DES MOINES, Iowa – After making seven errors in an 10-run loss on Tuesday, the Rainiers needed a bounce-back performance today at Principal Park in Iowa.
They got it.
Tacoma scored four early runs, had a strong pitching performance from Andrew Carraway, and most importantly cut the errors down to a more manageable total of two in an 8-3 win over the Iowa Cubs.
“I was happy with the way we bounced back,” said Tacoma manager Daren Brown. “Some of it was just handling the baseball, although we still had a couple of misplays.”
The miscues were easy to overcome because the Rainiers scored early and often against Cubs starter Brooks Raley, who lost his Triple-A debut.
Trayvon Robinson and Luis Rodriguez greeted Raley with singles to start the first inning, and two batters later Carlos Peguero’s sacrifice fly gave the Rainiers a 1-0 lead.
Tacoma made it 2-0 in the second inning, when Scott Savastano clubbed his first Triple-A home run to left field.
The Rainiers tacked on more runs against Raley, and eventually took a 7-1 lead in the sixth inning on a two-out, two-run double by Rodriguez off Cubs reliever Ryan Rowland-Smith.
Rodriguez was 2-for-4 with a walk, two runs scored, and two RBI. He extended his hitting streak to 18 games.
“He’s been swinging the bat good for a few weeks,” said Brown. “He’s one of our veteran guys, he comes ready to play and you know what you are going to get from him every day.”
Rehabilitating Mariners catcher Miguel Olivo contributed. He caught all nine innings, playing his first complete game defensively since suffering a strained groin on April 30. He chipped in with two hits, including a ninth-inning homer off former Major League reliever Mike MacDougal.
“I thought he looked good, he was moving around good,” said Brown. “He caught nine innings, and we’ll see how he feels tomorrow.”
Carraway (2-0) earned the win, turning in his third straight quality start since being promoted from Double-A Jackson. Carraway maintained the lead, allowing three runs over six innings while recording five strikeouts.
SHORT HOPS
Outfielder Mike Wilson was activated from the disabled list and started in left field, going 0-for-4 in his first game since April 7. He was out with a groin injury…
Pitcher Jarrett Grube was placed on the disabled list with a leg injury…
PCL home run leader Anthony Rizzo went deep again, knocking a solo homer off Carraway in the sixth inning for his 16th of the season…
Research revealed that on Tuesday Tacoma’s Erasmo Ramirez became just the third pitcher in PCL history to make three errors in one game.
ON TAP
The road trip ends Thursday with another 10:05 AM (Pacific) game in Des Moines. Tacoma will activate Brian Sweeney (0-0, 5.74) from the disabled list to make the start against Iowa’s Chris Rusin (4-3, 3.02). The broadcast can be heard on 850 AM.
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