Sacramento River Cats

Yoenis Cespedes was in left field for the River Cats for the second game in a row Tuesday night. Should he find himself there more often when he rejoins the A's, the rehabbing outfielder said, that would be OK.

Brandon Hicks hit a two-run walk-off homer in the ninth inning Tuesday night to give the River Cats a 4-2 win over the Fresno Grizzlies.

Ryan Wheeler and Randy Ruiz hit home runs, and Trevor Bauer, the Arizona Diamondbacks' No. 1 prospect, struck out eight in six innings to lead the Reno Aces past the River Cats 10-2 Monday afternoon at Raley Field.

Chris Carter hit a grand slam in a five-run third inning, and right-hander Brad Peacock picked up his sixth win as the River Cats beat the Pacific North-leading Reno Aces 5-4 Sunday night at Raley Field.

The River Cats' lineup this afternoon could feature both Manny Ramirez and Yoenis Cespedes, with the A's center fielder scheduled to begin a rehabilitation stint in Sacramento today.

The groin injury that has brought Brandon Inge to the Triple-A River Cats for rehab the past couple of days, he said, "couldn't have been at a worse time."

Brandon Inge appears ready to return to the A's. The rehabbing infielder (pulled groin) went 5 for 5 with two homers, including a grand slam, two doubles and seven RBIs as the River Cats crushed the Reno Aces 10-0 Saturday night at Raley Field.

A light but steady stream of people climbed the concrete steps to the Raley Field ticket window over the course of an hour, a good number for the middle of a windy Wednesday afternoon.

With two outs in the sixth inning and the River Cats clinging to a 3-2 lead Thursday, Round Rock's Matt Kata hit a three-run double, giving the Express the lead for good in a 5-3 win.

The River Cats scored five runs in the third inning and coasted to an 8-2 win over the Round Rock Express, stopping a two-game losing streak.

The River Cats jumped out to a 1-0 lead, but a six-run fourth inning gave Round Rock the lead for good. The Express went on to win 11-5.

After Jeff Fiorentino drew a walk pinch hitting for Manny Ramirez (0 for 4) in the top of the ninth, Michael Taylor (3 for 5) drove him in with a double to give the River Cats a 7-6 win Saturday at Albuquerque.

So how does Darren Bush plan to manage Manny Ramirez when the veteran slugger joins the River Cats this weekend in Albuquerque?

After Chris Carter hit a two-run homer, catcher Derek Norris doubled home Brandon Moss, giving the River Cats a 3-0 lead in the first inning. They went on to rout host Albuquerque 16-5 Thursday night.

Grant Green and Adam Rosales each drove in three runs, and starting pitcher Bruce Billings picked up his third win as the River Cats beat the Iowa Cubs 9-4 on Tuesday afternoon and split their four-game series.

Blake Lalli and Pacific Coast League home run leader Anthony Rizzo each hit one out, and Rodrigo Lopez, an 11-year major league veteran, pitched five effective innings as the Iowa Cubs defeated the host River Cats 3-1 Monday night.

Grant Green delivered a one-out, bases-loaded walk-off single in the bottom of the ninth inning to lead the River Cats past the Iowa Cubs 4-3 Saturday night.

Sixty years ago in the mountains of Virginia, Harry Dunlop, an 18-year-old minor league prospect out of Sacramento High School, became part of baseball history.

Graham Godfrey's preparation for starts is unsurpassed on the Sacramento River Cat's staff. Godfrey develops a plan for pitching to each lineup he faces and keeps a notebook on his outings and on hitters he might encounter again.

Luke Hughes broke a 4-4 tie with a sacrifice fly in the sixth inning, and Brad Peacock (4-1) got the win as the River Cats downed the Omaha Storm Chasers 9-4 on Thursday night.

Derek Norris smacked a walkoff two-run homer in the ninth inning as the River Cats beat visiting Omaha 4-2 Wednesday night. It was the second straight night Sacramento won on a walkoff homer.

Josh Donaldson hit a two-out solo home run to center field in the bottom of the 10th inning to give the River Cats a 4-3 victory over the Omaha Storm Chasers.

Now that Josh Donaldson is back with the River Cats, and hitting .467 through nine games, Darren Bush has seen up close the hitter's adjustments.

With the score tied 4-4 in the sixth inning, Tucson put up two runs against a pair of River Cats relievers to steal the win in the nightcap.

Turning point: The River Cats took a 1-0 lead after one-half inning, but Tucson responded with three runs in its half, taking a 3-1 lead it would not relinquish. The host Padres topped the River Cats 10-4 Saturday in the first game of the doubleheader.

