Originally published on SacramentoPress.com on April 18, 2012
The Sacramento River Cats (10-3) were able to extend their winning streak to four as they defeated the Tacoma Rainiers (4-8) 5-1 at Raley Field Tuesday night. Right fielder Michael Taylor continued his strong start to the season, recording two doubles and a walk on four at-bats. Taylor entered the game batting .413 with one home run and 11 runs batted in. Taylor's .413 batting average heading into Tuesday night's game was ranked seventh in the Pacific Coast League. “I feel good at the plate,” he said. “I feel comfortable with everything I’ve worked on in the offseason coming into this season, and I’ve stuck to that plan and process, and right now things are going well. I’m swinging the bat, and the balls are finding the grass, so as long as I keep doing that, things will be alright” Taylor’s offensive outburst has not gone unnoticed and is welcomed by the River Cats pitching staff, who appreciates run support. “He’s seeing the ball well, and I think other teams are noticing that,” starting pitcher Bruce Billings said. “When he comes up to the plate, he’s not someone to mess with. He definitely puts a big bat in the lineup, and it’s definitely nice to have on your side.” Right-handed pitcher Billings got his first start for the River Cats on his first day in the locker room after being called up by AA Midland. Billings was part of the Oakland Athletics trade that sent longtime second baseman Mark Ellis to the Colorado Rockies and allowed former River Cat Jemile Weeks to make his major league debut. Manager Darren Bush was pleased with Billings' work on the mound, tossing 67 pitches in 3.0 innings of work, allowing one run on four hits and one walk while recording four strikeouts. Billings was unable to record the win though, as the score was still 1-1 when he was relieved. “He did a good job,” Bush said. “He came in, attacked hitters. He went at them and did exactly what we wanted them to do. He got some foul balls and things that drew the pitch count up a little bit, but it’s what we wanted.” Tacoma’s only damage came in the first inning when their designated hitter Mike Carp reached first and then stole second before Vinnie Catricala drove him in to give them the 1-0 lead after one inning. Catricala is a Sacramento native and former Jesuit High School Marauder baseball player. But that was the only run the Rainiers would score. Billings and the rest of the River Cats pitching staff were outstanding, allowing only one run on nine hits. “We’ve got a lot of guys that throw real hard,” Taylor said after the game. “Our bullpen is fantastic. Everyone pretty much runs it up there 94 mph-plus. We have some veterans who have had some success at this level, guys with a lot of experience and guys who know how to pitch at this level.” Sacramento first got on the scoreboard in the second inning with shortstop Adam Rosales hitting a single to bring Taylor across home plate following his first double of the day. The River Cats gained the lead in the third inning and didn’t relinquish it from there on. Rainiers starting pitcher Mauricio Robles gave up a single and then walked two consecutive batters to load the bases with one out. But the River Cats would only capitalize for one run when Brandon Moss hit a sacrifice fly to score Jermaine Mitchell, followed by catcher Derek Norris flying out on the infield. The only other scoring for the River Cats came in the bottom as the eighth as they earned three more insurance runs. Moss began the rally with a single but then was advanced to third base on a double by Norris, with only one out. Rosales hit a double of his own before scoring when Rainiers right fielder Chih-Hsien Chiang dropped a routine fly ball that would have ended the inning. Sacramento prevented any chance of a Rainiers comeback as they preserved the lead to earn a 5-1 win, giving the River Cats a 10-3 record early in the season. “We are just playing good baseball,” Bush said. “We have good pitching and timely hitting. So far it’s working out.”
