Game Notes 5/1

ABOUT SUNDAY: Sunday was the first rainout of the season for the Timber Rattlers.

ABOUT SATURDAY: West Michigan beat the Rattlers 2-0 in a rain-shortened five inning game. Ramon Garcia allowed one hit and struck out six for the Whitecaps.

BEATING THE WEATHER: West Michigan scored a run in each of the first two innings to take the early lead. An RBI double by Curtis Maybin in the top of the first put the Caps in front. In the second inning, Corey Middleton drove in a run with a double off the wall in left-center.

ALL HE NEEDED: Garcia retired the first seven batters he faced, before walking Brian Schweiger in the third. The only Rattler hit of the night was a lead off single by Mike Saunders in the bottom of the fifth.

TOUGH LUCK: Paul Fagan did not walk a batter and struck out four batters in five innings, but took the loss. The left-hander gave up hits to the first three batters he faced in the game and also gave up three straight hits in the top of the second but only allowed two runs in getting tagged with the loss.

TOUGH LUCK II: Jeff Dominguez had a 7-game hitting streak come to an end Saturday after going just 0-for-2. The Rattler lead-off batter fouled out to first in the first and flew out to center in the third. He did not get another at bat.

A PAIR OF FIRSTS: Garcia and Fagan both received credit for the first complete games tossed in the Midwest League this season. Garcia gets credit for the first complete game shutout in the MWL in ’06.

HISTORY AVOIDED: Saunders single in the bottom of the fifth meant that the Rattlers avoided being no-hit for the first time in their history.

HOME SWEET HOME? Wisconsin is only 4-8 at Fox Cities Stadium in 2006.

OPPOSING STARTING PITCHER (GM 1): Erik Averill was the 20th round pick of the Tigers out of Arizona State University in 2005. Averill was 11-4 with a 3.39ERA in 24 games for the Sun Devils before going 1-2 with a 1.59ERA in six games (three starts) for the Gulf Coast League Tigers. In his last start, Averill got a no decision against Kane County on April 25th. He pitched seven innings and gave up just one run on four hits.

OPPOSING STARTING PITCHER (GM 2): Sendy Vasquez, the game two starter, signed as a non-drafted free agent in 2003 out of the Dominican Republic. He was 7-0 with a 3.63 ERA in fifteen appearances (11 starts) for the Oneonta Tigers of the New York-Penn League last season. Vasquez gave up one run on three hits over six innings in his last start, but got a no decision against Kane County at Fifth Third Ballpark on April 26.