RENO, Nev. – An impressive 10-0 win in game one helped the Reno Aces take three of the first four games in their series last week with Sugar Land, ultimately ending their trip to Texas and final meetings with the Space Cowboys in a set split.
That early series win was highlighted by impressive offense and stellar pitching, earning the double-digit shutout win to begin the week. Reno snatched games two and four by margins of one run and three runs, respectively, but could not find the final victory they needed to win the set.
Reno never looked back after first pitch in the opener on Sept. 1, using a pair of multi-run innings early and dominant pitching to notch their sixth shutout win of the season with a 10-0 decision over the Sugar Land Space Cowboys.
From start to finish the Aces were in control, scoring three times with their first set of swings behind a two-RBI double by Tyler Locklear and a Demetrio Crisantes RBI groundout.
The biggest inning of the night for the Aces was the third, plating six runs in the frame for just the 11th time this season. Tommy Troy, who was continuing his rehab assignment, started the frame in a big way by crushing his fourth Triple-A dinger of the season. Two batters later and Locklear joined him, reaching double-digit home runs with his 10th of the season to earn his third RBI of the night.
For the second game in a row Pavin Smith left the yard, adding one final run to Reno’s total with his sixth homer of the year to lead off the seventh. Overall, it was the 12th time that Reno has hit at least three homers in a single game.
While the offense was dominating, so was the pitching staff as they combined to hold Sugar Land to just three hits in the contest. All three knocks were singles allowed by starter Ashton Izzi (1-3), one in the fourth and two at the start of the fifth, but both times worked out of danger.
By the end of six innings, Izzi had issued just one walk while striking out six, earning the first quality start of his Triple-A career. Even further, tonight also represented the first victory of his Triple-A career, moving his record to 1-3.
The shutout win for the Aces was just the third time in franchise history that the Aces have won a shutout contest by double digits since they dropped El Paso by a 12-0 final on July 2, 2017.
An RBI on a squeeze play from the most unlikely of sources was what lifted the Reno Aces to victory on Sept. 2 as Aramis Garcia’s bunt to the first base side allowed the go-ahead run to score in what became a 2-1 Reno win over the Sugar Land Space Cowboys.
Already one of the best small ball teams in all affiliated baseball, the Aces got creative by dropping down a bunt with one out and runners at the corners. Garcia placed it perfectly to the right side, with the glove flip towards home from Space Cowboys second baseman Trevor Austin just late.
The Aces struck back during the fourth, as the Space Cowboys broke the tie in the third, in similar fashion as A.J. Vukovich doubled at the beginning of the frame. Vukovich later crossed the plate when Anderdson Rojas singled through the left side after it deflected off the glove of the diving Raynel Delgado at shortstop.
Following a night in which the Reno held the Sugar Land offense without a run, the Aces’ staff nearly did it again as the only run was allowed by starter Avery Short, who checked out after three hits allowed and five strikeouts to a pair of walks over 4.2 innings.
It was the bullpen that shined once again, this time working the final 3.1 frames, this time allowing just two hits after issuing just a pair of free passes in Tuesday’s win. Earning the win was Juan Burgos, who struck out two with one hit allowed in the seventh, while Isaiah Campbell converted his fourth by working the final six outs and striking out three.
That save was Campbell’s second six-out save this season, making him the 10th Ace in franchise history to record multiple six-out saves in their Aces career. The last to do so was the duo of Andrew Saalfrank and Christian Montes De Oca in the 2024 campaign.
A pair of three-baggers helped Reno generate three runs in the third, however those were their only tallies in what ended as an 11-4 loss to Sugar Land on Sept. 3.
Reno’s two-triple third frame was already the second time they have done so this season after first achieving the feat in the sixth inning on July 22 against Tacoma. Logging the first on Sept. 3 was Santiago Espinal who immediately scored on an Anderdson Rojas single, while Pavin Smith followed with a one-out three bagger drove home a pair. The triple for Espinal was his first at any level of baseball since he hit one with Toronto on May 16, 2021.