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Originally published on SacramentoPress.com on Aug. 30, 2011
The Sacramento River Cats pounced early on the Las Vegas 51s en route to a 13-1 victory on Monday night at Raley Field. Sacramento first baseman Chris Carter started the scoring with a two-out solo homerun deep over the left field wall. Sacramento continued their attack on Las Vegas starting pitcher Kyle Drabek in the second inning. With runners on first and third, Sacramento shortstop Adam Rosales lined a single to left field to score another run and load the bases with only one out. Drabek then walked three consecutive batters to give the River Cats a 5-0 lead. Drabek finally got out of the inning after getting third baseman Josh Donaldson and left fielder Michael Taylor out. The River Cats weren’t done when they came back up to bat in the bottom of the third inning. After singles by Landon Powell, Joel Galarraga and Adam Rosales, starting second baseman Wes Timmons hit a two-out grand slam over the left field wall. Timmons finished the game 2-4 with six RBIs. Las Vegas’ Drabek threw 79 pitches in only 3.0 innings, giving up nine earned runs on eight hits while walking four and striking out four. Starting left fielder Jason Lane came in to pitch in a relief appearance in the sixth inning, pitching 2.0 innings, while allowing only one hit and striking out one batter. Starting pitcher Carlos Hernandez gave the River Cats 8.0 solid innings, allowing four hits and one unearned run while striking out six. Las Vegas scored their lone run in the seventh inning when pinch-hitter Ricardo Nanita was hit by a pitch and Las Vegas third baseman Chris Woodward singled to put runners on first and second with two outs. Second baseman Manny Mayorson then reached on a fielding error by Donaldson, allowing Nanita to score for Las Vegas. Newly-called up southpaw Charles Mye came in to pitch in relief in the ninth inning. In his Sacramento debut, Mye pitched 1.0 inning and gave up no hits and one walk. The River Cats continue their series with the Las Vegas 51s on Tuesday at 7:05 p.m. at Raley Field. Sacramento has three consecutive home games left before finishing the season on the road at Colorado Springs. The River Cats will start their postseason on Sept. 7, taking on the Reno Aces in the PCL Pacific Conference Series. Originally published on SacramentoPress.com on Aug. 1, 2011
The red hot Sacramento River Cats continued their dominance by defeating the Colorado Springs Sky Sox 12-4 Sunday afternoon at Raley Field. The River Cats used a seven-run second inning en route to winning their fourth game in a row, also making it their eighth win in the last ten games. River Cats first baseman Chris Carter started off the scoring in the first inning. With right fielder Jai Miller on first after a one-out walk, Carter sent his ninth home run of the season soaring over the center field wall to give the Cats the first two runs of the game. The Sky Sox came right back in the top of the second inning with two runs of their own. Sox left fielder Mike Paulk led the inning off with a walk. Third baseman Matt Macri then homered to left field to tie the game at two runs apiece. The River Cats quickly responded with a seven-run half inning. Left fielder Michael Taylor led off the inning with a double to center field. After Anthony Recker singled to left field, Adam Rosales hit his own double to center field to score both Taylor and Recker. Cats Jermaine Mitchell and Josh Donaldson would join the fun by hitting doubles of their own, scoring two more runs before any outs had been recorded in the inning. Sacramento’s Matt Carson also hit a double to score two more runs and give the Cats a 9-2 lead in the second inning. Carson’s double was his 34th of the season, bringing him just seven shy of the River Cats franchise record. The Sox would get two runs back in the top of the third inning on a two-run Mike Jacobs home run, his 21st of the season. This would be the last of the scoring for the Sky Sox in the game. The River Cats would add on to their lead with another run in the fifth inning and two runs in the sixth. The 12 runs was more than enough run support for River Cats starting pitcher Graham Godfrey. Godfrey pitched seven innings and gave up four runs on five hits while striking out eight. Godfrey’s performance earned him his team-leading 10th win of the season. The River Cats look to extend their winning streak with two more games against the Sky Sox on Monday and Tuesday, both starting at 7:05 p.m. Originally published on SacramentoPress.com on July 18, 2011
