Late power surge, solid pitching put Rainiers back into win column

Maybe all the Tacoma Rainiers needed to do to break their skid was go back to their roots: solid starting pitching, a dominant bullpen, and timely hitting.

Bryan Evans provided the start, Mike Morin, Ryan Cook, and Tyler Higgins kept Reno off the board, and Daniel Vogelbach and Gordon Beckham supplied the power as the Rainiers beat the Aces 4-2 Friday night in front of a sellout crowd at Cheney Stadium.

“Winning is contagious,” manager Pat Listach said. “Just like losing is and making errors is. You start winning, and then you expect to win, and you play better baseball.

Evans, making his third start since joining the Rainiers, continued to look impressive, going six innings and striking out six on 84 pitches.

“Everything’s starting to feel a little better and on-time, and when that happens it’s better than when I started,” Evans said. “I feel like I’ve got a better feel for all my pitches, and I’m happy I could throw a few for strikes.”

The only blight on Evans’ day was a two-run home run by Kristopher Negron in the top of the fifth inning that gave Reno a 2-1 lead.

Vogelbach tied the game up in the bottom of the sixth, pulling a no-doubter over the wall in right off of Reno starter Matt Koch for his team-leading 12th homer of the season.

“When a guy like that is pitching and grooving like that, you have to take advantage of mistakes,” Vogelbach said. “He made a mistake and I was able to put a good swing on it.”

Beckham’s bomb was his fifth of the year, bringing in John Andreoli in the bottom of the seventh to break the tie.

“The wind wasn’t blowing out so I didn’t know if it going to go or not, but it was nice to see it go over the fence for sure,” Beckham said.

Morin struck out three in 1 ⅓ innings of work, but allowed an infield single with one out in the eighth. Cook, whom the Mariners front office wanted to get more experience pitching with runners on base, replaced him and loaded the bases but got out of the jam. Higgins came in with a runner on third and one out in the ninth and struck out one before ending the game on a grounder.

Tacoma and Reno will continue the series Saturday at 5:05 p.m. Ross Detwiler is scheduled to face Jake Buchanan.

Iron Man Seth

Seth Mejias-Brean got the call up from Double-A Arkansas to Tacoma on May 14. After playing a game in North Little Rock the day before, the coaching staff gave its new infielder the game that day — in Sacramento — off.

So far, it’s the only game Mejias-Brean has watched from the bench with the Rainiers. The Tucson, Ariz., native has played 42 consecutive games, becoming Tacoma’s own iron man of the summer.

“I didn’t know what to expect (when I got called up),” Mejias-Brean said at Cheney Stadium before Friday night’s game. “But I’m glad it’s been that way. I just go game-by-game right now.”

On a team that’s shuffled its defense on a daily basis, Mejias-Brean has become the one consistent stalwart on the field, with 39 of his starts coming at third base. He’s already second among Tacoma infielders in starts at one position this season.

“It’s definitely nice to keep at that one spot and keep going,” Mejias-Brean said. “It’s more of a big league mentality, where once you get up there, you’re going to be expected to play every day.”

Offensively, Mejias-Brean has increased his power since coming up, hitting six home runs and driving in 22 RBIs while hitting .263.

Now with the first half of the season winding down, Mejias-Brean is finally eying up some deserved time off with the three-day All-Star break in a week and a half.

“I’m definitely looking forward to that,” he said. “It’ll be nice to relax and take some time off with the mind and body.”

Super Utility

Prior to last night, Gordon Beckham had one start this season in left field. And before that?

“I think I played one game in Spring Training, one year,” Beckham said.

For Beckham, who already has starts at every infield position this season, adding to his repertoire will only increase what he can offer. Traditionally, utility players were needed to play the middle infield positions, and maybe third base. Now, that job has increased to include first and the outfield grass.

“It can’t hurt, so if I get five to 10 games (in the outfield) at some point this season, that’s a positive moving into next year,” Beckham said.

So if Beckham’s goal is to do as much as possible, should we expect to see him throw on the tools of ignorance and get behind the plate any time soon?

“I don’t think so,” Beckham said, laughing. “I thought about it, but probably not.”

So for now, six positions will have to be enough.