Preview: River Cats, Rainiers Continue Series in Tacoma

TACOMA, Wash. (Interstat) — The Sacramento River Cats and Tacoma Rainiers continue their six-game series Saturday at Cheney Stadium, with both teams looking to gain traction in the early Pacific Coast League season.

First pitch is scheduled for 1:35 p.m. under cloudy skies with temperatures around 54 degrees.

The River Cats (10-5) evened the series with a 4-0 victory Friday after dropping a doubleheader split on Thursday. Sacramento holds a three-game lead over the Rainiers (7-10) in the early standings.

Sacramento will send right-hander John Michael Bertrand (0-0) to the mound. Tacoma counters with right-hander Gabe Mosser (0-0). Both pitchers are making their first start of the season.

A player to watch for Sacramento is reliever Dylan Smith, who has not allowed an earned run in his last three appearances spanning four innings, including a scoreless frame against Tacoma on Thursday.

For the Rainiers, right-hander Casey Lawrence is a key figure out of the bullpen. He earned the win Thursday against Sacramento, allowing one run over five innings of work. In that same game, outfielder Brock Rodden went 3 for 4 with three RBIs to lead the Tacoma offense.

The series has been a tight one, with three of the first four games decided by two runs or fewer. Interstat’s game simulator projects a 7-2 Sacramento victory, while its ELO rating system gives Tacoma a 56.4% probability to win.

Following Saturday’s contest, the series concludes Sunday before both teams embark on new series Tuesday. Sacramento returns home to face Albuquerque, while Tacoma hits the road to play Oklahoma City.