The last two days in Vegas have been ugly for the Tacoma Rainiers, to say the least. Back-to-back blowout losses have given the Aviators an opportunity to split this series – something that seemed unlikely after the Rainiers won the first three games here.
Monday’s game was played in extremely windy conditions, with a torrent blowing out to right field that gave every fly ball a chance to turn into something. Las Vegas starter Brian Howard was up to the task, pitching six innings and getting 16 of his 18 outs on either ground balls or strikeouts. Meanwhile, the Rainiers pitching staff gave up far too many fly balls, leading to 20 hits and five homers for the Aviators.
Despite these last two miserable losses – 14-3 and 15-6 – the Rainiers can still win this series with a victory tonight.
This is supposed to be the final game of Tony Arnerich’s stint as Tacoma’s acting manager. Kristopher Negron is expected to return from paternity leave and rejoin the team for the Albuquerque series that begins on Thursday night. Arnerich has done a great job, taking over a club that was 12-11 and posting a record of 10-6 with one game left.
It’s beneficial to the Rainiers in the long term that Arnerich – the Mariners Field Coordinator, who is involved in player movement throughout the farm system – spent extended time with the Triple-A club. He saw games in Tacoma, which he has done many times in the past, but he also managed games in Reno and Las Vegas which gives him a better feel for what the needs of the Triple-A team are when it starts playing games in these launching pads.
OK, that’s it for today, and we have a day off tomorrow. As I’ve said many times in my life when in Vegas for either baseball or for pleasure, let’s get out of here with a win!
RAINIERS DAILY
YESTERDAY: Las Vegas pummeled Tacoma, 15-6. The Aviators had twenty hits including five home runs, as both Vimael Machin and Frank Schwindel went deep twice. Machin and Schwindel hit back-to-back home runs on back-to-back pitches in the third inning. Cal Raleigh had three hits for Tacoma, Luis Liberato hit a two-run homer, and Brian Schlitter pitched a scoreless inning.
TODAY: Tacoma (22-17) at Las Vegas (20-21), 7:05 PT.
OPPONENT AFFILIATION: Oakland A’s.
OPPOSING MANAGER: Fran Riordan.
SEASON SERIES: Tacoma leads, 3-2.
PITCHERS: LHP David Huff (1-0, 5.17) at LHP Jesus Luzardo (0-0, 0.00)
Looks like we are going to have windy conditions again tonight (at least it won’t be 110 degrees), so Huff is really going to have to lock down on trying to get ground balls. Jesus Luzardo was just optioned to Triple-A by the A’s yesterday, he was 2-4 with a 6.87 ERA in the majors. The Jesus Lizard is an all-time great band if you like heavier music, btw. Huff could have been the name of a Jesus Lizard album (all of their records had four letter titles).
ROSTER MOVES: Today the Mariners claimed infielder Jake Hager off waivers from the Brewers and assigned him to Tacoma. Look for him to join the club later this week in Albuquerque.
HOT HITTERS: Cal Raleigh has hit safely in two straight games, right after his 23-game hitting streak came to an end on Friday. He was 38-for-96 (.396) during the streak, which started on May 15… it’s Tacoma’s longest hitting streak since Chad Akers tied the franchise record of 26 in 1999… Jack Reinheimer has hit safely in 14 of his last 17 games… Jose Marmolejos has a five-game hitting streak… acting manager Tony Arnerich is 10-6 filling in for Kristopher Negron, who is away on paternity leave.
OPPONENT NEWS: Las Vegas ended a six-game losing streak on Sunday… Frank Schwindel was on a tear at the plate last week, homering in five straight games and winning the league’s Player of the Week award. He has belted ten homers in his last 13 games… outfielder Nate Mondou is from Tacoma and went to Charles Wright Academy; he had three hits with a homer on Sunday… coaches Rick Rodriguez and Tommy Everidge both played for Tacoma, although Everidge is more remembered as a rival during his long time with Sacramento.
BROADCAST: All games will be broadcast free on a live audio stream which is available right here.
Unfortunately, there is no traditional terrestrial radio station carrying the games at this time.
TRIPLE-A WEST SCOREBOARD: Follow all league games in real-time with links to Gameday screens right here.
STORIES YOU MIGHT LIKE:
- The umpires started checking pitchers for “sticky stuff” throughout pro baseball yesterday – every pitcher in the Rainiers game was checked – and Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times talked to some Mariners pitchers about it.
Listen to every home and away Tacoma Rainiers game for free HERE. You can also download the MiLB First Pitch app for a free and easy one-click listening experience at home, work or in your car. Watch an HD video broadcast of every game with an MiLB.TV subscription. Use code: RAINIERS to save $10 on an annual subscription.
About the Tacoma Rainiers
The Tacoma Rainiers are the Triple-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners. The Rainiers are a member of the Triple-A West. Tacoma has been a Mariners affiliate since establishing the Rainiers moniker in 1995.
Find more information and purchase single game tickets here. Questions regarding season tickets can be directed to Tickets@WeRTacoma.com.
The most up-to-date news and notes about the Tacoma Rainiers and Cheney Stadium can be found at WeRTacoma.com, or by following the Rainiers on Twitter (@RainiersLand), Instagram (@tacomarainiers) and liking the team on Facebook.
We R Tacoma Team Store
The We R Tacoma Team Store is currently open Monday-Friday from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. (non-game days) or until the end of the game on home game days. Team Store purchases can also be made online 24/7. Grab your Rainiers gear, your Defiance ‘fit, and follow the team store on Instagram and Twitter.
June 10, 2023