ABOUT LAST NIGHT: The Rattlers scored three times in the top of the ninth inning and held on for an 8-6 win over the Cougars. Nick Prosise homered and drove in four runs for the Rattlers. Nick Allen pitched 2-1/3 innings of scoreless relief for his second win. Joe Woerman worked a scoreless ninth for his fourth save.
SNAPPING STREAKS: Wisconsin’s victory ended a pair of streaks. The Rattlers snapped a four game losing streak. The Cougars had a nine game winning streak ended.
JUST LIKE YOU DRAW IT UP: The Rattlers trailed 6-5 heading into the top of the ninth inning. Eddy Hernandez started the inning with a single. Ron Garth tried to bunt him over, but popped the ball up. The ball dropped in a caromed back toward the plate after a collision between first baseman Steve Kleen and pitcher Steven Sharpe. Casey Craig drew a 4-pitch walk to load the bases. Curt Ledbetter drove in the tying run with a sacrifice fly. Luis Valbuena drew another walk to reload the bases.
WINNING PLAY: Prosise sent a slow grounder to third. Jeff Baisley threw to second for a force out of Valbuena, but a hard slide by Valbuena took out second baseman Frank Martinez and force a wild throw to first. Prosise reached safely; Garth scored; and Craig beat the throw to the plate for an 8-6 lead.
MAKING IT INTERESTING: Woerman retired the first two Cougars he faced in the bottom of the ninth, but gave up a bloop single and two walks to load the bases. Woerman got the final out when Mike Massaro grounded into a force play.
IT DIDN’T GO TO ELEVEN: Sharpe blew a save for the first time this season by giving up three in the ninth inning last night. He had been ten for ten in save opportunities before last night.
FIRST AS A PRO: Prosise hit his first professional home run last night. His two-run shot in the top of the sixth inning tied the game 5-5.
HOW LONG? Last night’s game of 3 hours and 49 minutes was the longest nine inning game of the season for the Rattlers. A 1 hour and 20 minute rain delay before the first pitch meant that the game didn’t get started until 7:20pm.
RARITIES: Last night was just the second time the Rattlers have won a game they trailed heading into the ninth inning. The only other time that has occurred this season for Wisconsin was April 19 against Southwest Michigan, when the Rattlers scored two runs in the bottom of the ninth for a 4-3 win. Last night was also just the fourth time the Rattlers have won a game when they have allowed five or more runs.
THREE STRAIGHT: Wisconsin has homered in three consecutive games. Michael Saunders homered on Thursday; Curt Ledbetter hit one on Friday; and Prosise went deep last night.
GOING FOR TWO: The Rattlers haven’t won two straight games since beating Cedar Rapids at Veterans Memorial Stadium on May 5 & 6.
OPPOSING STARTING PITCHER: Jason Ray was an 8th round pick out of Asuza Pacific University in the 2005 draft. Ray was 5-2 with an ERA of 3.58 in his final season with the APU Cougars. Last season as a member of the Vancouver Canadians, Ray went 0-1 with a 2.12 ERA in twenty relief appearances. In his last start, Ray won his fourth straight decision with a victory over the Cedar Rapids Kernels. On May 22, he gave up one run on two hits over five innings at Memorial Stadium. Ray beat the Rattlers on May 17 at Elfstrom Stadium in a rain-shortened game. He pitched six shutout innings and gave up three hits and struck out three for a complete game shutout.
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