8/26/2009

August 26, 2009: Game Notes

END OF THE SUSPENSE: The Bees beat the Rattlers 2-1 in the conclusion of the game that was suspended on July 7. Patrick Norris tripled with one out in the bottom of the eighth inning and Fernando Garcia drove him in with a single to break a 1-1 tie. Justin Garcia pitched four scoreless innings in relief for the win.

REGULARLY SCHEDULED: The Rattlers grabbed a 3-0 lead with three straight RBI singles in the top of the first inning. But, the Bees scored in each of the first five innings to go up 10-3.

SURGE: Erik Komatsu, Jose Duran, and Sean McCraw each had two-out, RBI singles in the top of the first inning. Michael Vass also singled with two outs in the inning, but McCraw was thrown out at the plate to end the inning.

COUNTER-SURGE: An error allowed two runs to score in the bottom of the first inning. Then, Ryan Wood homered to lead off the second inning to tie the game. Burlington scored another run in the third on an error and Wood followed with a three-run homer. The Bees tacked on two more runs in the fourth and one more in the fifth.

MATCHING: The Rattlers had five hits in the first inning of the second game last night. That was the third time this season Wisconsin has had five hits in an inning. The Rattlers also committed four errors in the second game last night. That makes six games this season with four errors charges to the Rattlers.

GET A LITTLE CLOSER: The Rattlers got to within 10-6 with two runs in the sixth and one run in the seventh.

YEOMAN’S WORK: Wisconsin reliever Brandon Ritchie entered the game with the Rattlers down 10-3 with runners at first and second and one out in the bottom of the fifth. Ritchie got a double play ball and a grounder to get out of the frame. He tossed 3-1/3 innings – his longest outing of the season – and did not allow a run until the eighth inning.

TEAMMATES: Cole White closed out the Timber Rattlers with two scoreless innings last night. He was a college teammate of Rattlers second baseman Mike Brownstein at the University of New Mexico. Burlington reliever Dusty Odenbach, who pitched on Monday against the Rattlers, was a college teammate of Rattler Pete Fatse at the University of Connecticut.

IN CASE YOU WERE WONDERING: In other Midwest League Western Division action last night, Clinton lost at Cedar Rapids; Peoria beat Quad Cities; and Kane County topped Beloit in extra innings. The current Western Division Wild Card standings after last night:

CLUB..W..L...PCT GB
BUR..29.29...500 --
CLN..25.32...439 3.5
QC...25.32...439 3.5
BEL..24.34...414 5.0
WIS..23.35...397 6.0

ABOUT THE OPPONENTS: The Burlington Bees are the Midwest League affiliate of the Kansas City Royals. The Bees missed the playoffs in the first half with a record of 29-41. They are 29-29 in the second half and currently hold the Western Division Wild Card by 3-1/2 games over the Clinton LumberKings and the Quad Cities River Bandits.

SEASON SERIES: The Rattlers are 5-8 against the Bees in 2009. Wisconsin is 4-6 against the Bees at Community Field this season.

COMPARE AND CONTRAST: The Timber Rattlers are hitting .239 as a team. They have scored 515 runs (4.0/game) and hit 59 home runs. The Bees are hitting .249 as a team. They have scored 560 runs (4.4/game) and hit 52 homers. Wisconsin pitchers have a team ERA of 4.32 while allowing a total of 633 runs (4.9/game). Burlington pitchers have a team ERA of 4.11 while allowing 617 runs (4.8/game). The Timber Rattler defense has committed 151 errors. The Bees defense has committed 147 errors. Wisconsin is 20-40 on the road this season. Burlington is 27-38 at home this season.

BURLINGTON STARTING PITCHER: RHP Manauris Baez was signed by the Royals as a minor league free agent in March, 2008. He had originally been signed by the New York Yankees and spent two seasons playing for the Dominican Summer League Yankees. Last season, Baez pitched for Burlington in the Appalachian League and was 2-2 with a save and a 2.89ERA in 15 games (three starts). He walked 10 and struck out 35 in 37-1/3 innings pitched. Baez is 7-5 with a save and a 3.68ERA in 27 games (17 starts) for the Bees this season. In his start prior to this evening, Baez won his second straight start with a victory at Quad Cities on August 21. He allowed three runs on eight hits over 5-2/3 innings with three strikeouts. Baez has made two appearances (one start) against Wisconsin this season. Baez has pitched five innings against the Rattlers, allowed five runs (three earned) on five hits, walked six, and struck out two. The Rattlers beat Baez in his start against them on May 5 at Time Warner Cable Field. He gave up a run on three hits over 3-2/3 innings in that game.

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