Offensive struggles, tiebreaker rule lead to extra-inning loss for Tacoma despite perfect bullpen outing
The new tiebreaker rule instituted in the minor leagues — beginning every extra frame with a runner on second base — did its job Saturday night. Salt Lake executed its half of the 10th inning, Tacoma didn’t, and the Bees beat the Rainiers 2-1.
The free runner put a damper on what had been one of the best nights of a dominant year for the Tacoma bullpen. Dario Alvarez, Nick Rumbelow, and Shawn Armstrong combined for five perfect innings in relief, but it still wasn’t enough.
“The bullpen was great,” Rainiers manager Pat Listach said. “Alvarez retired all the guys he faced, Rumbelow was as good, and Armstrong was the same.”
Ben Revere started the top of the 10th on second, went to third on a sacrifice bunt, and came home on a groundout to the right side.
Final line for the bullpen: five innings, no hits, no walks, four strikeouts, one unearned run. And the hardest of hard-luck losses for Armstrong.
The Tacoma bullpen only faced such a fate because for the second night in a row, the bats stayed quiet. Tacoma went 0 for 9 with runners in scoring position, and left 10 runners on base.
“We’re just not hitting,” Listach said. “And that goes 1-9; nobody’s hitting now.”
Ian Miller led off the bottom of the first with a broken-bat single, wheeled to third on a perfect hit-and-run by Gordon Beckham, and scored on a Mike Zunino sacrifice fly.
And that… well that was pretty much the last good thing the Tacoma offense did.
Even with Miller gift-wrapped at second to start the bottom of the 10th, the offense stalled out. Listach decided against moving him over to third with Gordon Beckham up, the Tacoma second baseman flew out to center, to shallow to be productive.
“I’m not going to have Beckham bunt,” Listach said. “He’s our best hitter, he’s hitting over .320. We were playing for two runs with another game tomorrow.”
That brought up Mike Zunino’s spot, but after four at-bats in his second rehab start, Zunino had gone home, and Kirk Nieuwenhuis struck out as the pinch hitter. An Andrew Aplin flyout ended the game, with Miller still on second.
Rob Whalen, in his second start in Tacoma since coming off of the disabled list, shut the Bees down in five innings of work, allowing one run on four hits and striking out seven batters.
“He didn’t have his best command, but he had some really good movement,” Listach said.
Alvarez retired all five batters he faced, Rumbelow took care of his four, and Armstrong went six up, six down in the ninth and 10th, despite the run.
Tacoma will go out to avoid the three-game sweep tomorrow against Salt Lake at 1:35 p.m. at Cheney Stadium. Bryan Evans is scheduled to go for the Rainiers, against Osmer Morales for the Bees.