the Express are 5-7 since the all-star break, but they were hot before the break and are 18-11 overall since June 22… Hanser Alberto has hit safely in 19 of his last 21 games and is batting .429 in July… Drew Robinson has multiple hits in six of his last seven games, and he has hit safely in 14 of his last 15 games.

FAMILIAR FACES: Round Rock reliever Brandon Mann was born in Tacoma and drafted out of Mount Rainier High School in 2002. In a story of perseverance, he made his major league debut earlier this season at age 34… Adrian Sampson graduated from Skyline High School, pitched for Tacoma in 2015 and 2016, and made one start for Seattle in 2016. He’s scheduled to start against Tacoma on Wednesday.

BROADCAST: The pregame show starts at 4:50 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 on Sunday’s 3-2 loss to Salt Lake.
• The Mariners were off yesterday, but here’s a News Tribune story on how Dee Gordon hopes to improve in the second half.

The entire PCL was off on Monday. Ex-Rainiers outfielder Tyler O’Neill hit three home runs for Memphis on Sunday, giving him 23 on the year. It was his first career three-homer game.

Last Home Game Of July Today

Another morning spent missing the old days before the newspaper business died when Sunday was the best day of the week to read baseball columns from all around the country.

RAINIERS ROUND-UP

YESTERDAY: The Rainiers continued to have trouble scoring, dropping a 2-1 decision to Salt Lake in ten innings. The Bees scored their automatic runner with a sac bunt and a infield groundout, while Tacoma left its automatic runner stranded at second base. Rainiers pitchers retired the final 19 batters of the game.

TODAY: Salt Lake (53-47) at Tacoma (51-49), 1:35.

OPPONENT AFFILIATION: Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

SEASONS SERIES: Salt Lake leads, 8-3.

PITCHERS: RHP Osmer Morales (4-3, 6.14) at RHP Bryan Evans (2-1, 5.56)

HOT HITTERS: Andrew Aplin has reached base 39 times in his last 20 games, totaling 25 hits during that stretch… Gordon Beckham is 15-for-34 over his last nine PCL games… John Andreoli has reached base via hit or walk in 20 straight games.

OPPONENT NEWS: Salt Lake lost 12 out of 13 games going into the all-star break, and is 8-2 since the break. Go figure… Ben Revere has hit safely in 11 of his last 12 games… old buddy Dustin Ackley is 8-for-16 over his last five games, and he’s batting .467 with runners in scoring position and two outs.

FAMILIAR FACES: Former Rainiers on Salt Lake’s roster include Dustin Ackley and pitcher Dylan Unsworth. Infielder Luis Rengifo joined Tacoma as an emergency fill-in in 2016 but did not appear in a game.

BROADCAST: The pregame show starts at 1:20 on South Sound Talk 850 AM. The broadcast also streams online via the TuneIn app – just click here. It’s a Sunday home game, so Bob Robertson will join me in the booth.

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

Links:

• In the Rainiers game story from The News Tribune, manager Pat Listach explains why he didn’t bunt in the bottom of the tenth.
• The White Sox shut out the Mariners last night, 5-0.
• Sounds like Dan Vogelbach may get a chance to play a bit during this call-up.
• Times columnist Matt Calkins wonders if Ryon Healy‘s time is running out with the Mariners.
• Ryan Divish did his Sunday Mariners “Twitter mailbag.”

Around the PCL (home team in CAPS):

ALBUQUERQUE 10/7, Fresno 3/4 – the Isotopes sweep and the Rainiers gained a half-game in the standings. The first game was suspended in the 4th inning on June 3rd, and in a wonderful bit of luck Rogelio Armenteros of Fresno started on June 3rd… and it was his turn to pitch last night, so he completed his own suspended game and threw a 147-pitch, ten runs allowed “complete game.” Ryan McMahon homered in both games and drove in eight runs. The Albuquerque Journal did it justice in the game story.

EL PASO 9, Sacramento 5 – Chihuahuas ace Brett Kennedy allowed one run over seven innings and improved to 9-0, 2.53 on the year. He may turn in the best pitching season in the brief history of the Chihuahuas.

Las Vegas 5, RENO 4 – closer Gerson Bautista retired six-of-seven batters faced, striking out five, to convert a tough save on the road for Las Vegas.

New Orleans 1, IOWA 0 – Zac Gallen pitched six shutout innings and Isan Diaz doubled in the only run of the game for the Cakes.

MEMPHIS 10, Colorado Springs 1 – center fielder Oscar Mercado went 5-for-5, scored two runs, and drove in two to pace the Redbirds attack. Story from MiLB.com.

