5/05/2008

May 5 Game Notes

ABOUT SUNDAY: Great Lakes beat the Timber Rattlers 4-2. Preston Mattingly broke a 2-2 tie with an RBI single in the bottom of the seventh inning and scored later in the same inning. Wisconsin starter Juan Ramirez struck out nine over 6-1/3 innings, but took the loss.

STEALING HOME: The Loons snapped a 1-1 tie in the fifth inning with a little trickery on the bases. There were runners at first and third with two outs. Erik Kanaby, the runner at first broke for second before Ramirez pitched. Ramirez stepped off and ran at Kanaby, who got caught in a rundown. He stayed in the pickle long enough for Mattingly to break for the plate and score before the third out was recorded.

*WELCOME BACK: Gavin Dickey was activated from the Timber Rattler disabled list before the game yesterday and doubled in his first at bat. Dickey last appeared in a game on April 21 at South Bend. The Rattler outfielder has a hit in all 10 games he has played this season.

FORE! Joe Dunigan went 4-for-4 for the Rattlers yesterday. He doubled twice, singled twice, scored a run, and drove in another. This was the first four-hit performance by a Timber Rattler in a game since Ron Garth had four hits at Fort Wayne on August 5, 2007.

NINE: In the two Rattler losses on this road trip, they have collected nine hits while scoring two runs.

TWO: The losing team in the first four games of this road trip has scored two runs. Lansing beat the Rattlers 6-2 on Thursday. Wisconsin beat the Lugnuts 5-2 on Friday and Saturday.

FOURTEEN: Edilio Colina singled in the seventh inning to drive in a run yesterday. Colina now has a 14 game hitting streak (19-for-54, .352). This is the third longest active streak in the Midwest League. The two streaks in the league longer than Colina’s 14-gamer belong to Evan Frey of South Bend and Adrian Ortiz of Burlington. Frey’s hitting streak has reached 22 games (34-for-96, .354). Ortiz is at 16 games (27-for-69, .391) on his hitting streak.

SPEAKING OF STREAKS: Maximo Mendez ended an 0-for-26 slide with a third inning double yesterday.

ABOUT THE OPPONENTS: The Great Lakes Loons are the Midwest League affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers. Last season, the Loons were 57-82 in their inaugural Midwest League season. Great Lakes did not make the playoffs in 2007. Manager Juan Bustabad is in his first season at the helm of the Loons.

LOONS IN 2008: Great Lakes is 13-16 so far this season. In their most recent series, the Loons dropped two out of three games to the Beloit Snappers at Dow Diamond. When Great Lakes won the second game of the series with Beloit, they snapped a seven game losing streak. Great Lakes is in fifth place, 4.5 games behind the division leading West Michigan Whitecaps. The Loons are 5-8 at Dow Diamond this season.

COMPARE AND CONTRAST: The Timber Rattlers are hitting .235 as a team and have scored 82 runs (3.2/game). Wisconsin has hit six homers this season. The Timber Rattler pitching staff has a combined ERA of 3.89. Great Lakes is hitting .214 and have scored 89 runs (3.1/game). The Loons have hit 16 home runs this season. Great Lakes’ pitching staff has an ERA of 3.95.

GREAT LAKES STARTING PITCHER: Steven Johnson was the 13th round pick of the Dodgers in the 2005 draft out of St. Paul’s High School in Brooklandville, Maryland. Johnson was 3-6 with a 4.85ERA in 18 games (16 starts) for the Loons in 2007. He made one appearance against the Timber Rattlers last season and picked up the win at Time Warner Cable Field at Fox Cities Stadium on July 29. He allowed five runs (four earned) over five innings with three walks and six strikeouts in an 8-5 victory. Johnson’s last start.

*Yeah, we tease him a lot cause we've got him on the spot

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