The ball weight doesn't get hung up as easily when drifting. You only need about a 1 oz. Ball Weight. Just enough to get the minnow on the bottom, and the weight will roll and not get hung up
dumb question but where are you getting the minnows now? I remember when I was a kid you could just go down the bait store and pick up some live bait fish but now you have to get them from the same water you're fishing in... so, in other words you have to catch them out of the sac river if youre going to use them in the sacramento river?