Duvall lifts River Cats with ninth-inning homer in season opener
Adam Duvall crushed a home run to left-center field in the ninth inning to lift the River Cats to a 1-0 victory over Salt Lake in a season opener on Thursday night at overflow Raley Field.
The night started with Hall of Famer Orlando Cepeda throwing out the first pitch to kick-start the River Cats’ 16th season in Sacramento and first as an affiliate with the Giants. It ended with Duvall tagging a Ryan Mattheus pitch as the River Cats moved to 10-6 in home openers. Mattheus is from Galt and played at Sacramento City College.
Duvall, a third baseman, and first baseman John Bowker (Rio Americano High School) each had two of Sacramento’s five hits. Catcher Andrew Susac (Jesuit) went hitless in three at-bats with two strikeouts and a walk.
Sacramento starter Robert Coello pitched six innings, allowing three hits and striking out seven. He went 2-2 with the Angels in 2013 and was signed by the Giants in the offseason.
Duvall was called up to the Giants last June and homered in his first major-league game.
Joe Davidson
This story was originally published April 9, 2015 at 10:55 PM with the headline "Duvall lifts River Cats with ninth-inning homer in season opener."