Newest articles on The Sacramento Press tagged as "carlos hernandez"

River Cats avoid elimination, win 8-2

2011-09-11T16:43:46Z

The Sacramento River Cats again avoided elimination from the postseason as they defeated the Reno Aces 8-2 at Raley Field on Saturday night.

The River Cats were able to bring the series to 2-2 and force a game 5 after falling behind in the series 0-2 to the Aces earlier in the week.

“After dropping two games in Reno, we are just fortunate enough to have put ourselves in a situation to play tomorrow,” said River Cats second baseman Wes Timmons. “There’s no pressure now, in reality, the pressure is on them now. Nobody wants to go up 2-0 and then lose.”

The River Cats quickly pounced on Reno’s starting pitcher Gaby Hernandez. Starting center fielder Jermaine Mitchell hit a lead-off triple to deep right-center field before scoring on a Chris Carter single to give Sacramento the early lead.

Sacramento built on their lead in the 2nd inning when catcher Joel Galarraga hit a single that scored Grant Green from second base. Starting short stop Tyler Ladendorf then hit a sacrifice bunt that moved Stephen Parker and Galarraga into scoring position with one out. Following a strikeout by Mitchell, Timmons was able to hit a two-out single to score two more runs and bring the River Cats lead to 4-0 heading into the 3rd inning.

The River Cats would tack on two more runs in the bottom of the 4th inning when third baseman Josh Donaldson hit a two-out triple that scored Timmons and Ladendorf who were on base after a walk and being hit by a pitch, respectively.

Sacramento starting pitcher Carlos Hernandez kept the Aces were off the scoreboard until the top of the 6th inning. After two singles and a walk to load the bases, Reno’s starting first baseman Andy Tracy hit a two-out single to score two runs for the Aces and bring the deficit to 6-2.

Much to the joy of his River Cats manager Darren Bush, Hernandez pitched 5.2 solid innings, giving up six hits, two runs, while walking two and striking out four.

Souza then came in to relieve Hernandez to pitch to Reno catcher Lucas May with the bases loaded. May battled Souza in a 13-pitch at bat that included a hard-hit foul ball that left the ball park. May would eventually ground out to third base to end the threat.

The River Cats quickly got those two runs back on a Timmons home run over the left field wall in the bottom of the 6th inning, bringing the score to 8-2.

The River Cats look to get the crowd into the game again on Sunday when they play in the decisive game 5.

“We have had a great crowd all year, we have sold out numerous times. This is one of the most faithful crowds I’ve played in front of,” said Timmons.

The River Cats face the Reno Aces in game 5 at Raley Field at 1:05 p.m. on Sunday, with the winner advancing to the Pacific Coast League Championship Series.

Lenny DiNardo takes the mound for the River Cats, going up against Aces Tom Layne. The River Cats are 1-4 in franchise history when playing in game 5 of a playoff series.

Timmons, River Cats power past Las Vegas 51's

2011-08-31T00:41:20Z

The Sacramento River Cats pounced early on the Las Vegas 51s en route to a 13-1 victory on Monday night at Raley Field.

Sacramento first baseman Chris Carter started the scoring with a two-out solo homerun deep over the left field wall.

Sacramento continued their attack on Las Vegas starting pitcher Kyle Drabek in the second inning. With runners on first and third, Sacramento shortstop Adam Rosales lined a single to left field to score another run and load the bases with only one out. Drabek then walked three consecutive batters to give the River Cats a 5-0 lead. Drabek finally got out of the inning after getting third baseman Josh Donaldson and left fielder Michael Taylor out.

The River Cats weren’t done when they came back up to bat in the bottom of the third inning. After singles by Landon Powell, Joel Galarraga and Adam Rosales, starting second baseman Wes Timmons hit a two-out grand slam over the left field wall. Timmons finished the game 2-4 with six RBIs.

Las Vegas’ Drabek threw 79 pitches in only 3.0 innings, giving up nine earned runs on eight hits while walking four and striking out four. Starting left fielder Jason Lane came in to pitch in a relief appearance in the sixth inning, pitching 2.0 innings, while allowing only one hit and striking out one batter.

Starting pitcher Carlos Hernandez gave the River Cats 8.0 solid innings, allowing four hits and one unearned run while striking out six.

