ABOUT LAST NIGHT: The Timber Rattlers beat the Fort Wayne TinCaps 2-1. Kyle Heckathorn allowed one run over seven innings for his third win of the season. Cutter Dykstra homered and Pete Fatse drove in the other run for the Rattlers. Wisconsin ended a five-game losing streak with the victory.
HECKFIRE! Heckathorn pitched his fourth straight quality start last night. In his last four starts, he has pitched 27 innings, allowed three earned runs, walked two, and struck out 19. In his last four starts, Heckathorn has lowered his ERA from 5.12 on May 11 to 2.72 after last night’s game.
CUTS LIKE A KNIFE: Dykstra’s one out homer in the fourth inning was his first of the season. It put the Rattlers up 1-0.
IT DON’T COME EASY: The TinCaps tied the game with a run in the bottom of the fourth.
BACK IN FRONT: Wisconsin had two outs and none aboard in the top of the sixth inning. Cameron Garfield singled to keep the inning alive. Fatse doubled to left-center and Garfield scored the go-ahead run. Fatse tied Chris Dennis for the team RBI lead in 2010. Both have 29.
IT DON’T COME EASY PT II: Fort Wayne’s Edinson Rincon doubled to start the bottom of the seventh. He was at third with one out. But, he was thrown out at the plate on a ground ball with the infield playing in on the grass.
SAVING THE DAY: Jon Pokorny pitched two scoreless innings, with a pair of walks and a hit, to earn his first save of the season.
NOT A RECORDING: Rattlers second baseman Scooter Gennett went 2-for-4 last night. He has had a multi-hit game in four straight games. During his most recent hitting streak, Gennett is 9-for-17 (.529). He has raised his season average to .353 and he is second in the Midwest League in the batting race.
FIRST: The Timber Rattlers are now 3-13 in games decided by one run. Last night was the first one run game won by the Rattlers against a team other than Kane County.
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS: The Fort Wayne TinCaps are the Midwest League affiliate of the San Diego Padres. In 2009, the TinCaps went 94-46 in the regular season. In the playoffs, the TinCaps defeated South Bend 2-1 in the first round and Great Lakes 2-1 in the Eastern Division Finals. Fort Wayne won their first ever Midwest League Championship by sweeping Burlington 3-0 in the Finals. They are 27-26 and in fourth place in the Eastern Division. They trail first place Lake County by 7.5 games. The TinCaps are 5.5 games behind Great Lakes for the first half Wild Card.
2009 SEASON SERIES: Wisconsin went 0-6 against the TinCaps in 2009. The Rattlers were 0-3 against Parkview Field last season in a series from July 28-30. Fort Wayne won 4-2, 4-3, and 9-2.
2010 SEASON SERIES: Due to the new Midwest League schedule in 2010, these three games at Fort Wayne are the only three games Wisconsin (1-0) and the TinCaps will play in the regular season.
COMPARE AND CONTRAST: The Timber Rattlers are hitting .249 as a team. They have scored 241 runs (4.6/game) and hit 24 home runs. The TinCaps are hitting .250 as a team. They have scored 245 runs (4.6/game) and hit 24 homers. Wisconsin pitchers have a team ERA of 4.36 while allowing a total of 258 runs (5.0/game) this season. Fort Wayne pitchers have a team ERA of 3.74 while allowing 229 runs (4.3/game). The Timber Rattler defense has committed 86 errors. The TinCaps defense has committed 82 errors. Wisconsin is 7-16 in road games this season. Fort Wayne is 16-12 at Parkview Field this season.
FORT WAYNE STARTING PITCHER: RHP Jerry Sullivan was the 3rd round pick of the Padres in the 2009 draft. He pitched college ball at Oral Roberts where he was All-Summit League all three years of his career. In his final season at Oral Roberts, Sullivan was 8-3 with 116 strikeouts and a 3.12ERA in 98 innings. He made his pro debut with Eugene in the Northwest League and appeared in 16 games (nine starts). He was 5-3 with a 4.02ERA and 58 strikeouts in 53-2/3 innings for the Emeralds. In his start prior to this evening, Sullivan won at Bowling Green on May 28. He tossed five innings and gave up two runs on four hits. Sullivan, the #19 prospect in the Padres organization according to Baseball America, has won three straight starts. Tonight is his first appearance against the Rattlers and against an affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers.
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