Las Vegas Aviators

Aviators let early lead slip in 13-6 loss at Sacramento

Aviators let early lead slip Friday at Sutter Health Park, falling 13-6 to Sacramento after jumping ahead 3-0 in the first inning. Tommy White stayed hot with three hits, while Casey Yamauchi delivered his first Triple-A hit and RBI.

by
Mark Hebert
June 27, 2026

Tommy White stands in the batter’s box wearing a blue Las Vegas Aviators jersey and pink protective gear while a catcher sets up behind him during a night game.

Tommy White watches a pitch during an earlier game this season at Las Vegas Ballpark. White continued his torrid stretch at the plate by collecting three hits and driving in a run during the Aviators' 13-6 loss to Sacramento, lifting his batting average back above .300. Image by Mark Hebert — Dice City Sports

The Las Vegas Aviators could not protect an early three-run lead Friday night, falling 13-6 to the Sacramento River Cats at Sutter Health Park.

Las Vegas scored three runs before Sacramento recorded an out but watched the River Cats rally for four runs over the first two innings before breaking the game open with a five-run fourth. The Aviators fell to 47-30 overall and 3-1 in the second half, though they have still won nine of their last 12 games.

White’s hot bat continues

Tommy White remained one of the few bright spots for Las Vegas.

The first baseman finished 3-for-5 with a double and an RBI, raising his batting average to .305. White has continued to swing a hot bat during the Aviators’ recent surge.

Las Vegas wasted little time taking control. Joshua Kuroda-Grauer walked, advanced to second on a pickoff error by starter Gregory Santos and scored on White’s RBI single. Michael Stefanic later forced in a run after being hit by a pitch before Jared Dickey drew a bases-loaded walk to make it 3-0.

Santos exited after recording just two outs. Reliever Carson Seymour stranded the bases loaded and settled the game for Sacramento, allowing no runs over 4 1/3 innings.

Got the job done pic.twitter.com/Gk4jx9xI51

— Las Vegas Aviators (@AviatorsLV) June 26, 2026

Sacramento flips the script

The River Cats answered with four runs over the next two innings.

Will Brennan drove in Sacramento’s first run with an RBI single before Scott Bandura reached on a fielder’s choice that also produced a run after a throwing error. Nate Furman’s two-run homer in the second put the River Cats ahead 4-3.

Sacramento broke the game open in the fourth. Turner Hill tripled and scored on Jake Holton’s sacrifice fly before Heliot Ramos added an RBI double. Consecutive hit batters loaded the bases, and Bandura cleared them with a three-run double to extend the lead to 9-3.

The River Cats added four more runs in the sixth and finished 7-for-14 with runners in scoring position while collecting 13 hits.

Yamauchi delivers in Triple-A debut

One encouraging moment came in the ninth inning.

Pinch hitter Casey Yamauchi lined an RBI double to center field for his first Triple-A hit and RBI in his first at-bat with Las Vegas. Brian Serven followed with an RBI double as the Aviators scored twice in the inning.

Yamauchi earned his promotion after climbing two levels in less than three months. He hit .297 with four home runs, 30 RBIs and an .817 OPS in 48 games at High-A Lansing before batting .297 with an .798 OPS over 11 games at Double-A Midland.

Up next

The Aviators continue their six-game series against Sacramento on Saturday at Sutter Health Park. The River Cats are expected to start right-hander Blade Tidwell (0-2, 5.36 ERA), while Las Vegas had not announced its starter.

Dice City Sports editor Mark Hebert covers the Las Vegas Aces, Vegas Golden Knights, Las Vegas Raiders, Athletics, and UNLV baseball and softball. He has 24 years of journalism experience, is also a senior reporter at Exhibit City News, and previously covered the Dallas Stars and Texas Rangers. Follow him on X or connect on LinkedIn.