Las Vegas scored their lone run in the seventh inning when pinch-hitter Ricardo Nanita was hit by a pitch and Las Vegas third baseman Chris Woodward singled to put runners on first and second with two outs. Second baseman Manny Mayorson then reached on a fielding error by Donaldson, allowing Nanita to score for Las Vegas.

Newly-called up southpaw Charles Mye came in to pitch in relief in the ninth inning. In his Sacramento debut, Mye pitched 1.0 inning and gave up no hits and one walk.

The River Cats continue their series with the Las Vegas 51s on Tuesday at 7:05 p.m. at Raley Field. Sacramento has three consecutive home games left before finishing the season on the road at Colorado Springs. The River Cats will start their postseason on Sept. 7, taking on the Reno Aces in the PCL Pacific Conference Series.

Cats split rare doubleheader, second one a classic against rival Aces

2011-07-25T00:43:38Z

This was one to remember.

On a beautiful afternoon at Raley Field on Saturday, one rare occurrence seemed to open the door for several more as the day went on and the Sacramento River Cats split a rare double header against their bitter rivals, the Reno Aces.

The Aces won the first contest 3-2 and the Cats won the nightcap 5-4 in a game that had just about everything but the proverbial kitchen sink.

How about both managers being ejected during the same at-bat, a foul ball that found it’s way into the press box, a guy being about a foot short of hitting for the cycle and a walk-off homer run all occurring during the crazy second game?

We'll save that for later. How about the first game?

The home team struck first in the second inning. After Jai Miller struck out, hot-hitting Josh Donaldson, who’s hit .353 and had a 1.009 on-base percentage the past ten games, ripped a liner into the left field corner for a double. Second baseman Andy LaRoche, who’s been picking up his average lately as well, singled to left to move Donaldson to third with only one out. Michael Taylor strode to the plate next and took an 0-2 pitch into right that scored Donaldson.

The Cats were up early 1-0 on the three consecutive hits in the frame.

The Aces of Reno put up their first digits of the game on the towering Raley Field scoreboard in the fourth on a fluke two-run single by Robby Hammock.

Before Hammock’s at-bat, David Winfree singled while Cole Gillespie and Andy Tray both walked to load the bases for the visitors. After a Konrad Schmidt strikeout, Hammock hit a ball up the middle that skipped off of Cats starting pitcher Carlos Hernandez’s leg, then rolled quickly into the hole between short and third. Third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff drove into the hole to snag the fast-dribbling roller, but the ball bounced off his glove and rolled far enough away to allow a second runner to score on the play.

In the end, it was probably the weirdest two-run single I’ve ever seen.

The Cat got even quickly in the bottom half of the fourth.

Donaldson got his second double in as many at-bats and scored on Laroche’s second single of the game.

Donaldson, who struggled to find a comfort level at the plate early in the season, has been playing well the past couple of months, especially after the incident against Reno in their last meeting.

Donaldson, who was batting when a Reno pitcher intentionally threw behind him, ended up being suspended by the league for approaching the mound in what they must have considered a semi-threatening manner.

“I just feel pretty comfortable in the box right now,” Donaldson said after the twin bill. “It helps when guys aren’t throwing at your head every other game, but it’s just one of those things that most hitters goes through a spell where they’re feeling pretty good and right now I’m feeling pretty good, seeing the ball well and putting some good swings on them.”

Even though Donaldson, who went 2-for-2 with two doubles and a walk in game one, had been steadily increasing the average the last couple of months, I asked him if the incident had anything to do with his recent performance.

“For me, focus is a big part of it,” continued the 25-year old catcher. “Being able to go in there every day and being able to get consistent at-bats. Every at-bat, every games counts from here on out and the season’s going by too fast almost for me so it’s time really focus in and do the things I’m capable of doing.”

All quiet on the Western Front until the seventh and final inning of this rare double header when Aces leadoff man Evan Frey doubled into left center. Colin Cowgill’s single scored Frey for the go-ahead run.

With three bullets left in the gun, the Cats went down quietly in the seventh to lose the first of two on the day.

The Reno Aces win a close one in the first of two by the score of 3-2.

The other star for the Cats in the first game was Andy LaRoche. LaRoche is on of those players that was sent down by the big club to work out some kinks in his offensive game.

He’s been playing better lately indicative by his 3-for-3 and RBI performance and , thanks to Donaldson, thinks he found something in his swing that was preventing him from being as successful.

