River Cats rally past Rainiers, Tacoma's sweep bid ends in 7-3 loss

Tacoma had the lead, the contact, and a chance to finish a sweep. By night’s end at Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento, California, the Rainiers were staring at a 7-3 loss that turned a promising road trip into a reminder of how quickly a Triple-A game can flip when the late innings get loose.

Tacoma struck first in the opening inning when Alejo Lopez singled, Spencer Packard followed with a hit of his own, and Connor Joe loaded the bases with another base knock. Victor Labrada then grounded into a fielder’s choice that brought Lopez home for a 1-0 lead. The Rainiers added to it in the fourth, when Labrada lined a double down the right-field line and Colin Davis followed with a double into the left-center gap to make it 2-0. For four innings, Tacoma looked in control and had a chance to keep building on a two-game surge that had already stopped a 10-game skid.

Then the game changed in the sixth. Sacramento leaned on speed, pressure and timely contact to crack Tacoma’s grip on the lead. Jared Oliva beat out an infield single, Nate Furman moved into scoring position, and Jesús Rodríguez drove in the first River Cats run with a sacrifice fly. Furman later scored the tying run on a shallow single, and Osleivis Basabe added the go-ahead hit to push Sacramento in front 3-2. The River Cats kept coming, extending the margin in the seventh and then putting the game out of reach in the eighth when Basabe doubled, Aeverson Arteaga singled and Turner Hill launched a two-run homer into the Sacramento bullpen.

Hill’s blast was the big swing in a game that had been defined by Tacoma’s inability to protect an early cushion. The 27-year-old outfielder entered the night hitting .319 with a .418 on-base percentage and 10 stolen bases, a profile that fit Sacramento’s relentless approach. Tacoma still had a response left. In the eighth, Axel Sanchez singled, stole second, moved to third on a wild pitch and scored when Packard poked his third hit of the night into left field to pull the Rainiers within 4-3.

That rally never fully caught up. Brian O’Keefe doubled with two outs in the ninth, but Tacoma could not bring him home. The Rainiers finished with nine hits and no errors, including doubles from Labrada, Davis and O’Keefe, while Packard recorded his first three-hit game of the season. Sacramento had 12 hits, two steals and the kind of late efficiency that decided the game, with three runs in the sixth, one in the seventh and three more in the eighth. The official box score also showed an ABS challenge that changed one pitch sequence and a major win-probability swing as the Rainiers’ lead disappeared.

The loss dropped Tacoma to 25-35 and ended its bid for a sweep after back-to-back wins on June 2 and June 3. It also set up a deeper roster watch, with Seattle catcher Cal Raleigh slated to begin a rehab assignment in High-A Everett on June 7 before moving to Tacoma on June 9, the same day the Rainiers open a six-game home series against Albuquerque at 11:35 a.m.