• Highlight: Bruce Billings pitched six shutout innings, and Collin Cowgill had three hits and two runs batted in to lead the River Cats past the Colorado Sky Sox 6-1 Thursday night.

As the next in line, River Cats right-hander Brad Peacock knows the drill.

Brandon Moss got his 1,000th minor league hit in April. He has big-league dreams but appreciates his minor league achievements.

Travis Banwart picked up his third win, while Josh Donaldson had three hits and Chris Carter and Adam Rosales two hits each to help the River Cats down the Colorado Springs Sky Sox 8-3 Wednesday afternoon.

Josh Donaldson broke a 1-1 tie in the fifth with a two-run double to left-center as the River Cats beat the Colorado Springs Sky Sox 7-1.

When Tucson starter Matt Palmer was scratched because of a blister, Advanced Class-A California League call-up Mark Pope started and was hammered for seven runs and eight hits in the first two innings as the Cats routed the Padres 11-3.

Tucson's Vince Belnome highlighted  a five-run sixth inning with a two-out, bases-loaded double down the left-field line as the Padres downed the River Cats 6-4 Saturday at Raley Field.

• Turning point: The River Cats pounded 37-year-old, 16-year major league veteran Jeff Suppan for three runs on five hits in the first inning en route to a 5-1 victory over the Tucson Padres.

• Turning point: Trailing 7-6, the River Cats sent 11 batters to the plate in the eighth inning and scored six runs en route to a 12-10 victory over the host Reno Aces.

After starting pitcher Jarrod Parker was lifted in the third inning, four River Cats relievers combined to surrender just one hit and no runs over the game's final 6 1/3 innings to preserve a 6-0 win Saturday night in Reno.

Vinnie Catricala says he "kind of flew under the radar a little bit" early in his minor league career. That's not the case anymore.

• Highlight: Left-hander Anthony Vasquez pitched 72/3 scoreless innings and Guillermo Quiroz hit a leadoff home run in the third inning to lead Tacoma to a 1-0 victory.

It is perhaps natural that professional baseball organizations would regard Michael Taylor's 6-foot-5, 256-pound frame and envision towering drives his swing might produce.

• Turning point: Trayvon Robinson's one-out sacrifice fly to left field to score Luis Rodriguez in the 10th inning gave the visiting Tacoma Rainiers a 2-1 victory.

Turning point: Back-to-back doubles by Derek Norris and Adam Rosales and a misplayed fly ball in right field scored three runs in the eighth inning as the River Cats beat Tacoma 5-1 at Raley Field.

Turning points: Derek Norris lofted a sacrifice fly to right field in the sixth inning to score Brandon Moss and break a 1-1 tie, and relievers Pedro Figueroa and Jim Miller pitched a scoreless eight and ninth inning, respectively, to secure the 2-1 River Cats' victory over visiting Reno.

With runners on first and second and one out in the River Cats' seventh inning, Stephen Parker singled to right field to tie the score 1-1. Adam Rosales, the runner at first, hesitated before taking off, preventing Aces first baseman Randy Ruiz from fielding the ball by shielding Ruiz's view.

Chris Carter broke a 1-1 tie with a one-out, line-drive, two-run homer over the left-center-field wall to lead the River Cats to a 4-3 victory. The homer was Carter's first this season, 53rd as a River Cat and 171st as a minor leaguer.

Jim and Cyndi Thompson arrived at Raley Field early Friday evening, settling into seats just to the third-base side of home plate. It would be an hour before the River Cats began their first home game of the season.

• Turning point: Host Tucson scored twice on RBI singles in the fourth inning off River Cats right-hander Tyson Ross and never looked back. The Padres won 5-0, ending Sacramento's winning streak at five games.

Darren Bush likes to tinker with his lineup from day to day. At the Triple-A level, with its frequent roster movement, the River Cats manager says it helps players be prepared for "anything that gets thrown at them."

Turning point: Shortstop Adam Rosales lined a two-strike, two-out single to right field in the top of the ninth Wednesday, driving in two runs to give the River Cats their 3-2 win over Tucson.

Turning point: In an 18-6 win over Tucson, Grant Green's fourth-inning grand slam turned a 4-1 deficit into a 5-4 lead for Sacramento, which went on to win its fourth consecutive game. Green finished with six RBIs.

Turning point: With Sacramento leading Las Vegas 1-0 in the third inning, Michael Taylor hit a three-run homer on an 0-2 pitch to give River Cats starter Brad Peacock a four-run lead. The Cats won 10-8.

• Turning point: The River Cats scored four runs in the first inning and held on for an 11-6 Opening Night victory over the host Las Vegas 51s.