ABOUT SUNDAY: The Rattlers lost 12-5 to the Chiefs. Jovan Rosa drove in six runs and Peoria hit three homers in the win. The loss was the ninth in the last eleven games for Wisconsin.
GOOD START: Juan Sanchez tripled on the first pitch of the top of the first inning. Sanchez scored on a sacrifice fly by Brett Lawrie.
BUT…The Chiefs scored the next 12 runs of the game. Peoria scored twice in the bottom of the first, four times in the third on a grand slam by Rosa, and six times in the fourth.
FAMILIAR PATTERN: In five of the last nine losses for the Rattlers, Wisconsin has scored a run to either take the lead or tie the game only to let their opponents score in the next half inning seven times.
DATE...RATTLERS SCORED.........OPPONENTS SCORED
7/16...Top 2 tied game 1-1.....Bottom 2 took 5-1 lead
7/17...Top 2 took 1-0 lead.....Bottom 2 tied game 1-1
7/17...Top 6 took 3-1 lead.....Bottom 6 took 7-3 lead
7/22...Bottom 1 tied game 2-2..Top 2 took 3-2 lead
7/22...Bottom 3 tied game 3-3..Top 4 took 5-3 lead
7/25...Top 3 took 1-0 lead.....Bottom 3 tied game 1-1
7/26...Top 1 took 1-0 lead.....Bottom 1 took 2-1 lead
WALKS AND HOMERS: Four Timber Rattlers pitchers combined to walk 10 Peoria batters. Rattlers starting pitcher Cody Scarpetta walked six in 3-2/3 innings and Rigoberto Almonte issued three free passes.
HALF CENTURY: The RBI for Lawrie was his 50th of the season. He would also have an RBI single later in the game to give him 51 on the season. Lawrie is second on the team in RBI.
DOING THE DIRTY WORK: Nick Tyson entered the game with the bases loaded and one out in the fifth inning and the Rattlers down 12-1. Tyson kept the game from getting out of hand by stranding all three runners and tossing 2-2/3 shutout inning out of the bullpen.
A RARE OCCURANCE: Michael Marseco became the first Timber Rattlers position player to pitch in a game since Joe White pitched two scoreless innings against the Kane County Cougars in the second game of a doubleheader on September 2, 2007. Marseco tossed a 1-2-3 eighth inning for the Rattlers.
IT WAS NEEDED: In the last 11 games, Rattlers starters have pitched 47-2/3 innings, an average of 4-1/3 innings per start. In eight of those games, Wisconsin starters have failed to go at least five innings. Only twice in this stretch of games has a Rattlers starter gone more than six innings.
STORIES FROM THE ROAD: The Rattlers a 1-8 in their last nine road games. They have been outscored 79-30 in those nine games. In the eight losses during that stretch of road games, Wisconsin has been outscored 72-19.
STATUS REPORT: The Rattlers have played 28 games and there are 44 left to play in the second half. Wisconsin now trails Peoria by a ½ game for the top Western Division playoff spot. The Rattlers are tied with Quad Cities for the Western Division Wild Card. UPDATE: The River Bandits beat the Loons this afternoon. The Rattlers trail Quad CIties by a 1/2 game for the Western Division Wild Card heading into the game tonight.
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS: The Peoria Chiefs are the Midwest League affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. They missed the playoffs in the first half of the season with a 38-31 record. So far in the second half, the Chiefs are 14-15. They hold the top playoff spot in the Western Division for the second half by a ½ game over the Rattlers. They are on a four-game winning streak after winning the final two games of their three-game set with Lansing at O’Brien Field and beating the Rattlers in the first two games of this series.
SEASON SERIES: The Rattlers lead the season series 7-3. The Rattlers swept a four game series in the first half of the season with three wins at Time Warner Cable Field and one win at Miller Park. The Rattlers took three out of four from the Chiefs at Time Warner Cable Field to open the second half of the season.
COMPARE AND CONTRAST: The Timber Rattlers are hitting .240 as a team. They have scored 400 runs (4.0/game) and hit 48 home runs. The Chiefs are hitting .269 as a team. They have scored 449 runs (4.6/game) and hit 76 homers. Wisconsin pitchers have a team ERA of 4.26 while allowing a total of 485 runs (4.9/game). Peoria pitchers have a team ERA of 3.78 while allowing 418 runs (4.3/game). The Timber Rattler defense has committed 118 errors. The Chiefs defense has committed 118 errors. Wisconsin is 16-29 in road games this season. Peoria is 34-16 at home this season.
PEORIA STARTING PITCHER: RHP Austin Bibens-Dirkx was signed by the Chicago Cubs as a minor league free agent off the roster of the Victoria Seals out of the Golden Baseball League in early July. Bibens-Dirkx was 2-2 with a 3.70ERA and 54 strikeouts in 48-2/3 innings with the Seals. Since joining the Chiefs, Bibens-Dirkx is 1-1 with a 3.12 ERA in four games (one start). In his outing prior to this evening, Bibens-Dirkx lost in a start against the Lansing Lugnuts. He allowed five runs (four earned) on six hits over five innings. Bibens-Dirkx was selected out of the University of Portland by Seattle in the 16th round of the 2006 draft and joined the Timber Rattlers for the second half of that season. He went 2-2 with a 1.95ERA and four saves. Tonight is the first time Bibens-Dirkx will face the Timber Rattlers. It is also the first time he will face an affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers.
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