ABOUT LAST NIGHT: Kane County spoiled the Rattlers second half opener with a 7-3 win at Fox Cities Stadium. Jared Lansford beat the Rattlers for the fourth time in four starts this season and Frank Martinez hit a grand slam home run off losing pitcher Jose Escalona in the third inning to put the Cougars up 6-0. The loss, Wisconsin’s fifth in a row, matched the longest losing streak of the year for the Rattlers and sent them to a season low seventeen games under .500 at 27-44.
STREAKY: Escalona owns both the longest winning streak and the longest losing streak by a Timber Rattler starting pitcher. He won three straight decisions early in the season, but has lost six straight decisions, including last night. Escalona walked five, hit a batter, and tossed ninety pitches in just three innings last night.
ON PACE? Wisconsin pitchers combined to walk eight Kane County batters last night. Rattler hurlers have walked 314 batters in 71 games this season. The Midwest League record of most walks in a season is 788 and was set in just 126 games by Paris in 1958. The Timber Rattler record for most walks in a season is 673 and was set by the 1996 Rattler pitching staff.
WHO IS HOT: Luis Valbuena extended his hitting streak to eleven games with a fourth inning RBI single last night. He is 17-for-41 (.415) during his longest hitting streak of the season.
OFF THE SCHNEID: Michael Saunders ended his 0-for-12 streak with a fifth inning double last night.
FOR THE WANT OF A LONG BALL: The Rattlers have not homered since Valbuena went deep at Lansing on June 13. That is a six game homerless streak for the team. The homer drought at home for the Rattlers is five games. Wisconsin hasn’t homered since a Nick Prosise blast against the Clinton LumberKings on June 5.
RALLY KILLERS: Wisconsin hit into three double plays last night. During the five game losing streak, the Rattlers have hit into ten double plays.
GOTCHA: Rattler catcher Travis Scott threw out Nick Blasi at third as the Cougar outfielder tried to swipe the bag in the first inning last night. It was the first time in fifteen attempts this season that Blasi had been caught stealing.
FOUR! Lansford beat the Rattlers for the fourth time in four starts this season with his victory last night. He is 4-0 with a 1.13ERA against the Rattlers. Lansford is 2-4 with a 5.40ERA in six starts against the rest of the Midwest League.
OPPOSING STARTING PITCHER: Joe Piekarz was signed as a non-drafted free agent by the Athletics in June of 2004 out of Northern Illinois University. Piekarz made 19 of his first 20 appearances this season out of the Cougar bullpen. His lone start of 2006 was in the second game of a doubleheader against Clinton at Elfstrom Stadium on May 2 and he gave up one run on three hits over four innings. His last appearance was a four inning relief stint against Peoria on June 17. He allowed one run on five hits over four innings. Piekarz has faced the Rattlers three times as a reliever this season. In 7-2/3 innings against Wisconsin, he has given up one run on five hits with six strikeouts.
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