“I’m getting back to my old swing,” started LaRoche, “the way I used to be like back in my Dodger days. J.D. (Donaldson) actually noticed something with my back knee and since he told me that, I’ve been feeling a lot more comfortable at the plate and my timing’s been a lot better.”

-----------------------------------

In the second of two on a beautiful July evening in Sacramento, the Cats were wearing pink uniforms to raise money for cancer research. During the annual affair to raise funds for the Susan G. Koman Foundation, visitors had the chance to bid on the hot pink threads with the winner bidder getting to hit the field after the game and get that player's signature on their newfound collectable.

Adrian Cardenas torched a foul line-seeking triple in the first inning that rolled all the way to the wall in right. Two batters later, Jai Miller hit a towering blast over the wall in left-center that landed on top of the ground keeper’s field house. What a monster blast! A true major league bomb in any park.

Reno didn’t take long to etch their own digits onto the scoreboard. With two outs in the second, Robby Hammock walked, Mark Hallberg singled and leadoff batter Evan Frey walked to load the bags.

That’s when Colin Cowgill popped weakly into shallow right. Even with three River Cats converging on the scene, no one could get there in time and the ball dropped softly near the foul line where the edge of the grass meets the dirt. The seeing-eye single scored two and locked the game in a 2-2 tie.

On a side note, before Tony Abreu flied out to center, he just got a piece of a fastball that came screaming back over the net. That’s when things went into slow motion for your fearless writer.

While sitting next to Nick Lozito, Coordinator of Media Relations & Interactive Media for the Cats, near the right corner of the press box, I locked onto the ball as it came straight for us. Unfortunately for me, I’m left-handed and the ball was speeding towards my right side. As I stood up, the ball entered through the press box open windows and I stuck out my right hand. Not sure if Lozito would also be going for the rocket shot, I was only able to get my right hand up and the ball hit the side of my palm at what seemed 70 -75 miles per hour. The ball just bounced off my hand and fell into the box between Lozito and myself.

After the fact, Lozito assured me he was having no part of the foul ball that was screaming towards us.

My one shot at glory and I couldn’t hang on. It didn’t matter though as I showed the crowd the ball and got a small undeserved ovation.

Back to the game.

Cardenas, who ended up a homer short of hitting for the cycle, led off the third with a single and he scored three batters later when LaRoche hit a roller to third that Hammock knocked down, but couldn’t get back to his feet in time to throw out LaRoche at first.

Chris Carter, who struggled in Oakland and since being back in Sacramento, was up next and hit a line drive into left that plated Kouzmanoff.

Carter’s been moved around defensively quite a bit as the Cats have tried him in the outfield, first base and third base. With all the things going on the defensive side of things, one has to wonder if it’s been affecting him at the plate.

“It’s not that hard, you know,” said the 6’4”, 240-pounder. “I keep them both separate. I can’t take by bat out onto the field and I can’t bring what I do on the field to my at-bats. I’m just trying to work on getting back right.”

The Aces struck right back in the next inning when Hammock took a 1-1 offering over the left-center field wall to get Reno to within one run.

In the sixth, something happened that I’ve never seen. Two managers ejected for different reasons during the same at-bat.

Cats Manager Darren Bush was ejected for either making some gestures or saying something the first base umpire didn’t like on what he thought was a check swing that first base umpire called a ball and Aces manager Brett Butler, yes that Brett Butler, was tossed for arguing a close play at the plate.

Bush sat somewhat confused in his office after the game; still wondering what he did to be ejected.

“Apparently, he thought I was doing something he thought was inappropriate,” said the skipper. “He thought I did something that he thought warranted I be thrown out of the game, but what is was, I’m not sure.”

Compared to what Butler did, Bush’s issues were minor to say the least.

The replay showed that home plate umpire was correct in calling Mark Hallberg out as Anthony Recker blocked the plate and Hallberg couldn’t get his hand in for the score.

Butler, who played for Atlanta, Cleveland, San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York, flipped out after being ejected for arguing and then did a highly animated pantomime of his impression of what had happened. The crowd got a laugh out of Butler’s antics, which lasted a good minute or two.

Cardenas, who was a homer short of hitting for the cycle, torched the 2-1 pitch from Jordan Norberto deep to the warning track. The ball just missed going out of the park and Cardenas would come be the home run short of a rare feat.

