Rainiers Drop Game 1 of PCL Championship Series 

Rainiers Drop Game One of PCL Championship Series

LAS VEGAS, NV (September 23, 2025) — Jhonathan Díaz spun a gem on Tuesday night in Las Vegas, but offense was hard to come by for the Tacoma Rainiers (0-1), as they dropped the first game of the Pacific Coast League Championship Series 7-1 to the Las Vegas Aviators (1-0) at Las Vegas Ballpark.

It was a pitcher’s duel early on, as both sides were kept off the board for the first four innings. Jhonathan Díaz allowed only two baserunners through the first four frames, allowing a leadoff walk in the second and a leadoff double in the third. Meanwhile, Kade Morris worked around a single and a walk in the second inning and a leadoff double in the third.

Las Vegas broke the ice in the bottom of the fifth inning. Díaz retired the first two batters of the inning before allowing a single to Susac that snapped a streak of eight consecutive hitters retired. Ryan Lasko followed with a two-run home run (1) over the left field wall to give the Aviators a 2-0 lead.

The Rainiers had an answer in the top of the sixth inning as Samad Taylor led off the frame with a solo home run (1) to cut the deficit in half. After Rhylan Thomas grounded out, Colt Emerson slapped a single to left field. However, Morris retired the next two hitters to strand the tying run on base.

Díaz finished off a scoreless sixth inning, working around a one-out single. Díaz allowed two runs on four hits, walking one with six strikeouts, logging a quality start.

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n the bottom of the seventh inning, Austin Kitchen took over in relief. Kitchen walked the leadoff hitter Drew Swift. Swift moved up to second base on a groundout and scored on a Susac single, his third hit of the game, to make it 3-1. Lasko delivered another big blow as he hit a triple to right-center field to bring in Susac and make it a 4-1 game. Euribiel Angeles, who replaced the Major League rehabber Denzel Clarke, blooped a single into left field that scored Lasko as the Aviators took a 5-1 lead. Angeles was thrown out attempting to steal second base and Bowman grounded out to shortstop for the final out of the inning.

The Aviators plated two more in the bottom of the eighth inning. Bryan Lavastida led off with a single and advanced to second on an errant throw by Emerson. With one out, Nick Martini doubled to drive in Lavastida. Martini advanced to third on a groundout and scored on a wild pitch by Collin Snider to make it a 7-1 ballgame.

Morris (1-0) earned the win for Las Vegas, allowing one run on four hits over 7.0 innings with two walks and two strikeouts. Díaz (0-1) took the tough-luck loss for Tacoma, allowing two runs on four hits over 6.0 innings with one walk and six strikeouts.

POSTGAME NOTES:

• Samad Taylor went 2-for-4 with a double and a home run in Tacoma’s loss…he is just the fourth Rainier since 2005 (as far back as records are available), to record multiple extra-base hits in a playoff game
• Jhonathan Díaz logged a quality start in Tacoma’s loss on Tuesday, becoming the first Rainier to log a quality start in the postseason since Joe Wieland in Tacoma’s last trip to the postseason in 2016…of the eight Tacoma pitchers to log a quality start in the playoffs since 2005, Díaz is the only one to take the losing decision.
• The Rainiers were held to five hits on Tuesday, their fewest hits in a postseason game since September 9, 2016, when they were held to three hits in a 7-0 loss to El Paso…the Rainiers were held to one-or-fewer runs on five-or-fewer hits just eight times in the regular season this year