Charged with the loss for Reno was the returning Mitch Bratt, who was making his first Triple-A start since the beginning of July and allowed six runs on six hits with three walks and only one strikeout.
After starting the game with a bang, the Aces kept the offense moving and built a lead to withstand the Space Cowboys on Sept. 4 by an 8-5 final.
Reno scored all eight of their runs in the first four frames, but the first tally of the game came when fans were still finding their seats as Kristian Robinson crushed a 2-1 offering deep over the wall in left center for a leadoff home run.
That blast marked the sixth leadoff homer of the season for Reno, and exactly half of those six have come from the bat of Robinson. He was also the most recent Ace to do so, achieving the feat during a 7-4 defeat on Aug. 9 against El Paso.
Santiago Espinal joined the dinger party in the next inning, but his blast came in two-run fashion after Demetrio Crisantes kicked off the inning with a single to center. It has been an impressive stretch of late for Espinal, as he has hits in seven of nine games with Reno including each of his last six.
The largest inning of the game for the Aces was the third, scoring four times with three of them crossing on a bases loaded triple from Gavin Conticello.
Robinson and Espinal were the only two Aces with multi-hit games, the former ending his game 2-for-5 with two runs scored, a double and his homer. Meanwhile, Espinal logged one other hit outside his homer in addition to his three RBI.
The Aces homered with their first batter of the game for a second consecutive contest on Sept. 5, but the Space Cowboys recovered with a pair of runs in their each of their first three sets of at-bats en route to a 9-2 defeat for Reno.
Once again, it was Kristian Robinson doing the damage for the Aces by taking the very first pitch of the game deep over the wall in left center field. That marked the seventh Reno leadoff dinger of the year, but the first time in team history that it has happened in consecutive games.
Four of those leadoff big flies have come from Robinson which ties him for most in a season in team history along with Alek Thomas from the 2021 campaign. Even further, that blast gives Robinson the most leadoff home runs in the PCL this season, moving him past the pair of Zac Veen (Albuquerque) and Cavan Biggio (Sugar Land). This was the second time in those four leadoff blasts that Robinson homered on the very first pitch of the game, also doing so on May 23 at Oklahoma City leading to a 2-1 victory.
Outside of Robinson’s homer and an RBI single for Gavin Conticello in the fourth, the Aces had just one other hit in the form of a two-out single by Adrian Del Castillo in the top of the eighth that was left aboard at first.
Trying one last time to secure a set win, three solo home runs by Sugar Land denied the Aces that chance by taking the series finale by a 3-1 decision on Sept. 6.
After back-to-back days of Reno scoring in the top of the first, it was Sugar Land who plated a run first with a leadoff blast from Zach Cole with their first set of swings.
The score remained 1-0 until the top of the sixth inning when a Kristian Robinson walk sparked some two-out life for the BLC-Nine. Two batters later, Tyler Locklear lined one into left that plated Robinson and tied the ballgame at one run apiece.
However, a Pascanel Ferreras home run immediately put the Space Cowboys back in front in the bottom half of the sixth while a Collin Price homer added some insurance in the eighth.
Locklear’s RBI single was the only run-scoring hit for Reno with Pavin Smith and Demetrio Crisantes each adding hits of their own on Sunday – none of which went for extra bases.
Though he only played in two games before finishing his rehab, Tommy Troy batted .500 and scored twice with a double, homer, and two RBI. Santiago Espinal had the highest average of those with 10 or more at bats, hitting .412 thanks to a week in which he was 7-for-17 with three runs scored, a double, triple, homer, three RBI, and a 1.239 OPS.
Ashton Izzi finished with a solid week thanks to his series opening five run-free frames, finishing with a 0.93 ERA over two starts and 9.2 innings for the week while punching out 12.
The Aces now return home for their final home series of the 2026 campaign, as they will host the Albuquerque Isotopes beginning on Tuesday at 6:05 p.m. PT.