June 11 Game Notes: Tacoma Rainiers at Round Rock Express

June 11, 2024 – Pacific Coast League (PCL)
Tacoma Rainiers News Release

TACOMA RAINIERS (34-29) @ ROUND ROCK EXPRESS (32-30)

Tuesday, June 11 – 5:15 PM PT – Dell Diamond – Round Rock, TX

RHP Ty Buttrey (0-2, 11.25) vs. RHP Adrian Sampson (7-2, 4.37)

TONIGHT’S GAME: Tacoma and Reno will play game one of their six-game series tonight and their first of 12-games between the two teams this season. The Rainiers will be going with a bullpen day to start the series, as their originally scheduled starter, Jhonathan Diaz, is expected to be recalled by Seattle today. Buttrey comes into play tonight with an 0-2 record and an 11.25 ERA through 17 relief appearances, allowing 20 earned runs on 25 hits and eight walks. He has struck out 17 batters over his 16.0 innings pitched, allowing opponents to hit .368 against him. Tonight will be his first start above Rookie League since 2016 with Double-A Portland, when he made nine starts. Opposite Buttrey will be Adrian Sampson taking the ball for Round Rock, set to make his 12th start of the season. Sampson is 7-2 with a 4.37 ERA through his first 11 starts, allowing 28 earned runs on 65 hits and 15 walks, striking out 41 batters over 57.2 innings. The right-hander’s seven wins are tied with Diaz for the most wins in the PCL and are his most wins in a single season since 2018, when he won eight games with the Express.

DOING HIS THING: Nick Solak recorded two more hits in the series finale against Reno on Sunday, raising his average on the year to a team-leading .316. Solak has played in under half of Tacoma’s games, despite being on the active roster all season. He has played in parts of 31 of the Rainiers’ 63 games, but continues to produce each time he is out there. The outfielder has recorded eight multi-hit games, tied for fifth on Tacoma’s season-long roster this year. Two of those multi-hit games came in his two starts last week, going 3-for-4 with a double and walk on Tuesday while going 2-for-3 with a double, two runs batted in and a walk on Sunday. In his 31 games, the 29-year-old is hitting .316 (30-for-95) with five doubles, three home runs, 21 runs batted in and 13 walks compared to 16 strikeouts. He is also a perfect 4-for-4 in stolen bases this year.

HEATING UP: From June 1-5, Cade Marlowe went hitless, going 0-for-13 with eight strikeouts compared to one walk. Since that tough three-game stretch, the outfielder has recorded a hit in three of his last four games, reaching base in all four. Over that…