The Sacramento River Cats ended their home losing streak on Sunday at Raley Field, defeating the Fresno Grizzlies 8-7 in a thrilling fashion with a walk-off home run from center fielder Jai Miller. The River Cats avoided being swept by the Grizzlies by overcoming a five run deficit after the Grizzlies added four runs in the top of the eighth inning to take a 7-2 lead. Sacramento’s Miller led off the bottom of the eighth inning with a walk and was moved to second when shortstop Adam Rosales singled to center. After both Josh Donaldson and Andy LaRoche failed to advance the runners, outfielder Michael Taylor doubled to right field, scoring Miller and advancing Rosales to third. Left fielder Jermaine Mitchell kept the rally going with a single to left field, scoring Rosales and advancing Taylor to third base. With Sacramento’s Matt Carson facing Grizzlies southpaw Dan Runzler, Taylor scored on a wild pitch, which also advanced Mitchell to second base. A couple of pitches later, Carson doubled to deep right-center field, scoring Mitchell and bringing the River Cats to within one run. River Cats third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff concluded the eighth inning rally when he hit a high chopper to Grizzlies shortstop Ryan Lormand who bobbled the ball, allowing Carson to tie the game at seven runs apiece while Kouzmanoff reached base safely because of the error. River Cats first baseman Chris Carter struck out swinging to end the rally, keeping the game tied heading into the ninth inning. With the game tied, Sacramento handed the ball to right-handed reliever Justin Souza. With one out, Fresno’s Tyler Graham reached on a single to right field and then stole second base for his 45th steal of the season. Souza then got the next two batters, one of them being San Francisco Giants’ big prospect, Brandon Belt, to fly out to left field to end the inning. With Ronnie Ray on the mound for the Grizzlies, Sacramento’s Miller led off the bottom of the ninth by swinging at the first pitch he saw, soaring it over the right-center field wall for a walk-off home run and his 23rd home run overall of the season. Miller also tripled in the fourth inning before scoring when Rosales hit his first home run as a River Cat to deep left field. Right hander Travis Banwart was the starting pitcher for Sacramento, allowing three earned runs on seven hits while striking out four before the River Cats went to their bullpen after five innings. The River Cats go on the road for four games against Salt Lake City before returning home for another four game series against the Reno Aces starting on July 22 at 7:05 p.m. Originally published on SacramentoPress.com on July 30, 2010 The Sacramento River Cats were defeated by the Colorado Springs Sky Sox for the second straight game, losing by a score of 5-2 on Thursday night at Raley Field. The Cats were able to pounce on Sox's starting pitcher Alan Johnson (9-6) early in the first inning, scoring two runs. The Cats' Corey Wimberley was able to lead off the game with a single to right field. The Cats' next batter, Eric Sogard, hit a single of his own to right field, advancing Wimberley to third base with no outs. With Chris Carter batting, Sogard got caught in a rundown on a pick-off attempt by Johnson, allowing Wimberley to steal home and beat the throw for the first run of the game. Sogard was also able to reach second base safely, completing a successful double steal. Carter proceeded to hit a single to left field, advancing Sogard to third base, still with no outs in the inning. Cats' right fielder Michael Taylor was able to score Sogard for the Cats' second run, but did so by grounding into a double play. Steve Tolleson would eventually fly out to right field to end the inning, but not before the Cats had done some damage by putting the first two runs on the scoreboard. Holding a 2-0 lead, Cats' starting pitcher Kyle Middleton (6-7) cruised past the Sky Sox's batters for five innings, until he encountered problems in the top of the sixth inning. After a one-out single and a walk to the Sox's Matt Miller, Travis Metcalf put the Sox on the scoreboard with a two-RBI double to to left field, tying the game at two runs a piece. After a mound visit, Middleton gave up a two-run home run to the next Sox batter, Mike Paulk, putting the Cats behind the Sox 4-2. The Sox would score another run off