Oklahoma City 6/0, NASHVILLE 1/4 – a doubleheader split in Music City. Ex-Rainiers lefty Dean Kiekhefer earned the win with three scoreless innings for the Sounds in the second game; he’s posted a 6-0 record pitching out of the bullpen this season.

Round Rock 1/6, OMAHA 4/3 – also a split. New Omaha hurler Arnaldo Hernandez pitched a complete game two-hitter in the opener. Story from Omaha.

Mariners Get Healthier, But Rainiers Lose

Tacoma had a couple of major league players on rehabilitation assignments last night, and they both looked pretty good, but the Rainiers were shut out by Salt Lake and lost 6-0.

Erasmo Ramirez is coming back from a right teres major strain, and yesterday was his first live action since landing on the disabled list May 1. Ramirez pitched two scoreless innings, retiring all six batters he faced with three strikeouts. He’ll begin to build up his pitch count in future outings.

Mike Zunino started and caught the first five innings, as was the plan. He appeared to be fine behind the plate, and he went 0-for-2 in the batter’s box. He struck out looking in his first at-bat, and flied out to center in his next. If his left ankle checks out OK today he is expected to serve as the designated hitter tonight.

—

In farm system news, Double-A outfielder Braden Bishop is out for the remainder of the season after he fractured his forearm being hit by a pitch on Thursday, thus ending any thought that he might be promoted to Tacoma down the stretch.

The organization elected to replace a prospect with a prospect, sending Kyle Lewis up from Class-A Modesto to Double-A Arkansas.

RAINIERS ROUND-UP

YESTERDAY: Tacoma got shut out for just the fourth time this season, connecting for just five hits in a 6-0 loss to Salt Lake on Friday night. The Rainiers did not advance a runner past first base until the ninth inning.

ROSTER MOVES: In addition to the moves reported here yesterday, Tacoma activated outfielder Cameron Perkins from the disabled list and sent catcher Joseph Odom back to Double-A Arkansas. Today the Mariners activated Felix Hernandez from the disabled list and optioned John Andreoli back to Tacoma, Mike Morin reports to the Rainiers, and pitcher Tyler Jackson was transferred back to Class-A Clinton.

TODAY: Salt Lake (52-47) at Tacoma (51-48), 7:05.

OPPONENT AFFILIATION: Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

SEASONS SERIES: Salt Lake leads, 7-3.

PITCHERS: RHP Griffin Canning (0-2, 8.44) at RHP Rob Whalen (7-4, 4.67)

Canning was supposed to pitch yesterday but got pushed back to today.

HOT HITTERS: Andrew Aplin has reached base 38 times in his last 19 games, totaling 24 hits during that stretch… Gordon Beckham has hit three homers over his last eight PCL games.

OPPONENT NEWS: Salt Lake lost 12 out of 13 games going into the all-star break, and is 7-2 since the break. Go figure… former Mariners prospect Luis Rengifo has hit safely in all eight games he has played in since coming up from Double-A… Ben Revere has hit safely in 10 of his last 11 games… old buddy Dustin Ackley is 8-for-16 over his last five games, and he’s batting .467 with runners in scoring position and two outs.

FAMILIAR FACES: Former Rainiers on Salt Lake’s roster include Dustin Ackley and pitcher Dylan Unsworth. Infielder Luis Rengifo joined Tacoma as an emergency fill-in in 2016 but did not appear in a game.

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 News Tribune has a story on the rehabbers and last night’s Rainiers game.
• The rested Mariners opened the second half with a 3-1 win over the Chicago White Sox.
• The Mariners gave manager Scott Servais a “muli-year” contract extension.
• Larry Stone writes that stability at the manager spot has been rare for the Mariners.
• Jerry Dipoto discussed the Mariners activity in the trade market.

Around the PCL (home team in CAPS):

Fresno 8, ALBUQUERQUE 5 – Tacoma fall 6.5 games behind first place Fresno. Jake Marisnick had four hits and scored four runs, and A.J. Reed homered and drove in five. The story from Albuquerque focuses on local product Ken Giles of Fresno.

Sacramento 6, EL PASO 5 – River Cats starter Chris Stratton allowed one earned run in six innings while striking out ten.

RENO 11, Las Vegas 8 – Christian Walker went 4-for-5 with two doubles, a homer, and five RBI for the Aces to help overcome a Patrick Kivlehan grand slam. Story from MiLB.com.

IOWA 10, New Orleans 8 – down 8-2 at the stretch, Iowa scored three runs in the seventh and five more in the eighth to stun New Orleans. Ryan Court hit for the cycle, much to the delight of MiLB.com.

