Middle Innings Spur Kitties to Strong Win Over Reno, 9-2

WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. – For a second straight day the Sacramento River Cats overcame their opponent scoring the first run, bouncing back from an early 2-0 deficit with seven runs in the middle innings en route to a dominant 9-2 victory over the Reno Aces on Wednesday afternoon.

Though the Aces (16-12/51-52) snatched the early edge with a pair of runs in the top of the third, both of which scored on Adrian Del Castillo’s 22nd homer of the season, the River Cats (13-16/57-47) flipped the script starting in the home half of the fourth. It took just two batters for Sacramento to tie the game, using back-to-back homers from Trenton Brooks and Jerar Encarnacion to pull level. Brooks started the duo with his fifth of the campaign, while Encarnacion followed with his 10th.

This was the fifth time this season that the River Cats have hit back-to-back homers, the second time in the month of July as Christian Koss and Marco Luciano did so consecutively just before the All-Star break on July 13 at Salt Lake.

Additionally, the homer extended the hitting streak of Jerar Encarnacion, as he has now hit safely in 18 consecutive contests. With the knock today he matched the 18-game hitting streak of Joe McCarthy from May 24-June 17, 2021, and is now on the hunt to match the 22-game streak of Nick Buss that was accomplished from July 26-Aug. 16, 2014. Over this stretch, Encarnacion is batting .417 (30-for-72).

During the fifth the River Cats pulled in front for good, scoring three times in the inning thanks to RBI singles from Luis Matos and Encarnacion, the latter of which drove in two with his knock up the middle. That gives Encarnacion a total of 25 RBI over his current 18-game hitting streak.

Continuing the pressure in the sixth, a throwing error by Reno allowed last night’s walk-off hero Donovan Walton to reach base, scoring just two batters later when Chrisitan Koss deposited a ball over the wall in left field on a 1-2 pitch. That was the second homer in the past three games for Koss, who also went deep in the series finale against Sugar Land on Sunday.

Unnecessary insurance tallies were added in the seventh and eighth, scoring once in each inning that began with Hunter Bishop singling to center field, then turning on the jets and scoring all the way from first base on a Brett Auerbach double into the right-field corner. The eighth inning was nearly the same formula, this time with Koss drawing a one-out walk and crossing the plate in the next at=-bat on a Grant McCray double down the right-field line.

That two-bagger for McCray came as part of a three-hit effort, his second in the month of July with both coming against Reno as the other happened on July 6 on the road. Encarnacion also finished with a multi-hit day by going 2-for-5, as did Koss who was 2-for-3 with a trio of runs scored.

River Cats starter Carson Seymour (4-8) had to battle most of the contest but came out on the other end a winner, matching his season-high in innings pitched with 6.0 and allowing only two runs on eight hits with a pair of walks. The Kansas State product also struck out five, which he has done in four of his past five outings.

Both relievers that followed turned in scoreless outings, including Evan Gates who faced the minimum six batters without allowing a hit while working the seventh and eighth innings. On last was the newly signed Drew Strotman, who pitched in his first game with Sacramento since Sept. 20, 2023 at Salt Lake.

Winners of four in a row for the fifth time this season, the River Cats will look to keep the winning streak alive on Thursday when they battle the Aces in game three of this series beginning at 6:45 p.m. (PT).