of Cats reliever Justin James before ending the inning with the lead at 5-2. This lead would ultimately remain intact, as the game remained scoreless for the final four innings, and the Cats lost by the score of 5-2. With that loss and a Fresno win on Thursday night, the Cats now trail the Fresno Grizzlies by one game for the top of the division. With Wimberley's steal of home on Thursday night, he now has 42 steals for the season, one short of Eric Patterson's club record, set just last year. Wimberley will look to tie or break Patterson's record on Friday night as the series continues against the Colorado Springs Sky Sox at 7:05 p.m. at Raley Field. Photos by Ahsan Awan Originally published on SacramentoPress.com on July 29, 2010
The Sacramento River Cats were defeated by the Colorado Springs Sky Sox by a score of 5-3 on Wednesday night at Raley Field. The Sky Sox started the game strong, quickly scoring a run in the first inning. River Cats' starter Clay Mortensen (11-4) opened the game by hitting the Sox's lead-off batter, Eric Young Jr., to put him on first. After Young stole second base, Matsui grounded out to Cats' catcher Josh Donaldson to advance Young to third base with one out. Two batters later, Sox's Matt Miller hit a two-out double to right field to score Young for the first run of the game. The River Cats saw their first run of the game come in the bottom of the third inning with a solid two-out rally. With two outs and nobody on base, Cats' Corey Wimberley hit a double down the third-base line. Cats' Eric Sogard followed Wimberley with a double of his own, scoring Wimberley from second. Colorado Springs was able to break the tie in the top of the fifth inning due to a costly error by Cats shortstop Steven Tolleson. With a runner on first, Sox's Chris Frey hit a soft bouncer back to Mortensen who threw it to Tolleson to start what looked to be an inning-ending double play, but Tolleson dropped the ball and was unable to record a single out. Sox's Paul Phillips then singled to right field to load the bases with one out. Eric Young Jr. took advantage of this opportunity with a single to right field, scoring McKenry and Frey, while Phillips was gunned out by Cats' Michael Taylor while trying to advance to third. Mortensen was able to get out of the inning without further damage by getting Matsui to line out to left field. With the River Cats trailing by a score of 4-1 going into the bottom of the eighth inning, the Cats made one last late push at getting the win. With two out already in the inning, Wimberley was able to start another rally with a single to right field. Eric Sogard followed with a single of his own to left field. Chris Carter then walked on a full count. With the bases loaded and two outs in the inning, the Cats' Taylor singled to left field with a hard line drive, scoring both Wimberley and Sogard to make the score 4-3. With the bases once again loaded and still two outs in the inning, Cats' Dallas McPherson would strike out to end the rally short. McPherson was soon ejected from the game after arguing a call that deemed his check swing a strike. The River Cats came up empty in the ninth inning after the Sox scored an insurance run in the top of the frame, leaving the Cats falling to the Sky Sox by a score of 5-3. Due to the River Cats' loss and the Fresno Grizzlies' win in extra innings on Wednesday night, the Cats now find themselves tied at the top of the PCL Pacific South Division with the Grizzlies. Originally published on SacramentoPress.com on June 9, 2010
The Sacramento River Cats rallied late once again to beat the Portland Beavers 4-3 Thursday night at Raley Field. Portland took an early lead when Anthony Contreras hit a three-run home run off Cats' starting pitcher Clay Mortenson, who was seeking his Pacific Coast League leading 11th win of the season. The River Cats tied the score in the bottom of the fourth inning when Steve Tolleson doubled into left field, bringing first baseman Chris Carter to bat with a runner in scoring position and no outs. Carter promptly hit a home run to deep center field, bouncing it off a roof, and Tolleson scored, bringing the Cats to within one run of the Beavers. Three batters after Carter's home run, Michael Taylor hit another home run to right field, with two outs, evening the score at three runs apiece. An interesting situation arose in the bottom of the sixth, with the River Cats up to bat. Tolleson was on second and Carter on first with no outs, when