June 29 Game Notes: Tacoma Rainiers at Sugar Land Space Cowboys

June 29, 2024 – Pacific Coast League (PCL)
Tacoma Rainiers News Release

TACOMA RAINIERS (45-34) @ SUGAR LAND SPACE COWBOYS (51-28)

Saturday, June 29 – 5:05 PM PT – Constellation Field – Sugar Land, TX

RHP Emerson Hancock (2-1, 1.91) vs. LHP Colton Gordon (4-0, 4.67)

TONIGHT’S GAME: The Rainiers and Space Cowboys will play game five of their six-game set tonight, with the series currently tied at two games apiece. Tacoma will send right-hander Emerson Hancock to the mound, set to make his first start since June 19. The 25-year-old enters tonight’s game with a 2-1 record and a 1.91 ERA, allowing seven earned runs on 22 hits and 12 walks over 33.0 innings pitched for the Rainiers. He has struck out 29 batters over that span, limiting opponents to a .180 batting average against him. Opposite Hancock will be Colton Gordon taking the ball for the Space Cowboys, putting his perfect record on the line. The southpaw enters tonight’s game with a 4-0 record and a 4.67 ERA, allowing 23 earned runs on 54 hits and 14 walks while striking out 39 batters over his 44.1 innings pitched. He has allowed seven home runs through his first 10 games (nine starts) of the year with Sugar Land.

HEATING UP: Jonatan Clase added two more hits last night, going 2-for-5 with an RBI and a strikeout. The switch hitter now has at least one hit in each of his last five games and five hits over his last two games. Over his five-game hitting streak dating back to June 23, the 22-year-old is hitting .320 (8-for-25) with four runs scored, a double, a triple, a home run and three runs batted in. The only struggle for Clase has been the strikeout, as he has gotten struck out nine times over his last five games. Over his last eight games dating back to June 20, he has been struck out at least once in each game, fanning 16 times in all.

IMMACULATE: Trevor Kelley has had a good season for Tacoma this year, going 2-1 with a 3.24 ERA in a team-leading 29 appearances. The right-hander has allowed 12 earned runs on 25 hits and 22 walks, striking out 37 batters over his 33.1 innings pitched. He has turned into a late-inning high leverage reliever for the Rainiers, recording eight holds and a save over his 29 relief appearances so far. Last night he did something extremely rare, however, tossing an immaculate eighth inning. The righty threw all nine of his pitches for strikes, striking out the side on the minimum number of pitches. It marked the first immaculate inning for the Rainiers since Matt…