Cardenas knew what his line was as on a pitch before his deep drive, he almost swung out of his shoes in his effort to take on out of the yard and complete the cycle.

“I usually don’t hit too many homers,” said Cardenas. “I’m usually the one that likes to keep my swing nice and short. But I’ve been working on a few things as far as trying to turn on inside pitches and be really taking advantage of my swings and hitting the ball a little bit harder. Obviously with the situation and the game being tied and me going to the cycle, I’d be lying to you if I told you I wasn’t trying to hit a homer there.”

No worries for the Cats though as the next batter was Kouzmanoff, who took the second pitch he saw over the center field wall for a game-winning homer run.

“All I was thinking was get a good pitch to hit and trying to hit it hard,” said the slugger from the loud clubhouse as the Cats had the music cranking while celebrating the walk-off win. “We needed base runners at that point and I saw A.C. (Cardenas) hit his and I thought it was out, I really did because it came off the bat well and then just died. But I was trying to get a good pitch to hit and fortunately I got a pitch out over the plate that I was able to handle and drive out.”

PHOTOS COURTESY OF:

SARA MOLINA - RIVERCATS.com

Rosales and Hernandez keys in Cats comeback win, 7-4 over Bees

2011-06-03T02:09:02Z

Oakland A’s second baseman Adam Rosales was itching to get back on the field, so much so that he just arrived in town to begin his rehab stint with the River Cats and found himself in the starting lineup.

After he collected a single, double and triple by the sixth inning, one had to wonder — after he got pulled in the eighth — if he was even a little upset at not getting a chance to go for the cycle in his first game since August.

“No, it’s just fun to get out there and play,” said Rosales, who has been out for nine months rehabbing a broken bone in his ankle. “It’s fun to bump elbows with these guys and to enjoy playing at this level again.”

He got a chance to do more than bump elbows, as Rosales had three of the Cats’ 10 hits along with an RBI in Sacramento’s 7-4 comeback win over the Salt Lake Bees Wednesday at Raley Field.

After the dreaded rain delay of almost 90 minutes, the Bees opened the first with a sharp two-strike single by left fielder Tyson Auer. After a sacrifice by Chris Pettit, power hitter Jeff Baisley strode to the plate and dinked a bunt to Cats pitcher Carlos Hernandez. Hernandez promptly threw the ball in the dirt and, as it went by first baseman Shane Peterson and rolled to the wall, Auer hustled around the bases and scored from second. Baisley, who got to third on the throw, scored a batter later on a sacrifice from Bees first baseman Efren Navarro.

It first appeared that the River Cats would start clawing their way back from the early 2-0 deficit when leadoff hitter Rosales took the second pitch he saw into left for a single. After stealing second, Rosales was stranded in the heart of the diamond after the next three Cats-made outs.

Most guys would be lamenting over the missed playing time as if a younger player were ready to make a run for the player’s spot.

Not Rosales. He found different ways to keep his head in the game.

“It’s been a long road, but a road that’s taught me patience,” said Rosales, who has been with Oakland since 2009. “(It’s taught) me how to slow the game down a little bit. I get to study video a lot. I had so much time of my hands, I’d try and get as much baseball knowledge as I could when I wasn’t playing.”

The second started off just like the first for the Bees, as the first two batters singled again and sacrificed the runner to second. After that short run of duplicity, Cole Armstrong doubled in Gil Velazquez from second on the first pitch he saw. A batter later, Auer plated Armstrong on his second single of the game.

While Salt Lake put up two in each of the first two innings, Sacramento was still looking to dig in their spikes and scratch something onto the towering scoreboard.

That’s when Anthony “Home” Recker ripped the first pitch he saw over the wall in left field and watched it hit off the clubhouse wall for his ninth homer of the season.

“I had good fortune today,” he said later. “I put a pretty good swing on the ball.”

After a quiet third inning, the Cats finally busted out the whipping sticks. Following a fly out by Recker, the Cats unleashed back-to-back-to-back doubles by Michael Taylor, Eric Sogard and Jai Miller that scored two and got Sacramento to within a run.

Shane Peterson walked after Miller’s double to get Sacramento runners on second and third. Miller scored a moment later on another Cats double — this one by Rosales. Scott Sizemore continued the scoring barrage with a sacrifice fly that plated Peterson.