designated hitter Dallas McPherson hit a ball to shallow right field that looked as if it had been caught. The first base umpire said no, catching Carter and Tolleson in between bases. Carter was forced out at second and Tolleson was tagged out in a run down for an odd double play. Manager Tony DeFrancesco argued the call in between innings, and eventually was ejected by second-base umpire Angel Campos. This was DeFrancesco's third-straight ejection at Raley Field. The score remained tied at 3-3 as the Cats went into the bottom of the ninth inning. With the “rally pants” out, the Cats rallied to get the win. Cats' catcher Josh Donaldson walked to lead off the inning. Then Adam Heether doubled down the third-base foul line, sending Donaldson to third base. Beavers' relief pitcher Adam Russell intentionally walked Erik Sogard to pitch to Corey Wimberley, who hit the walk-off chopper over the second baseman's leaping glove to score Donaldson. This was the River Cats' fifth win in a row, placing the team four games back from the Fresno Grizzlies for the top of the PCL Pacific South Division. The Cats meet the Beavers again Friday night. Originally published on SacramentoPress.com on June 29, 2010
The Sacramento River Cats rallied late to defeat the Tacoma Rainiers Monday night by a score of 7-5 at Raley Field. After walking the first batter of the game, Cats starting pitcher Graham Godfrey gave up a quick two-run home run to Rainiers left fielder Matt Tuiasosopo, putting the Rainiers on the scoreboard first. Godfrey then proceeded to retire the next three batters to get out of the inning without any further damage. The River Cats were able to get on the scoreboard in the bottom of the second inning when Cats center fielder Matt Carson sent a pitch soaring over the wall in left-center field for a one-run home run. It did not take long for the Rainiers to get that run back, quickly scoring another run in the top of the third inning when the Rainiers' David Winfree grounded out into a fielder's choice scoring shortstop Chris Woodward. Steven Tolleson was able to hit his sixth home run of the season to open up the bottom of the fourth inning, making the score Rainiers 3, River Cats 2. Cats left fielder Matt Watson led off with a single to right field. Designated hitter Dallas McPherson was then able to advance him to third base with a single of his own to right field. With one out, Carson hit an RBI single to right field, scoring Watson. The inning ended with the next batter, Josh Donaldson, striking out swinging and Carson being caught stealing second base by the Rainiers’ Adam Moore. With the score tied at three, the Rainiers were able to pull away from the River Cats yet again in the top of the eighth inning. After a lead-off single by the Rainiers’ Tuiasosopo, Cats reliever Jamey Wright walked Brad Nelson to put runners on first and second. Winfree then advanced both runners with a ground out to Wright. After intentionally walking Mike Carp to load the bases, the Rainiers' Moore singled to right field, scoring Tuiasosopo. Wright then walked Jack Hannahan to walk in Nelson for another run to put the Rainiers up 5-3. At this point, Cats manager Tony DeFrancesco had seen enough and needed a mound visit to bring in reliever Michael Benacka. With the bases loaded, Benacka struck out the next two batters to get the Cats out of the inning and only down by two runs. The Cats' Tolleson then led off the bottom of the eighth inning with a single, prompting the Rainiers to put Billy Traber on the mound instead of Yusmeiro Petit. The Cats' Watson was then able to reach first on a fielding error by Woodward, advancing Tolleson to second base. With two runners on base, McPherson found a good time to hit his seventh home run of the season, adding three runs to the River Cats’ total. With two outs, and on a 3-2 count, Cats catcher Josh Donaldson sent his 10th home run over left-center field to put the River Cats up 7-5. With the lead, the Cats sent out newly acquired reliever Ross Wolf to close the game. Wolf closed the game smoothly, striking out the first two batters and getting the third to ground out to third base, securing a 7-5 nail-biting victory. Originally published on SacramentoPress.com on June 6, 2010
