LAST ACTION: The Timber Rattlers beat the Burlington Bees 15-12 on Monday afternoon. Khris Davis went 4-for-4 with a walk, a home run, and five runs scored. The Rattlers rallied from a 12-7 deficit after the top of the seventh to sweep the three game series from the Bees. The five-run deficit was the largest the Rattlers have rallied from to win a game this season.
WHOA: The Rattlers took a 3-1 lead after scoring three runs in the bottom of the first. But, the Bees scored six times in the top of the second to take a 7-3 lead.
BACK AND FORTH: Wisconsin scored twice in the bottom of the third inning to cut the deficit to two runs, but the Bees scored twice in the top of the fourth. The Rattlers scored single runs in the fifth and sixth innings to get to within 9-7. Then, Burlington scored three runs in the top of the seventh for a 12-7 lead.
RALLY TIME: Four straight walks by Burlington reliever Rodolfo Encarnacion started the bottom of the seventh. Cutter Dykstra drew the fourth to force in the first run. Sam Runion replaced Encarnacion and promptly gave up a two-run double to Michael Marseco and a two-run single to Austin Stockfisch to tie the game 12-12.
THE WINNING RALLY: Marseco stepped to the plate with the bases loaded in the bottom of the eighth. He was hit by a pitch to force in the go ahead run. Stockfisch singled in two more runs for the final runs of the game.
FIRST TIME SINCE: The last time the Timber Rattlers allowed 10 or more runs in a game and won was August 5 at Fort Wayne when Wisconsin beat the Wizards 19-10.
RED HOT: Khris Davis hit his 16th home run of the season and had four hits in a game for the fifth time this season. Davis has reached base in eight straight plate appearances. He is 7-for-7 with a walk. Davis has hit three homers and scored seven runs in this stretch.
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS: The Lansing Lugnuts are the Midwest League affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays. They are 45-42 on the season. They finished the first half of the season in third place in the Eastern Division with a 36-33 record. They were eight games behind Lake County for first and seven games behind Great Lakes for second. They are off to a 9-9 start in the second half of the season. The Lugnuts are in a three-way tie with Bowling Green and Fort Wayne for the two second half playoff spots in the East. In their most recent series, the Lugnuts went 1-2 in a series with Bowling Green. Lansing is 4-6 in their last 10 games. The Lugnuts went 6-6 in 12 games against the Eastern Division in the first half.
2009 SEASON SERIES: The Rattlers and Lugnuts played six games in 2009. Wisconsin went 1-5 against Lansing. The Lugnuts swept a three-game series at Time Warner Cable Field from May 2-4. Wisconsin dropped two out of three games in Lansing from July 18-20.
COMPARE AND CONTRAST: The Timber Rattlers are hitting .252 as a team. They have scored 417 runs (4.8/game) and hit 50 home runs. The Lugnuts are hitting .262 as a team. They have scored 391 runs (4.5/game) and hit 42 homers. Wisconsin pitchers have a team ERA of 4.40 while allowing a total of 432 runs (5.0/game) this season. Lansing pitchers have a team ERA of 3.85 while allowing a total of 391 runs (4.5/game). The Timber Rattler defense has committed 127 errors. The Lugnuts defense has committed 87 errors. Wisconsin is 20-24 in home games this season. Lansing is 23-19 away from home in 2010.
PROSPECTING: Baseball America’s Prospect Handbook listed four members of the current Lansing roster as top 30 prospects in the Toronto organization. Shortstop Justin Jackson is the highest rated Lugnut at #9. Infielders Ryan Schimpf (#16) and Ryan Goins (#24) and outfielder Kenny Wilson (#28) are also on the list.
LANSING STARTING PITCHER: RHP Matt Fields was selected by the Blue Jays in the 22nd round of the 2009 draft out of Gonzaga. In his final season at Gonzaga Fields was 8-1 in 14 starts with a 3.47ERA. Last season, Fields had no record in 14 games (nine starts) for the Gulf Coast League affiliate of the Blue Jays. He allowed seven earned runs in 51-2/3 innings for a 1.22ERA and struck out 54 while walking six. Fields is 2-3 with a 2.95 ERA in eight starts for the Lugnuts in 2010. In his start prior to this evening, Fields pitched six shutout innings at Great Lakes on July 8. He allowed four hits, walked three, and struck out four, but was not involved in the decision. Tonight is the first time Fields is facing the Timber Rattlers. It is also the first time he is facing an affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers.
No comments:
Post a Comment