ABOUT LAST NIGHT: The Timber Rattlers beat the Quad Cities River Bandits 6-5 in 11 innings. Blake Ochoa singled in the winning run in the bottom of the eleventh inning. The win was Wisconsin’s fifth straight.
HITTING STARS: Offensively, the Rattlers were led by Gavin Dickey’s second consecutive three-hit night. The Rattler outfielder went 3-for-5 with a double, an RBI, and three runs scored. Pete Kozma, the starting Eastern Division shortstop in the 2008 Midwest League All-Star game, had four hits for the River Bandits.
*CALL ME THE BREEZE: The nine pitchers in the game combined for 35 strikeouts last night. Four River Bandit pitchers struck out 17 Timber Rattler hitters. Five Timber Rattler hurlers struck out 18 Bandit batters.
EARLY LEAD: Wisconsin scored four unearned runs in the fourth inning against Mark Diapoules. Ron Garth had a run scoring fielder’s choice. Dickey, Denny Almonte, and Calvin Beamon each collected two-out RBI hits later in the frame for the 4-0 lead.
TOUGH SLEDDING: River Bandit reliever Nick Additon extended his scoreless inning streak to 26 innings with four scoreless frames. He allowed one hit and struck out seven.
LONG SHOT: Quad Cities trailed 4-2 with one out in the eighth inning. Then, Domnit Bolivar hit a three-run homer off Rattler reliever Keith Meyer in the top of the eighth inning to put the Bandits in front 5-4. The blast was Bolivar’s first of the 2008 season.
**BELIEVE IT…OR NOT: The Rattlers tied the game in the bottom of the ninth in an unconventional manner. Maximo Mendez was at the plate with two outs and the bases loaded. He swung and missed at a 3-2 pitch from Pete Parise, but the ball made it to the backstop and Dickey scored from third to tie the game 5-5.
NEW TO IT ALL: Last night’s eleventh inning plate appearance for Ochoa was his first this season with the bases loaded.
***R-E-S-P-E-C-T: Beamon was walked intentionally twice last night. Alex Liddi is the only other Timber Rattler to receive an intentional walk this season.
****FIVE FOR RATTLERS: Wisconsin has matched their season high win streak with five straight. They also won five straight May 13-17.
UNLUCKY 13: Mendez went 0-for-5 with four strikeouts last night and his hitting streak ended at 13 games.
*****TO THE LAST: The Rattlers have won seven times this season in their final at bat. Last night was the third ‘walk-off’ win of the season for Wisconsin. It was also the second straight home win in extra-innings.
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS: The Quad Cities River Bandits are the Midwest League affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. They are currently 30-28 and in fourth place in the Midwest League Western Division. Both Quad Cities trails division leading Clinton by 10 games. The River Bandits are 4.5 games behind the Kane County Cougars for the first half wild card spot in the Western Division. Quad Cities is 15-17 in 32 road games this season.
COMPARE AND CONTRAST: The Timber Rattlers are hitting .239 as a team and have scored 194 runs (3.4/game). Wisconsin has hit 14 home runs this season. The Timber Rattler pitching staff has a combined ERA of 3.26. The River Bandits are hitting .236 as a team and have scored 240 runs (4.1/game). Quad Cities has hit 37 home runs this season. The River Bandit pitching staff has a combined ERA of 3.70.
2008 SEASON SERIES: The Rattlers lead the season series 4-2. Wisconsin and Quad Cities split a four game series at Modern Woodman Park to open the 2008 season. After a rainout on April 3, the River Bandits won on April 4 by a score of 4-3. The Rattlers swept a doubleheader on April 5, winning both games by a score of 2-0. Quad Cities won the series finale on April 6 by a 6-1 score.
QUAD CITIES STARTING PITCHER: Chuckie Fick was a 15th round pick of the Cardinals in the 2007 draft out of Cal State-Northridge. He was 0-7 with a 7.11 in 12 games (10 starts) in his final season at Northridge. He made 17 relief appearances between Johnson City (Appalachian League) and Quad Cities after signing with the Cardinals. He was 2-0 with two saves and a 1.85ERA as a professional. In his appearance with the River Bandits before tonight, Fick allowed three unearned runs on two hits over three innings in relief at Beloit on June 3. Tonight is Fick’s first time facing the Timber Rattlers and an affiliate of the Seattle Mariners.
QUAD CITIES RELIEVER: Also scheduled to pitch tonight for Quad Cities is Blake King. King was a 44th round pick of the Cardinals in the 2005 draft out of Eastern Oklahoma State College and he signed before the 2006 draft. He is rated by Baseball America as the #26 prospect in the St. Louis Organization. King started 2007 with Quad Cities and was 2-3 with a 5.79 ERA in 19 games (nine starts). He was moved down to Batavia (New York Penn League) and was 1-4 with a 4.70ERA in 16 games (9 starts). In his two stops on the Cardinal ladder last season, King struck out 127 and walked 78 in 110-2/3 innings. King faced the Timber Rattlers during the season-opening series at Modern Woodmen Park with a start on April 6. He struck out six over 3-1/3 innings, bit received a no decision in the River Bandit victory.
*-Skynyrd!
**-Palance!
***-Aretha!
****-Superman
*****-Gettysburg
No comments:
Post a Comment