The Sacramento River Cats beat the Tacoma Rainiers by a score of 10-2 at Raley Field behind solid pitching from starting pitcher Clay Mortensen (7-2). In honor of Braden's perfect game on May 9, the River Cats invited his grandmother to throw out the first pitch, which sailed beautifully over home plate. It was only fitting that the Cats were able to beat the Rainiers with solid pitching throughout the game. Cats' starting pitcher Mortensen's only major mistake came in the top of the 2nd inning. With two outs and Rainiers' left fielder Mike Carp on second base, Matt Mangini was able to get his bat on a pitch and sail it over the right-center field wall for a two-run home run, giving Tacoma an early 2-0 lead. It did not take long for the Cats to attack back, quickly getting their offense going against Rainiers' starting pitcher Ryan Feierabend (0-0) and having a big 2nd inning. Feierabend started the inning by walking the first two Cats batters, designated hitter Josh Donaldson and first baseman Chris Carter. Cats' Michael Taylor was able to send Donaldson home with a one-out RBI single to left field, also advancing Carter to second base. Feierabend then walked catcher Anthony Recker to load the bases with only one out. Shortstop Michael Affronti took advantage with a double off the left field wall to send home both Carter and Taylor, leaving Recker on third. Corey Wimberley then brought Recker home and advanced Affronti to third with an RBI single to left. With Eric Sogard batting, Feierabend committed a balk, scoring Affronti and advancing Wimberley to second. The sixth and final run of the inning came when Wimberley stole third base and then advanced to home plate on a throwing error by Rainiers' catcher Guillermo Quiroz. Mortensen's only other scare came in the top of the 5th inning when he had the bases loaded with only one out. Mortensen was then able to strike out Rainiers' Brad Nelson and then get former River Cat Tommy Everidge to pop out to left fielder Matt Watson. Already up by a score of 7-2 in the bottom of the 5th inning, the Cats were able to add one more run with a Matt Watson solo home run, and two more runs in the bottom of the 8th inning. Mortensen finished with 7.0 innings of solid pitching, allowing just two runs before pitcher Marcus McBeth came in as relief. McBeth did not allow a run in two innings en route to closing the game for a River Cats win by a score of 10-2. Photo by Ahsan Awan Originally published on SacramentoPress.com on June 2, 2010 The Tacoma Rainiers got off to an early start and continued to score runs as they defeated the Sacramento River Cats 12-3 at Raley Field Tuesday. The Rainiers (25-24) pounced early on River Cats' (25-28) starting pitcher John Halama, scoring four runs in the first. After getting the first two batters to ground out, Rainiers' Tommy Everidge was able to reach first on a fielding error by Halama. After a walk to Mike Carp, Guillermo Quiroz singled to center field bringing home Everidge for the first run of the game. With Carp on third and Quiroz on second and two outs in the bottom of the first, the Rainiers' right fielder Greg Halman hit a soaring three-run homerun over center field. In the bottom of the second, Cats' catcher Josh Donaldson was ejected from the game immediately after complaining to home plate umpire Chris Tiller after being called out on strikes. Donaldson was replaced by catcher Anthony Recker. The River Cats' first run of the game came in the same inning when Cats' center fielder Matt Carson hit a solo home run over the left-center field wall. After little action in the third inning, there was an interesting play in the top of the fourth when the River Cats attempted to turn a double play. As Cameron Wimbley attempted to turn the double play, his throw hit a sliding Halman and the ball was knocked down. Initially, the Cats were only awarded the out at second, until manager Tony DeFrancesco came out to argue, resulting in the umpires to meet and eventually award the Cats the double play. Carson hit another solo home run for the River Cats in the bottom of the fifth inning, to virtually the same spot, pulling the Cats to a two-run deficit. But that was the closest they got as the Rainiers scored another three runs in the top of the seventh inning, led by a two RBI double by the Rainiers' Halman. The Rainiers' offense was led by right fielder Greg Halman, who finished 3-5 with two home runs, a double and seven RBIs. The Rainiers' offense finished with a total of 12 runs off of 14 hits, four of which were home runs. The River Cats were only able to produce three runs off of seven hits for the game and produced three errors on defense. |
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