The opening game of the Tacoma Rainiers first-ever series at Sugar Land was rained out on Thursday night, and will be made up in a Sunday doubleheader. The teams will try to get a game in tonight.
These Texas storms can be hard to get a read on. Seasoned pros in the Sugar Land front office who were looking at the weather radar were unable to tell if the ballpark was going to get drenched or not – the storm patterns kept changing. They even opened the gates at 6:00 for the 7:05 first pitch, the concession stands started cooking food, and then we all got soaked and the game was called. Postponing the game was the right decision, as it rained steadily until at least nine o’clock.
Today it’s raining during the day but the hourly forecast says it’s supposed to stop by 5:00 and remain dry well past midnight. Hopefully the forecast is correct!
RAINIERS DAILY
YESTERDAY: Banged. Postponed. Washed out. The game will be made up as a doubleheader on Sunday starting at 2:05 Pacific.
TODAY: Tacoma (28-24) at Sugar Land (31-22), 5:05 PT.
OPPONENT AFFILIATION: Houston Astros.
OPPOSING MANAGER: Mickey Storey.
SEASON SERIES: Tied, 0-0.
PITCHERS: RHP Darren McCaughan (4-3, 4.89) at RHP Hector Velazquez (1-1, 1.74)
Tacoma decided to go with regularly scheduled starter McCaughan tonight, and move rained out Thursday starter Ian McKinney back to Sunday when he’ll start the first game of the doubleheader.
ROSTER MOVES: Yesterday the Rainiers activated Sam Travis from the injured list, and Ty Kelly was released. Travis fractured his hand when he was hit by a pitch on May 31 at Reno – he had already homered twice in that game. Kelly came out of retirement this season to get live game action before joining Team Israel for the Tokyo Olympics; he is going to focus on that now.
HOT HITTERS: Jantzen Witte has a five-game hitting streak, and he has gone 13-for-32 over his last nine games… Ty Kelly has a four-game hitting streak… Jack Reinheimer has gone 10-for-28 with four doubles and two homers over his last eight games… Jarred Kelenic has tallied six hits over the last two games… Jose Marmolejos is 7-for-10 over his past three games… Dillon Thomas has reached base with a hit or walk in ten straight games.
OPPONENT NEWS: Sugar Land has won four straight games and went 5-1 in a series at Round Rock the ended Tuesday… Bryan De La Cruz has a torrid five-game hitting streak, going 13-for-21 with four homers and 11 RBI during it… Jake Meyers has hit safely in 16 of his last 17 games… Taylor Jones graduated from Kentwood High School and played college ball at Gonzaga.
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.
TRIPLE-A WEST SCOREBOARD: Follow all league games in real-time with links to Gameday screens right here.
STORIES YOU MIGHT LIKE:
- Logan Gilbert and the Mariners shut out the Yankees on Thursday, 4-0. The former Rainier (yes, we’ll count that one start he made for us back in May) allowed just one hit in seven innings.
- Come on, Larry. Stone wrote the “what if the Mariners had signed Ohtani” column.
- San Diego Padres reliever Daniel Camarena – who was El Paso’s opening day starter at Cheney Stadium back on May 6th – hit one of the most stunning grand slams in baseball history off Max Scherzer to spur a huge comeback win last night.
Listen to every home and away Tacoma Rainiers game for free HERE. You can also download the MiLB First Pitch app for a free and easy one-click listening experience at home, work or in your car. Watch an HD video broadcast of every game with an MiLB.TV subscription. Use code: RAINIERS to save $10 on an annual subscription.
About the Tacoma Rainiers
The Tacoma Rainiers are the Triple-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners. The Rainiers are a member of the Triple-A West. Tacoma has been a Mariners affiliate since establishing the Rainiers moniker in 1995.
Find more information and purchase single game tickets here. Questions regarding season tickets can be directed to Tickets@WeRTacoma.com.
The most up-to-date news and notes about the Tacoma Rainiers and Cheney Stadium can be found at WeRTacoma.com, or by following the Rainiers on Twitter (@RainiersLand), Instagram (@tacomarainiers) and liking the team on Facebook.
March 25, 2023