ABOUT LAST NIGHT: The Rattlers beat Quad Cities 5-3. D’Vontrey Richardson homered, drove in three runs, and scored two runs to lead the offense. Jon Pokorny retired the last six hitters in order to record the save.
THE ROAD FORWARD: Wisconsin went 4-3 on their just completed seven game road trip. They split four games at Clinton and took two of three at Quad Cities. This was the first winning road trip of the second half for the Rattlers. Wisconsin has had one other road trip with an over .500 record this season. They went 4-1 on a trip to Clinton and Kane County on the last trip of the first half.
FAST STARTS: Cutter Dykstra tripled with two outs in the third inning last night. He scored on a wild pitch to put the Rattlers up 1-0. The Rattlers have scored first in six straight games. They are 4-2 in their last six games.
BIG DAY FOR D’VO: Richardson hit the three-run homer in the top of the fourth inning to put the Rattlers up 4-0. Richardson also made an outstanding catch in centerfield to rob Luis Mateo of extra bases with two outs and the bases loaded in the bottom of the fourth. Richardson also singled and scored on a double by Michael Marseco in the top of the ninth inning to give Wisconsin an insurance run.
HEY, ABBOT! Matt Costello worked 2-2/3 innings last night to pick up the win. Costello also pitched on Thursday night and worked 2/3 of an inning.
EXTRA EFFORT: Pokorny is 14-15 in save opportunities this season. Last night was the third time in 2010 that Pokorny has worked two innings for a save.
MAKING A RUN: The Timber Rattlers record for saves in a single season is 19 and was set by John Thompson in 1995. Pokorny has converted six straight save opportunities since blowing his only save of the season on July 19.
CALLING CLOCK: Last night’s 9-inning game took 3:14 to play. The Rattlers have played four straight 9-inning games of over three hours. Prior to the current streak, Wisconsin had just two 9-inning games of over three hours in the second half.
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS: The Cedar Rapids Kernels are the Midwest League affiliate of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. They finished the first half with a record of 43-25 and won the first half Western Division. The Kernels are currently 27-19 in the second half of the season to give them an overall record of 70-44.
2010 SEASON SERIES: The Rattlers and Kernels have played 13 games this season. The Rattlers are 3-10 against Cedar Rapids. The Rattlers are 2-4 at home against the Kernels, including 0-1 in a game at Miller Park. Wisconsin beat Cedar Rapids two out of three times in a series at Time Warner Cable Field April 20-22. The Kernels swept a three-game series May 7-9 from the Rattlers in Wisconsin. The May 7 game was played at Miller Park. The final two games of the series were at Time Warner Cable Field. The Kernels swept a four game series from the Rattlers at Perfect Game Field from May 28-31. Wisconsin went 1-2 in a three game set at Cedar Rapids July 4-6
COMPARE AND CONTRAST: The Timber Rattlers are hitting .252 as a team. They have scored 532 runs (4.6/game) and hit 66 home runs. The Kernels are hitting .278 as a team. They have scored 627 runs (5.5/game) and hit 71 homers. Wisconsin pitchers have a team ERA of 4.50 while allowing a total of 581 runs (5.1/game) this season. Cedar Rapids pitchers have a team ERA of 3.73 while allowing a total of 479 runs (4.2/game). The Timber Rattler defense has committed 157 errors. The Kernels defense has committed 114 errors. Wisconsin is 25-32 at home this season. Cedar Rapids is 31-26 on the road in 2010.
PROSPECTING: Baseball America’s 2010 Prospect Handbook placed four members of the current Cedar Rapids roster on their list of Top 30 prospects in the Angels organization before the season. Outfielder Randal Grichuck is the highest rated at #7. Also on the list are infielder Jean Segura (#13), pitcher Tyler Kehrer (#18), and catcher Carlos Ramirez (#20). Pitchers Fabio Martinez-Mesa (#6) and Jon Bachanov (#19) are currently on the DL.
CEDAR RAPIDS STARTING PITCHER: LHP Buddy Boshers was a fourth round pick of the Angels in the 2008 draft out of Calhoun (AL) Community College. Boshers spent time in Orem (Pioneer League), Cedar Rapids, and Salt Lake (PCL) in 2009. He has spent most of the 2010 season in the bullpen with the Kernels. He is 1-0 with a 5.40ERA in 31 appearances (two starts). Boshers won his last start when he allowed two runs on two hits over five innings at home over the Beloit Snappers on August 9. Boshers has made a pair of relief appearances against Wisconsin this season. He allowed two runs on three hits over one inning at Time Warner Cable Field on April 21. On July 5 at Perfect Game Field, Boshers tossed two innings and allowed a run on three hits versus the Rattlers. He was not involved in the decision in either game.
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