SOUTH JORDAN, UT (June 16, 2026) — The Tacoma Rainiers (30-40) fell to the Salt Lake Bees (37-32) by a score of 10-6 on Tuesday night at The Ballpark at America First Square. The Rainiers stole a season-high six bases with Ryan Bliss, Weston Wilson, and Blake Rambusch all swiping a pair. The trio led the Tacoma offense, going a combined 8-for-12 with three doubles, four RBI, and five runs scored.
Salt Lake jumped out to an early lead in the bottom of the first inning when Christian Moore (8) crushed a leadoff home run over the left field wall to make it 1-0. Vaughn Grissom worked a walk and advanced to second when Josh Lowe grounded out. Then, Ben Gobbel drew a walk to put runners on first and second. Jeimer Candelario ripped a double into left field, pushing Gobbel up to third and plating Grissom, extending the Bees’ lead to two. The next batter, Nelson Rada, brought Gobbel home to score when he grounded out to second, making it 3-0. Kyren Paris capped off the inning by lacing a double into the left-center field gap, scoring Candelario and giving Salt Lake a four-run lead.
Tacoma got on the board in the second inning. Weston Wilson lined a single into left field to lead off the frame. After Colin Davis flied out and Carson Taylor struck out, Wilson stole second base to get into scoring position. Then, Blake Rambusch smacked a single into center field, scoring Wilson and bringing the Rainiers within three, 4-1.
The Bees responded with three runs in the bottom of the second inning. Zach Humphreys beat out an infield single and advanced to second when Moore was hit by a pitch. Grissom replaced Moore at first after grounding into a fielder’s choice. Then, Lowe ripped a double down the right field line, moving Grissom up to third and bringing home Humphreys to make it 5-1. Two batters later, Candelario pulled a double into the left field corner, plating Grissom and Lowe to give Salt Lake a 7-1 lead.
Tacoma chipped away at the deficit in the top of the third inning. Ryan Bliss crushed a double to left-center field that bounced off the top of the wall to start the frame. After Spencer Packard grounded out, Brian O’Keefe and Victor Labrada worked back-to-back walks to load the bases. Then, Wilson beat out an infield single to score Bliss from third and make it 7-2.
Salt Lake got the run back in the home half of the third inning. Kyren Paris worked a leadoff walk and advanced to third when Bryce Teodosio punched a single through the right side of the infield. Teodosio stole second and two batters later, Moore drew a walk to load the bases with one away. Then, Grissom grounded out to first, scoring Paris from third and giving the Bees an 8-2 lead.
Tacoma cut the deficit back down to five in the fourth inning. With one out, Brock Rodden crushed his first triple of the year off the center field wall and Bliss brought him home with a sacrifice fly to deep center, making it 8-3.
The Rainiers continued to chip away in the top of the sixth inning. Rambusch lined a double into left-center field to lead off the frame and advanced to third when Rodden grounded out to second. Bliss drilled his second double of the game to deep left-center field, plating Rambusch and bringing Tacoma within four. Bliss stole third and scored two batters later when O’Keefe laced a single into right field to make it 8-5.
Tacoma cut the Salt Lake lead down to two in the seventh inning. Wilson pulled his third hit of the contest into shallow left field. He stole second when Taylor struck out swinging and came home to score when Rambusch reached on a throwing error, making it 8-6.
The Bees added on a pair of insurance runs in the bottom of the eighth inning. Teodosio beat out an infield single to lead off the frame. He stole second and third before Humphreys struck out. Then, Moore (9) deposited his second home run of the game over the left field wall to give Salt Lake a 10-6 lead.
The Rainiers were set down in order in the top of the ninth inning, dropping the series opener 10-6 to the Bees.
Tacoma looks to even the series on Wednesday night. RHP Carson Fulmer will get the ball to make his second start with the Rainiers. First pitch is scheduled for 5:35 p.m (PT).
POSTGAME NOTES:
- INF Weston Wilson recorded a season-high three hits in his Rainiers debut on Tuesday, finishing 3-for-4 with an RBI, a walk, two runs scored and two stolen bases…it’s his first three-hit game since July 5, 2025 with Lehigh Valley…two stolen bases tied Wilson’s career-high, the fourth time he has stolen two bases in a single game and first since September 30, 2023, with Philadelphia (N.L.) at New York (N.L.).
- INF Blake Rambusch turned in his second multi-hit performance with Tacoma on Tuesday night, finishing 2-for-4 with a double, RBI, two runs scored, and two stolen bases…since joining the Rainiers on July 10, he is batting .389 (7x18) with two doubles, an RBI, two walks, and four stolen bases.
- INF Ryan Bliss tied his career-high with two doubles on Tuesday, finishing 3-for-4 with two doubles, two RBI, and two runs scored…it’s the 13th game in his career with two doubles and first time since September 22, 2024, against Round Rock…Bliss also tied his season-high with two stolen bases, the first coming on May 29 against Las Vegas.
- LHP Michael Plassmeyer spun 2.0 scoreless innings in his Rainiers debut on Tuesday night, allowing two hits while striking out one…among all Triple-A pitchers with at least 20 appearances, his 0.86 WHIP ranks second-best and his 10 hits allowed are the second fewest…it’s the fifth time this year Plassmeyer has recorded 2.0 innings of work.
- Tacoma stole a season-high six bases without being caught Tuesday night, their most stolen bases in a game without being thrown out since they stole seven on August 21, 2025, against Oklahoma City…it’s Tacoma’s first time stealing four-or-more bases without being caught in two straight games since August 20-21, 2025, when they stole four and seven.