After a four-run fifth, the Cats led 5-4.

Considering the shaky start Cats pitcher Hernandez got off to — four hits, three sacrifices and two earned runs in the first two innings — the following four innings he pitched were nearly flawless. In frames three through six, Hernandez struck out five and gave up only two hits while keeping the Bees from pasting anymore runs onto the scoreboard.

“I threw a lot of fastballs,” Hernandez said of his change in the game. “I went in and out on hitters and mixed speeds when I needed too. Recker called a good game too.”

The Cats put two more runs on their side of the ledger in the game. Rosales scored on a throwing error by Bees second baseman Dwayne Bailey after his leadoff triple in the sixth. Later, in the seventh, Miller knocked in Recker, who had walked to start the inning.

Three scoreless innings were the work of the Cats bullpen — an inning each by Jerry Blevins, Fautino De Los Santos and Willie Eyre, who, after a leadoff walk in the ninth, struck out the side to end the game.

After the game, the question still begged to be asked: How does a guy who has not picked up a bat for nine months get a single, a double, a triple and steal a base in his first game back? Seriously? After ankle surgery?

“A true hitter is always trying to improve himself,” Rosales said smiling. “I’m still getting completely comfortable at the plate.”

PHOTOS COURTESY OF:

http://www.nabityphotos.com/

River Cats split series with Oklahoma City as lefty Hernandez shines in season debut

2011-05-24T04:08:36Z

The Sacramento River Cats (28-16) defeated Oklahoma City (20-23) 11-2 on Sunday afternoon at Raley Field to earn a series split after dropping the first two games to the RedHawks.

After RedHawks starting LHP Ryan Rowland-Smith (2-3, 5.23) issued consecutive walks to Jemile Weeks and Aaron Sogard in the bottom of the first, the River Cats offense set the tone when Michael Taylor tied the game at 1-1 with an RBI single to center field that scored Weeks. After advancing to third base on Taylor’s single, Aaron Sogard scored on the next at bat when Josh Donaldson hit a sacrifice ground-out to put Sacramento up 2-1. Rowland-Smith then walked DH Anthony Recker and Taylor swiped his third steal of the season before scoring on an Adrian Cardenas RBI single to RedHawks 1B Koby Clemens to put the River Cats up 3-1.

LHP Carlos Hernandez (1-0, 0.00), who was called up from AA Midland to start the game, had little trouble in limiting the RedHawks to six hits and one earned run over six quality innings that included four strikeouts and no walks. Hernandez, 23, was 4-1 with a 5.27 ERA in 42.2 innings with the Midland RockHounds. He is from Santa Clara, California.

The southpaw escaped a bases loaded jam in the top of the sixth when Oklahoma City 2B Jason Inglett grounded into a reverse double play in which he grounded out to 1B Wes Timmons. Timmons fired the ball to home plate where Donaldson tagged out Robinson Cancel to end the inning.

Beyond Hernandez’s strong outing, the River Cats asserted their lumber, tacking on ten runs through five innings. Weeks had the biggest day for Sacramento, going two for four including a three-run home run to right center, three runs scored, one walk and one stolen base. Center fielder Shane Peterson went two for four with a solo home run to right center field to lead off the bottom of the second inning. Recker went two for two with a double, three walks and a solo home run that bounced off the left field canopy. It was Recker’s second home run in as many days.

Oklahoma City wasn’t as fortunate. The RedHawks were limited to two unearned runs on six hits, only one of which was for extra bases. Oklahoma City managed only one walk that occurred in the seventh inning, which can be attributed largely to Sacramento’s collective performance on the mound.

When Hernandez was lifted in the top the seventh, RHP Andrew Carignan (0-0, 4.50) provided one inning of relief, giving up one unearned run, one hit and a walk before RHP Brett Hunter (0-0, 0.00) took care of the final two innings of work. Hunter did not allow a base runner and struck out the side in the top of the ninth.

Notes:

*Anthony Recker was given the day off behind the plate after catching all 16 innings the night before.

*The River Cats originally scheduled RHP Josh Outman for the start, but scratched him after Oakland called him up for a major league start Monday in Anaheim.

*Attendance: 10, 711

*Sunday’s game was over three hours shorter than Saturday night’s record breaking game.