The Mariners had an injury at the catcher position last night, as starter Tom Murphy left the game with a dislocated left shoulder. Today the M’s placed Murphy on the injured list, and called Cal Raleigh up from Tacoma.
Raleigh got things going at the plate in the last week for the Rainiers. He had two singles and an RBI last night, giving him multiple hits in four of the last five games. Perhaps this brief stint getting everyday at-bats for Tacoma will help him at the next level.
One thing that becomes clear when you watch a lot of Triple-A baseball over the years is that it is very difficult for a young player to adjust from everyday at-bats in the minors to occasional off-the-bench at-bats in the big leagues. The player is forced to try to adjust to superior major league pitching in limited, sporadic looks at it.
Raleigh should get a nice chunk of playing time this go-around, sharing catching duties with Luis Torrens. Hopefully he can get his bat going in the show – he’s a threat at the plate in Triple-A, and it’s not hard to imagine him being the same in the big leagues.
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The Kyle Lewis rehabilitation program hit a minor snag yesterday, when the Mariners star was initially listed as the designated hitter in the Rainiers lineup, only to be scratched an hour before game time.
Despite being scratched, Lewis was on the field doing knee exercises with the Mariners rehabilitation specialist who is in town working with him. We’ll see if he is able to play tonight. Obviously, the Mariners are being very cautious with him.
RAINIERS DAILY
YESTERDAY: Salt Lake made it three straight wins over the Rainiers, with a 9-5 decision on Friday night. Brendan Davis hit a three-run homer in the first inning and the Bees never trailed. David MacKinnon was 4-for-4 with two home runs. Tacoma made the most of its five hits, scoring five runs. Cal Raleigh had two hits, and Mason McCoy ripped a solo dinger.
TODAY: Tacoma Rainiers (8-20) at Salt Lake Bees (15-13), 5:35 (Pacific).
OPPONENT AFFILIATION: Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
OPPOSING MANAGER: Lou Marson.
SEASON SERIES: Salt Lake leads, 7-3.
PITCHERS: LHP Tommy Milone (0-0, 0.00) at RHP Janson Junk (0-1, 4.32)
Junk is the Federal Way native who pitched against the Rainiers at Cheney Stadium on opening night.
ROSTER MOVES: Yesterday was our first day without any roster moves this week. Today the Mariners recalled catcher Cal Raleigh to replace the injured Tom Murphy.
HOT HITTERS: Sam Haggerty is 14-for-36 on the road trip, and he has a four-game hitting streak… Mason McCoy has reached base in 12 straight games, hitting safely in 11 of them with a six-game hitting streak… Zach Green has at least one hit in nine of his last ten games… Cal Raleigh has multiple hits in four of his last five games.
OPPONENT NEWS: Salt Lake just split an unusual home/road series against Round Rock, in which the Bees went 1-2 at Round Rock and then both teams flew to Salt Lake City where the Bees won two of three… David MacKinnon is 7-for-9 with two homers the last two games… former Rainiers outfielder Dillon Thomas has reached base safely in 14 straight games, and he is 9-for-18 in this series… three former Rainiers are in the Salt Lake bullpen: Brian Moran, Jonathan Aro, and Zack Weiss.
BROADCAST: All games will be broadcast free on a live audio stream which is available right here.
Unfortunately, there is no traditional terrestrial radio station carrying the games at this time.
PCL SCOREBOARD: Follow all league games in real-time with links to broadcasts and Gameday screens right here.
Links:
- Jo Adell reported to Salt Lake for the final three games of this series against the Rainiers.
- The Mariners… man, that was tough. Jarred Kelenic had a huge moment, hitting a go-ahead home run in the bottom of the eighth inning, but the team lost to Tampa Bay in the ninth.
- More speculation on who is going to take Matt Brash‘s spot in the Mariners rotation. Triple-A Tacoma is not mentioned. Update: it’s going to be George Kirby.
June 10, 2023