ABOUT WEDNESDAY: The Rattlers lost 3-1 to the Cougars. Wisconsin stranded 13 runners in the game. Mike Spina had three hits, including a homer, and scored twice for the Cougars.
SCORING SUMMARY: The Cougars scored twice with two outs against Rattlers starting pitcher Cody Scarpetta in the fourth inning. An RBI double by Tyler Ladendorf drove in the first run. Scarpetta walked the next two batters to load the bases and hit Chris Berroa to force in a run. The Rattlers got their run in the seventh inning. Josh Prince doubled and scored on a Pete Fatse’s RBI single. The Cougars scored the final run of the game on the solo homer by Spina in the eighth.
QUALITY TIMES TWO: Scarpetta allowed two runs over six innings, walked three and struck out six for his second consecutive quality start. Yesterday was also the second straight quality start (6IP, 3 or fewer ER) by a Rattlers pitcher.
NOT AN ORDERLY SERIES: In the first three games of the series – which have totaled 28 innings – Wisconsin batters have gone down in order twice. Wisconsin has had at least one base runner on in the other 26 innings. But, the Rattlers have managed four runs against the Cougars in this series.
WALKS HURT…SOMETIMES: Five Kane County pitchers combined to walk eight Timber Rattlers hitters. Plus, there were two hit batsmen for a total of 10 free base runners for Wisconsin. None of these 10 runners scored.
LOW TIDE: Wisconsin’s overall record sits at 48-60 for the 2009 season. The 12 games under .500 mark is the farthest Wisconsin has been below .500 this season. Since beating South Bend on July 13 to get to 45-42 and match the most games over .500 they have been this season, the Rattlers have gone 3-18
A NOTE ABOUT ATTENDANCE: The attendance on Tuesday was 3,830 to bump Wisconsin’s home attendance to 197,749 for an average of 3,531. There are 12 home games remaining on the schedule. The single season attendance record for Wisconsin was set in 1996 with a mark of 233,797. If the Timber Rattlers hit their average attendance over the final 12 games of the season, that will give them 42,372 more fans for a total of 240,121.
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS: The Kane County Cougars are the Midwest League affiliate of the Oakland Athletics. The Cougars are in the Midwest League playoffs as the first half champions of the Western Division. They were 43-29 in the first half. So far in the second half, Kane County is 18-20. In their most recent series, they lost the final two games of a three game series at Lansing. But, they are on a three game winning streak with victories in the first three games of this series.
SEASON SERIES: Wisconsin is 6-8 against Kane County this season, including a 3-3 record at Time Warner Cable Field. Wisconsin was 1-2 in a three game series at Kane County May 20-22. The Rattlers won three of four from Kane County in Grand Chute from June 10-13. The teams split a series at Elfstrom Stadium June 18-21. Tonight is the final regular season meeting between the teams at Time Warner Cable Field. Wisconsin will be at Elfstrom Stadium for a four game series from August 28 through August 31.
COMPARE AND CONTRAST: The Timber Rattlers are hitting .239 as a team. They have scored 426 runs (3.9/game) and hit 49 home runs. The Cougars are hitting .244 as a team. They have scored 488 runs (4.5/game) and hit 70 homers. Wisconsin pitchers have a team ERA of 4.23 while allowing a total of 531 runs (4.9/game). Kane County pitchers have a team ERA of 3.53 while allowing 442 runs (4.1/game). The Timber Rattler defense has committed 126 errors. The Cougars defense has committed 128 errors. Wisconsin is 32-27 at home this season. Kane County is 30-28 on the road this season.
KANE COUNTY STARTING PITCHER: RHP Kenny Smalley was the 24th round pick of the Athletics in the 2008 draft out of Delta State University. In his first pro season, Smalley was 5-1 with a save and a 3.07ERA in 20 relief appearances with the Vancouver Canadians of the Northwest League. Smalley is 8-4 with the Cougars in 2009. He leads the Midwest League in ERA with a 2.06 and was the starting pitcher for the Western Division for the 2009 All-Star Game in Clinton. In his start prior to this evening, Smalley lost at Lansing on August 1. He gave up three runs on three hits with three walks and six strikeouts over 4-2/3 innings. Smalley has made two starts against the Rattlers this season and he is 0-2. Wisconsin beat him at Time Warner Cable Field on June 13 and again on June 18 at Elfstrom Stadium. In the starts against the Rattlers, Smalley has allowed five runs (four earned) on seven hits with eight walks and 11 strikeouts. Wisconsin won the games by scores of 3-1 and 6-1.
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