8/22/2008

August 22 Game Notes

ABOUT LAST NIGHT: The River Bandits beat the Timber Rattlers 5-3. Tommy Pham singled in a run in the top of the eighth inning to break a 3-3 tie. Quad Cities added a run in the top of the ninth. Ryan Kulik struck out nine over seven innings for the win.

THE POWER OF THREE: Joe White and Daniel Carroll both had three hits for the Rattler offense last night.

OUTTA HERE: Carroll’s second hit was his first professional home run. He hit the first pitch of his at bat against Kulik in the bottom of the third inning off the scoreboard in left-center to tie the game 2-2.

EARLY IN THE GAME: White gave the Rattlers a 1-0 lead with an RBI single in the second inning. The River Bandits scored twice in the top of the third on an RBI single by Francisco Rivera and a fielder’s choice by Curt Smith. The Rattlers retook the lead with a pair of runs in the third. Carroll’s homer was followed by an Alex Meneses double and an RBI single by Alex Liddi.

BACK TO EVEN: Quad Cities tied the game with an unearned run in the top of the fifth inning. Niko Vasquez reached second base on a throwing error by shortstop Juan Diaz to start the inning. An infield grounder moved Vasquez to third base. Timber Rattler starting pitcher Keith Renaud threw a wild pitch and Vasquez scored the run to make the score 3-3.

WINNING RALLY: Domnit Bolivar tripled with one out. Pham dropped in a single over the drawn-in infield for a 4-3 lead.

INSURANCE: The River Bandits added a run in the top of the ninth on a two-out RBI double by Francisco Rivera.

LOTS AND LOTS OF K’s: Kulik matched his professional career high for strikeouts with nine. River Bandit reliever Matt Spade struck out four over two innings to run the total to 13 strikeouts by Quad Cities pitchers. In the seven games between Wisconsin and the River Bandits this season, Rattler hitters have struck out 75 times. There have been 60 innings played in the seven games.

RANKING: The Rattlers have three hitters in the top 10 for strikeouts in the Midwest League. Felix Carrasco of Fort Wayne leads the league with 153. Denny Almonte (132) is fourth, Joe Dunigan (130) is fifth, and Maximo Mendez (128) is tied for sixth heading into tonight’s action.

MOVING ON UP: Rattler starting pitcher Edward Paredes was scheduled to be the starting pitcher for the Timber Rattlers on Saturday night against the River Bandits. He was promoted to West Tennessee, the Double-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners, after last night’s game. Paredes went 7-11 with a 4.63 ERA for the Timber Rattlers. Paredes is scheduled to start for the Diamond Jaxx tonight in Mobile, Alabama.

ABOUT THE OPPONENTS: The Quad Cities River Bandits are the Midwest League affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. They did not qualify for the Midwest League playoffs in the first half. The River Bandits were just swept in a four game series with Western Division leading Burlington before starting this series with the Timber Rattlers. Quad Cities is 30-29 record in the second half and has a deficit of 7-1/2 games behind the Bees for the division lead. The River Bandits are trailing Cedar Rapids by three games for the second half Western Division Wild Card. They are 63-60 overall.

COMPARE AND CONTRAST: The Timber Rattlers are hitting .242 as a team and have scored 486 runs (3.9/game). Wisconsin has hit 56 home runs this season. The Timber Rattler pitching staff has a combined ERA of 3.93. Quad Cities is hitting .242 as a team. They have scored 523 runs (4.3/game). The Bandits have hit 92 home runs this season. The Quad Cities pitching staff has a combined ERA of 3.80.

2008 SEASON SERIES: The Rattlers lead the season series 4-3. Wisconsin and Quad Cities split a four game series at Modern Woodmen Park to open the 2008 season. The Rattlers won the first two games of a series on Time Warner Cable Field at Fox Cities Stadium that was scheduled for four games from June 5-8. The games on June 7 and 8 were rained out.

QUAD CITIES STARTING PITCHER: RH Jameson Maj was selected by the Cardinals in the 45th round of the 2007 draft out of Abilene Christian University. Maj was 5-3 with 20 saves in 39 relief appearances with 72 strikeouts in 54 innings pitched in his final season at ACU. Maj made two relief appearances for a total of 1-1/3 innings for Batavia in the New York-Penn League for his professional debut last season. Maj started the 2008 season with Batavia and was 2-2 with a save in nine games (five starts), a 3.63ERA, 37 walks, and four walks over 39-2/3 innings pitched. He joined the River Bandits in early August and is 0-1 with a save in a pair of relief appearances. In his appearance prior to this evening, Maj allowed four runs on four hits over three innings to take the loss against Burlington on August 16. Tonight is the first time Maj will face the Timber Rattlers and an affiliate of the Seattle Mariners. Maj is also making his first start with Quad Cities tonight. This is his first start since his final game with Batavia on August 2. In that game, Maj allowed three runs on eight hits over 4-2/3 innings with a walk and six strikeouts for a no decision against State College.

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