Early fireworks? Rainiers turned around season with a hot June stretch

Fireworks over Cheney Stadium — like the ones firing off Tuesday night — are a pretty good metaphor for the Tacoma Rainiers, who has been blasting out wins the past month to turn their season around.

First, rewind to May 31. Tacoma scored early and took a 5-1 lead into the top of the sixth before giving up three in the sixth and three in the seventh, ultimately losing 10-8 in 11 innings. The bullpen allowed three runs. The defense made four errors. The Rainiers fell to 27-28.

Coming into Tuesday’s game, the Rainiers have gone 17-12 since June 1, including an 8-2 stretch a few weeks ago. The bullpen has been dominant, allowing 35 earned runs over that stretch. (Nine came in one rough outing June 30, and three were off of infielder Danny Muno in a June 8 blowout.)

“I feel like if we get a lead, we can hold the lead,” Rainiers manager Pat Listach said at Cheney Stadium before Tuesday night’s game.

The Tacoma fielders have made just 10 errors in the past 29 games, best in the PCL in that stretch, and five fewer than the next-best team.

Throw in good outings from the rotation, including new starters Bryan Evans and Williams Perez, and a few timely hits, and Tacoma finds itself four games over .500 at 44-40 and just 4.5 games back of Fresno in the division.

A look at some first-half highlights:

Biggest surprise

Is it a coincidence that as soon as the Rainiers brought Tyler Higgins into their bullpen June 2, they started winning? While the credit can’t go entirely to him, he has played a large role.

Higgins, who started the year in the Independent League after being let go from the Marlins organization, changed the grip on his four-seam fastball, started attacking hitters, and within two months had a call from the Mariners. Since he’s come to Tacoma, he's been stellar: 11 innings pitched, seven hits, three walks, 14 strikeouts and has converted all three of his save opportunities.

“I knew what to expect from him, and he’s been that and better,” Listach said.

Most likely to be promoted

Shawn Armstrong has big-league experience, with a few stints with the Cleveland Indians. Now in his first year in Tacoma, Armstrong has taken over the closer role, leading the Rainiers with six saves. With a fastball in the mid-90s and a cutter just a shade slower, Armstrong has more strikeouts than any other Tacoma reliever.

Armstrong, the team's representative to the Triple-A all-star game on July 11, has positioned himself to be promoted should the Mariners need a reliever.

Second half storyline

For the first time in a long time, the Mariners are not in a position to call up all of their top prospects for experience as August and September roll around. With one of the best records in the MLB, Seattle’s roster will probably see more consistency than in past seasons, which will lead to more consistency in Tacoma.

It’ll take a lot for the Rainiers to catch up to the Grizzlies (whose MLB affiliate, the Astros, also have their lineup pretty much worked out by now). But if they can keep roughly the same 25 players for the next couple of months, they’ll be in a much better position to make a run at a division title.