Sacramento Stops Short Slide with 5-2 Win Over Round Rock

WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. – A pair of home runs, including the third in as many games from Drew Ellis, gave the Sacramento River Cats what they needed to put an end to a four-game losing streak by downing the Round Rock Express with a 5-2 final.

Three of the five runs in the game from the River Cats (39-32/75-71) scored via the home run, but neither of those came during the first as Sacramento doubled in each of their first two runs during their first set of swings. First was Wade Meckler, setting the stage for Tyler Fitzgerald who came through right after with a ball into left field for the early advantage.

The Express (41-30/75-71) snagged their one and only lead with a two-run third frame, plating their only two runs on a two-RBI double from Billy McKinney off Sacramento reliever John Michael Bertrand (2-0).

Those were the only two runs allowed by Bertrand, who settled into the game and ended up going 5.2 innings before checking out of Sacramento’s longest relief appearance so far in 2025. Though he left with a pair of runners on, he allowed only six hits and walked one with four strikeouts in what became his second win of the season.

That was due to the offense from Sacramento, who knotted the game with the exact same formula as they doubled twice to start the fifth frame. First it was Turner Hill, playing in his first game of the season with Sacramento, while he scored in the very next at-bat when Meckler logged his second two-bagger of the night.

An inning later and the River Cats grabbed the lead for good, doing so on the big blast from Ellis as he crushed a 2-0 pitch out to left field for a two-run blast. That came directly following a triple from Dayson Croes, his first at the Triple-A level. Croes went on to finish a home run shy of the cycle. For Ellis, it was his third homer in as many games, making him the third River Cat this season to homer in three straight games along with Daniel Johnson and Bryce Eldridge.

Osleivis Basabe added one final insurance tally in the eighth inning, launching his 13th homer of the campaign in solo fashion when he turned around a 1-1 pitch over the wall in left field. Sacramento is now 60-28 this season when hitting a home run during a game.

On to save the game for Bertrand and the River Cats was Miguel Díaz (S, 8), who converted his eighth save in nine chances by collecting the final four outs while striking out two. Starting the game for Sacramento was Blade Tidwell, who was activated from the Injured List and made his first appearance since Aug. 15. Though he only tossed two innings, he retired all six batters he faced in 20 pitches and struck out one.

Three different River Cats had multi-hit games in Meckler, Croes and Ellis, the latter of which hit a homer for his main damage while the first of the trio doubled twice and scored once.

Sacramento has leveled the series at one game apiece and will try to take the series edge when the two teams meet for game three of the set on Thursday beginning at 6:45 p.m. from Sutter Health Park.