LAST ACTION: The Timber Rattlers defeated the South Bend Silver Hawks 4-1. The Rattlers scored twice in the second and twice in the third inning to build the lead. The win was Wisconsin‘s first road victory of 2009.
ABOUT LAST NIGHT: The game between the Rattlers and the Cedar Rapids Kernels was rained out.
SENSING A PATTERN: The Timber Rattlers have been rained out three times on the road this season. All three road rainouts have been in Iowa. The first was on April 19 at Clinton. The second was April 26 at Quad Cities.
DOUBLEHEADERS: The Timber Rattlers have played a pair of doubleheaders this season. Wisconsin swept Peoria in a doubleheader at Time Warner Cable Field on April 23. The River Bandits swept the Rattlers at Modern Woodmen Park in a doubleheader on April 27.
THE WEEK JUST GOT BUSIER: There is another doubleheader scheduled for the Timber Rattlers against Clinton at Time Warner Cable Field on Sunday. One of the games is the make up the game that was rained out at Clinton on April 19.
NEED TO HEAT UP: Rattler second baseman Brett Lawrie went 0-for-10 in the series with the Silver Hawks. First baseman Brock Kjeldgaard was 0-for-7 with five strikeouts. Miller was 2-for-11 with five strikeouts. As a team the Rattlers committed seven errors.
A NOTE ABOUT PITCHERS: Efrain Nieves is scheduled to start game one for Wisconsin tonight. Cody Scarpetta will follow him in relief. Trey Watten is the scheduled Rattler starter in game two.
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS: The Cedar Rapids Kernels are the Midwest League affiliate of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. They are managed by Bill Mosiello, who is in his first season as the manager of the Kernels. Mosiello managed the final 108 games of the 2004 season for the Battle Creek Yankees. The Kernels went 32-36 in the first half of the 2008 season, but they went 40-30 in the second half and made the playoffs as the second half Western Division Wild Card. Cedar Rapids won in the first round with a sweep of Clinton, but they were swept by the Burlington Bees in the Western Division Finals. The Kernels are 13-17 and in fifth place in the Western Division. In their most recent series, Cedar Rapids dropped two out of three games at Modern Woodmen Park against the Quad Cities River Bandits.
COMPARE AND CONTRAST: The Timber Rattlers are hitting .243 as a team. They have scored 116 runs (4.0/game) and hit 16 home runs. The Kernels are hitting .248 as a team. They have scored 134 runs (4.5/game) and hit 15 homers. Wisconsin pitchers have a team ERA of 4.59 while allowing a total of 163 runs (5.6/game). Cedar Rapids pitchers have a team ERA of 4.19 while allowing 139 runs (4.6/game). The Timber Rattler defense has committed 44 errors. The Kernels defense has committed 39 errors. Wisconsin is 1-9 in road games this season. The Kernels are 9-4 at home this season.
CEDAR RAPIDS STARTING PITCHER (GAME ONE): RHP Ryan Chaffee was a third round pick of the Angels in the 2008 draft out of Chipola (FL) Junior College. Chaffee turned down a scholarship to LSU to sign with the Angels, but he did not pitch as a professional in 2008. Chaffee broke his foot early in the Junior College season, but came back and helped pitch Chipola to the Junior College World Series. But, he broke the foot again at the JCWS. So far in 2009, Chaffee is 0-1 in three starts for the Kernels. In his last start, Chaffee lost at South Bend on May 6. He allowed five runs (two earned) on four hits, three walks, and a hit batsman. Chaffee struck out one and threw a wild pitch in five innings. Chaffee has never faced the Timber Rattlers or an affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers.
CEDAR RAPIDS STARTING PITCHER (GAME TWO): RHP Jeremy Thorne was a 29th round pick of the Angels out of the University of Central Florida. He did not pitch as a senior at UCF, but made his professional debut with two relief appearances for the Arizona League affiliate of the Angels. He was quickly promoted to the Pioneer League and was 0-0 with eight saves over 20 relief appearances with an ERA of 0.80. In his last appearance for the Kernels, Thorne took the loss at Quad Cities on May 9. He allowed one run on two hits over 3.1 innings pitched. Thorne has never faced the Timber Rattlers and pitched one time – a scoreless inning on August 14, 2008 – against the Helena Brewers, Milwaukee’s Pioneer League affiliate. Tonight is Thorne’s first start as a professional.
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