Las Vegas Evens Season Series
For as much offense as
the Las Vegas 51s and Tacoma Rainiers have generated over their season series
(60 combined runs and 110 combined hits in the first five games), last night’s
contest was all about pitching, as the 51s hurlers out-dueled the Rainiers in a
closer-than-the-score 4-1 win.
Second baseman Joe
Inglett led off the game with a ground ball single to right field on Seddon’s
2-0 offering, and came around to score on a two-out RBI double by slugging
first baseman Randy Ruiz. The two-bagger was Ruiz’s 27th of the season.
The Rainiers were in a
position to give as good as they got in the bottom of the frame, with a one-out
single by Michael Saunders and a two-out walk to Jeff Clement setting the table
for the team’s hottest hitter, third baseman Chris Shelton.
Shelton however proved
unequal to the task, becoming the second of nine strikeout victims who fell at
the feet of 51s lefty Mark “Eye Chart” Rzepczynski.
Las Vegas inched ahead
again in the top of the second, getting yet another clutch two-out RBI hit–this
time a single on a soft grounder up the middle from shortstop Jonathan Diaz.
That was the last run
that lefty starter Chris Seddon would allow, as he tossed a very strong six
innings, scattering seven hits and notching three strikeouts on 97 pitches.
But Rzepczynsky was
just that much better, surrendering just two hits over his 5.2 innings of work.
After some solid relief work on the parts of both bullpens, the Rainiers looked
like they might just break through in the bottom of the eighth. With one swing
of the bat, Saunders cut the lead in half with his ninth home run of the year,
and just like that, Tacoma was back in the game.
But the 51s responded
in the top of the ninth, when reliever Justin Thomas was unable to hold the
line after entering the game for Eric Hull with one out and one on. Thomas
promptly allowed two straight singles and a run-scoring fielder’s choice, as
Las Vegas pulled ahead for good.
Notes: There is still time to vote your favorite Tacoma Rainiers into the Triple-A All-Star Game! Polls close at 11:59 p.m. on June 26, so make your voices heard. With first baseman Mike Carp out of the picture thanks to a call-up to the Seattle Mariners (who is hitting .429 in seven at-bats over his first four big league games), leading Rainiers candidates still in the mix include third baseman Chris Shelton (.321 average, 10 HR, 54 RBI), designated hitter Jeff Clement (.277, 8, 41) and outfielder Michael Saunders (.288, 9, 24).
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