OMAHA 6, Round Rock 3 – right fielder Elier Hernandez had three hits and two RBI in his Triple-A debut for the Storm Chasers. Story from Omaha.

Oklahoma City 5, NASHVILLE 4 (10) – the Dodgers blew a 4-1 lead in the bottom of the ninth inning, but won it in the tenth. Closer Joe Broussard escaped a 2nd & 3rd, no outs jam in the bottom of the tenth to get the save.

Colorado Springs 1, MEMPHIS 0 – Aaron Wilkerson and two relievers combined on a shutout, and Christian Bethancourt‘s homer was the only run of the game.

Rainiers Happy To Be Home

After yet another rough trip to Reno, the Tacoma Rainiers are pleased to open a three-game series at Cheney Stadium against Salt Lake tonight.

Short blog today, due to travel. My apologies.

RAINIERS ROUND-UP

YESTERDAY: Back-to-back home runs by Socrates Brito and Cody Decker helped Reno top Tacoma on Thursday night, 5-3. Reno won the series, three games to one. Tacoma fell to 22-57 all time at Reno, since the Aces joined the league in 2009. Tacoma has lost five of the last six games overall and hopes to straighten things out at home this weekend.

ROSTER MOVES: There are going to be a bunch today. For starters, Dan Vogelbach and John Andreoli have been recalled by Seattle, and reliever Mike Morin was outrighted to Tacoma. Pitcher Tyler Jackson is re-joining Tacoma from Class-A Clinton. We could have more moves, too, possibly including a rehabilitating major leaguer.

TODAY: Salt Lake (51-47) at Tacoma (51-47), 7:05.

OPPONENT AFFILIATION: Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

SEASONS SERIES: Salt Lake leads, 6-3.

PITCHERS: RHP Griffin Canning (0-2, 8.44) at RHP Erasmo Ramirez (0-1, 1.86)

Ramirez begins a second rehabilitation assignment with Tacoma, but show up early if you want to see it. He’ll probably only go two innings and it will be Johnny Allstaff after that. Keep an eye on Canning, who is one of the Angels top prospects.

HOT HITTERS: Dan Vogelbach has reached base in 21 consecutive games, and he has a six-game hitting streak… John Andreoli has reached base safely in his last 19 PCL games, and he has a nine-game hitting streak… Andrew Aplin has reached base 36 times in his last 18 games, totaling 23 hits and 13 walks during that stretch… Gordon Beckham has hit three homers over his last seven PCL games… Kirk Nieuwenhuis has a four-game hitting streak.

OPPONENT NEWS: Salt Lake lost 12 out of 13 games going into the all-star break, and is 6-2 since the break. Go figure… former Mariners prospect Luis Rengifo has hit safely in all eight games he has played in since coming up from Double-A… Ben Revere has hit safely in 10 of his last 11 games… old buddy Dustin Ackley is 6-for-13 over his last four games, and he’s batting .448 with runners in scoring position and two outs.

FAMILIAR FACES: Former Rainiers on Salt Lake’s roster include Dustin Ackley and pitcher Dylan Unsworth. If I recall correctly (and I may be wrong), Luis Rengifo joined Tacoma as an emergency fill-in in 2016 but did not appear in a game.

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:

• Ryan Divish looks at possible trade targets for the Mariners.

Around the PCL (home team in CAPS):

FRESNO 8, Sacramento 7 (10) – Derek Fisher hit a go-ahead grand slam in the bottom of the eighth, and after Sacramento tied it in the ninth the Grizzlies won on a sacrifice fly by Antonio Nunez. Tacoma is 5.5 games behind Fresno.

Las Vegas 6, SALT LAKE 4 – Phillip Evans reached base five times and Peter Alonso hit an inside-the-park home run as the 51s spoiled Salt Lake’s attempt at a four-game sweep. Story from Salt Lake City.

ALBUQUERQUE 16, El Paso 1 – wow. The ‘Topes hit five homers.

Iowa 1/3, MEMPHIS 4/0 – a doubleheader split. Dakota Hudson earned his 13th win in the opener; he leads the league by a large margin.

New Orleans 4, OKLAHOMA CITY 2 – former Jefferson High School and University of Washington product Jeff Brigham went seven innings, earning his first Triple-A win for the Baby Cakes.

NASHVILLE 4, Omaha 2 – PCL earned run average leader Trevor Oaks actually gave up four runs and lost for Omaha.

Round Rock 4, COLORADO SPRINGS 3 – ex-Rainiers pitcher Adrian Sampson tossed seven strong innings to pick up a win in hostile (for pitchers) territory.