Rainiers blast four homers, beat River Cats 6-4, clinch series

Tacoma did not need a long rally to take control Saturday night. It only needed four swings, a bullpen that would not crack, and enough timely power to turn a tight Pacific Coast League game into a series-clinching 6-4 win over Sacramento at Cheney Stadium.

The Rainiers’ season-high four home runs accounted for every run they scored, with Rhylan Thomas, Jakson Reetz, Colt Emerson and Will Wilson all leaving the yard. The burst pushed Tacoma to 10-10, lifted the club over .500 for the moment, and sealed the series after Friday’s 7-6 victory had already put the River Cats on the ropes.

Thomas set the tone from the first pitch of the night, leading off the game with a solo shot to right for his first career leadoff homer. The 25-year-old left fielder from Ventura, California, has already reached the majors once, but this was the kind of opening blast that announces a lineup is hunting early damage rather than waiting for it.

Sacramento answered with a three-run second inning and later drew even again, but Tacoma kept meeting every push with a bigger swing. After Jhonny Pereda walked and Carson Taylor singled, Reetz turned the second pitch he saw into a go-ahead homer to left. Reetz, the 30-year-old catcher with big league experience, gave Tacoma the lead back at 4-3 and showed how quickly the Rainiers could flip a game when the middle of the order starts connecting.

The biggest sign of where Tacoma’s offense is headed came in the fifth. Emerson, the 20-year-old Mariners first-round pick from the 2023 draft, launched a solo homer to left-center to break the fourth tie of the night. Two batters later, Wilson added another shot, stretching the lead to 6-4 and putting the Rainiers in position to finish the job.

That cushion held because Tacoma’s bullpen was sharp from there, working 7.3 innings of one-run ball and allowing only three baserunners. Alex Hoppe closed it out for his fourth save, tying him for the minor league lead and continuing a strong start to his season. The right-hander, who entered with three saves, kept Sacramento from mounting one last rally as Tacoma protected a slim lead the rest of the way.

The result carried more weight than one night in April. Tacoma had already won Friday’s game, and Saturday’s power surge turned that momentum into a series win. For a club that was sitting at .500, the kind of statement the Rainiers made with four homers and a composed bullpen finish is exactly how early-season traction starts to build.