ABOUT LAST NIGHT: The Timber Rattlers lost 5-2 to the Cedar Rapids Kernels. Cedar Rapids swept the three game series from the Timber Rattlers. Wisconsin finished the 2009 season series with the Kernels at 7-12.
ONE TOUGH INNING: Gabe Jacobo stepped to the plate with two outs and the bases loaded in the top of the third inning. He tripled to right-center to break a scoreless tie and put the Kernels up 3-0. Matt Crawford followed with an RBI double to knock in Jacobo for a 4-0 lead.
I AM LEGEND: Will Smith was the starting pitcher for the Kernels and picked up his tenth win of the season. He allowed one run on two hits over eight innings. Smith struck out five and walked one.
BREAKING IT: Smith retired the first 11 batters he faced. Brock Kjeldgaard hit a two-out solo homer in the bottom of the fourth to give Wisconsin their first hit.
MILESTONE: Kjeldgaard’s homer was his 20th of the season. He is the third player in Timber Rattlers history to reach 20 home runs in a single season. Juan Silvestre (1999) and Matt Hagen (2003) are the other two Rattlers in that club. Both Silvestre and Hagen share the franchise record for homers in a season with 21.
ONE THIRD: Kjeldgaard’s 20 homers is 1/3 of the Timber Rattlers team total of 60 in 2009.
DESERVED BETTER: Rattlers starting pitcher Trey Watten pitched six innings allowed five runs on nine hits and took the loss. Watten finished the year with a record of 5-14, one save and an ERA of 4.71. The 14 losses tie Paul Fagan (2006), Nibaldo Acosta (2004), and Roy Smith (1995) as the most in a season in franchise history. Watten will finish the 2009 season as the team leader in innings pitched with 133-2/3. His 24 starts this year were also a team high.
AN INTERESTING NINTH: Andy Taylor relieved Smith in the bottom of the ninth to protect a 5-1 lead. A one out walk, and back-to-back singles by Kjeldgaard and Brandon Sizemore loaded the bases. John Delaney drove in a run with a sacrifice fly to make the score 5-2. Taylor got a strike out to end the inning.
HE’S THE GUY: Delaney has 22 RBI this season. Eleven of those RBI are with the bases loaded.
HOME RECORD: The Timber Rattlers finished the home portion of their schedule with a record of 37-34.
20 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA: The Rattlers have reached a season low 20 games under the .500 mark with the loss last night. The Rattlers need to win two of their final three games to avoid their fourth consecutive 80 loss seasons.
OVER A QUARTER MILLION SERVED: The Timber Rattlers drew 5,452 fans to their final home game of the season. They finished the season at 253,240 in 68 home games to set a new single season attendance record.
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS: The Beloit Snappers are the Midwest League affiliate of the Minnesota Twins. Beloit has missed the Midwest League playoffs. The Snappers were 27-43 in the first half. They are 24-42 in the second half to give them an overall record of 54-83.
SEASON SERIES: The Timber Rattlers are 7-4 against Beloit in 2009. Wisconsin is 2-1 against the Snappers at Pohlman Field.
COMPARE AND CONTRAST: The Timber Rattlers are hitting .236 as a team. They have scored 534 runs (3.9/game) and hit 60 home runs. The Snappers are hitting .250 as a team. They have scored 578 runs (4.2/game) and hit 65 homers. Wisconsin pitchers have a team ERA of 4.24 while allowing a total of 663 runs (4.9/game). Beloit pitchers have a team ERA of 4.30 while allowing 689 runs (5.0/game). The Timber Rattler defense has committed 163 errors. The Snappers defense has committed 168 errors. Wisconsin is 21-44 on the road. Beloit is 26-40 at Pohlman Field this season.
PROSPECTING: Baseball America’s Prospect Handbook listed two member of the current Beloit roster on their top 30 list of Twins prospects. Outfielder Aaron Hicks was rated as the #1 prospect in the Twins organization before the season. Fellow outfielder Angel Morales is rated as the #10 prospect in the Minnesota organization. Pitcher Shooter Hunt, who is currently on Beloit’s disabled list, is the #7 prospect.
OUT OF THE DRAFT 2009: The Snappers have two members of the 2009 Minnesota Twins draft class on their roster. Pitcher Billy Bullock was the second round pick out of the University of Florida. Pitcher Brad Stillings was the seventh round pick of the Twins out of Kent State.
ALL-STARS: The Snappers had one player make the Western Division squad for the Midwest League All-Star game in Clinton. Reliever Joe Testa was on the squad and has since been promoted in the Twins organization.
BELOIT STARTING PITCHER: RHP Daniel Berlind was a seventh round pick of the Twins in the 2007 draft out of Los Angeles Pierce Junior College where he was the Western State South All-Conference Pitcher of the Year. Berlind began 2008 with Beloit and went 4-4 with a 4.47ERA in 11 games (10 starts). In June, Berlind was sent to Elizabethton in the Appalachian League where he was 2-3 with a 10.98 ERA in 14 games (eight starts). As a Snapper in 2009, Berlind is 4-13 with a pair of saves and a 3.66 ERA in 30 games (20 starts) with 90 strikeouts and 53 walks over 123-2/3 innings. In his start prior to this evening, Berlind beat Burlington in the second game of a doubleheader on August 30. He allowed one run on four hits over five innings. Belind has faced the Timber Rattlers twice this season as a starter. His first start was in game one of a doubleheader on June 7. Berlind allowed two runs on four hits with three walks and five strikeouts over six innings for a loss in a complete game. On August 18, Berlind allowed one run on four hits in five innings with three strikeouts. He has lost both starts against the Timber Rattlers this season. Berlind has pitched two complete games this season and has lost both of them. He also lost the first game of a doubleheader at Cedar Rapids on August 8.
No comments:
Post a Comment