Powered by the long ball, the Reno Aces outslugged the Las Vegas Aviators, the Triple-A affiliate of the Athletics, in a 10–9 victory on Saturday at Greater Nevada Field.
Trailing by two in the fifth, Aramis Garcia smashed his second home run in as many days — a clutch three-run shot into left-center field — to give the Aces a temporary lead before the Aviators tied it in the sixth. The veteran backstop has found a groove at the plate, going 5-for-17 (.294) with four home runs and seven RBI in six games in May.
Connor Kaiser enjoyed arguably his best day at the plate this season. The infielder racked up three hits, including a solo homer in the sixth inning that gave Reno the lead for good. Kaiser has had a strong series against the Aviators, going 4-for-11 (.364) with two home runs.
Ildemaro Vargas kept swinging a hot bat, launching his fifth homer of the season — a 419-foot blast off the batter’s eye in center field — in the third inning. The veteran infielder has been a key contributor to Reno’s success this year, slashing .270/.343/.432 with five home runs and 33 RBI.
After playing hero in Friday night’s walk-off win, Trey Mancini stayed hot at the plate, going 3-for-4 with an RBI in Saturday’s victory. The 33-year-old has broken out of a brief slump, collecting six hits and four RBI over his last two matchups.
Cristian Pache got the scoring started in the bottom of the second, driving in Mancini and Jorge Barrosa with a line-drive single to left field. The dynamic outfielder has begun to heat up at the plate, tallying four hits and two RBI in four games this series.
Christian Montes De Oca sealed the win, tossing a clean 1 2/3 frames to earn his first save of the season. The flame-throwing right-hander has been excellent out of the bullpen, posting a 2.60 ERA with 14 strikeouts and four walks in 17 1/3 total frames.
The Aces will go for the series win in Sunday’s finale against the Aviators. First pitch is set for 1:05 p.m.
Reno Aces contributed to this report.
