51s continue streaking — wrong way

They entered the game gunning for a franchise record, but the 51s ended up extending a run on futility.

A short-handed Las Vegas squad fell short in its quest for its 11th consecutive home victory in a rain-delayed 3-2 loss to Albuquerque on Tuesday at Cashman Field.

The 51s fell to 1-16 against the Isotopes, who swept four games from Las Vegas in three of the last four years and went 3-1 against the 51s in 2005, with their lone loss a 7-6 setback at Cashman Field.

"That's a pretty staggering number," Las Vegas manager Lorenzo Bundy said of the 1-16 mark. "We've got three games left so hopefully we can change that a little bit."

51s starter Miguel Pinango went a season-high seven innings, struck out seven and issued only one walk, but it cost him dearly.

Albuquerque's Scott Seabol followed the two-out walk to Valentino Pascucci with a two-run homer to left field that gave the Isotopes a 3-2 lead in the sixth inning.

"Miguel pitched very, very well. He made one bad pitch on a breaking ball to Seabol and that was pretty much the ballgame," Bundy said. "It was a tough game to lose. We didn't play bad. We just didn't win."

Choo Freeman, who led off for the first time all season, hit a solo shot to left-center field in the third inning to tie it 1-1, and Larry Barnes belted a home run to right field in the fourth to give Las Vegas a 2-1 edge over Albuquerque (53-51).

Barnes may have stopped the 51s from throwing out a runner at the plate in the second inning when Albuquerque's Brett Carroll, who tripled, scored on a sacrifice fly by Andrew Beattie.

Wilkin Ruan caught the ball in shallow left field and fired it home, but the throw was cut off by Barnes and the run scored without a play at the plate.

"Barnesy thought the throw was off so that's why he cut it," Bundy said. "We thought, even if it was off, we had time to catch the ball at the plate and come back to make the tag. Nobody told him to cut it. He took it upon himself, and we'll never know."

The 51s (48-55) took the field, after a rare rain delay of 46 minutes, with a much different lineup than the one that compiled the 10-game home win streak.

Wilson Valdez, hitting .342, missed his fifth straight game with a sore Achilles' tendon, and Chin-Lung Hu, batting .420 in his first 12 games for the 51s, also sat out after having three wisdom teeth removed Tuesday.

John Lindsey, hitting .346 with 47 RBIs in 36 games for Las Vegas, also is hurting, with a sore heel and arch. He pinch hit in the ninth inning and took a called third strike to end the game.

Also, infielder Tony Abreu hasn't played since being optioned back to Las Vegas from the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday. Bundy said Abreu has a pain in his side.

• NOTES -- Michael Rivera was promoted to Las Vegas from Class-A Inland Empire and started at shortstop for the 51s. ... The last time a 51s game was rained out at Cashman Field was on Aug. 29, 2000, against Fresno. ... Las Vegas outfielder Delwyn Young tied Chin-Feng Chen for the franchise record with his 95th double for the 51s in the fifth inning.