July 20 Game Notes

ABOUT LAST NIGHT: The Snappers beat the Timber Rattlers 7-2. Beloit broke a 1-1 tie with three runs in the sixth inning. Steven Hirschfeld struck out eight over seven innings for the win.

TOPPING HIMSELF: Hirschfeld set new professional highs for innings pitched and strikeouts in a game last night. His previous high for strikeouts had been five. His previous high for innings pitched was also five.

LOOK AT LORIN: Brett Lorin made his second start with the Timber Rattlers last night. He pitched five innings and allowed one run on five hits and struck out five. In two starts with the Rattlers, the 2008 5th round pick of the Rattlers has no record and an ERA of 0.82. Over 11 innings, he has allowed just one run.

A FEELING OF DÉJÀ VU: On Friday night at home, the Rattlers took a 1-0 lead in the first inning as Danny Carroll reached to leadoff the frame. Carroll stole second and went to third on a sacrifice bunt by Edilio Colina. Carroll would score on a single by Denny Almonte. Last night in Beloit, Carroll reached to leadoff the first inning, stole second, and took third on a sacrifice bunt by Colina. Ron Garth drove in Carroll with a two-out single.

TIE: Beloit evened the game with a two-out RBI single by Ben Revere in the bottom of the third.

ONE SIXTH: The score stayed tied until the bottom of the sixth. Rattler reliever Keith Meyer allowed a pair of singles and a hit batsman to the first three batters he faced to load the bases. Jeanfred Brito singled in the go-ahead run. After getting the first out, Meyer hit Allan De San Miguel to force in a run. Natividad Dilone relieved Meyer and walked Andrew Schmiesing to force in a run and give the Snappers a 4-1 lead.

INSURANCE: Beloit tacked on a run in the seventh and a pair of runs in the eighth to pad their lead to 7-1.

GETTING ONE: Garth was hit by a pitch to start the bottom of the ninth inning and left the game in for pinch runner Alex Meneses. Later in the inning, Juan Diaz drove in Meneses with an infield grounder to get Wisconsin’s second and final run of the game.

THE RIDE OF BEN REVERE: Revere went 2-for-3 last night to raise his Midwest League leading average to .397.

THE CRUELEST MONTH: The Rattlers are 2-14 in July. On the road this month, Wisconsin is 1-6.

RUN SUPPORT: This month, the Rattlers have scored four or less runs 11 times and are 1-10 when that happens. The Rattlers have scored four or fewer runs in a game 76 times out of the 94 games this season and are 16-50 when that occurs.

ABOUT THE OPPONENTS: The Beloit Snappers are the Midwest League affiliate of the Minnesota Twins. They finished the first half with a record of 36-32 and missed the playoffs in the Western Division. The Snappers are currently 17-11. They trail Peoria for the top second half playoff spot in the West by 1-1/2 games. The Snappers hold the second half Western Division wild card spot by two games over Cedar Rapids. Beloit has a record of 25-22 at home this season.

COMPARE AND CONTRAST: The Timber Rattlers are hitting .236 as a team and have scored 341 runs (3.6/game). Wisconsin has hit 34 home runs this season. The Timber Rattler pitching staff has a combined ERA of 3.92. Beloit is hitting .263 as a team and has scored 457 runs (4.8/game). The Snappers have hit 54 home runs this season. The Beloit pitching staff has a combined ERA of 3.79.

2008 SEASON SERIES: Beloit holds a 6-3 edge in the season series. The Rattlers are 2-2 at Pohlman Field. The Snappers are 4-1 on Time Warner Cable Field at Fox Cities Stadium.

BELOIT STARTING PITCHER: LH Mike Tarsi was the 12th round pick of the Twins out of the University of Connecticuit in 2007. Last season with the Elizabethton Twins, Tarsi went 5-2 with a 2.22 ERA in 11 starts and 59 strikeouts over 52-2/3 innings. Tarsi began the 2008 season with six losses in his first six starts. He has gone 4-3 in his last 13 starts. In his last start before this afternoon, Tarsi took the loss against the Dayton Dragons at Fifth Third Field. He allowed five runs on ten hits over five innings. Tarsi faced the Timber Rattlers earlier this season. It was in the second game of a doubleheader on April 26 on Time Warner Cable Field at Fox Cities Stadium. Wisconsin got to him for three runs (two earned) on five hits over six innings. The Rattlers beat the Snappers 3-0 in that game and Tarsi took the loss.