A few changes from yesterday's notes:
LAST ACTION: The Timber Rattlers lost 9-8 to the River Bandits on Saturday night. Quad Cities rallied from deficits of 5-2 and 8-6 for the victory. The River Bandits scored twice in the ninth – a game-tying home run by Domnit Bolivar and a game-winning RBI single by Niko Vasquez – to pick up the win. The loss ended Wisconsin’s four-game wining streak.
GETTING OFFENSIVE: The Rattlers scored eight runs and banged out 10 hits on Saturday. Over the last five games, the Rattlers have scored 31 runs and have tallied 46 hits.
MIGHT AS WELL JUMP: The Rattler team batting average has gone from .189 to .228 over the last five games.
YARD WORK: Brett Lawrie hit a two-out, three-run home run in the top of the eighth inning on Saturday to put the Rattlers in front 8-6. The homer was Lawrie’s third of the season. Wisconsin did not have a player with three home runs in 2008 until Joe Dunigan hit his third of the year on May 6.
POWER SURGE: In 22 games during April of the 2008 season, Wisconsin Timber Rattlers hit three home runs. The Rattlers have hit three homers in the last three games. In 14 games during April of 2009, this Timber Rattler team has hit seven homers.
CLOSE SHAVES: Eight of Wisconsin’s games this season have been decided by one run. Five games have been decided in the last at bat with the Rattlers winning three of those games. Saturday was the first walk-off win by an opponent of the Rattlers this season. Wisconsin has one walk-off victory this year.
LET’S NOT MAKE THIS A HABIT: The Timber Rattlers have been rained out of a pair of road games this season; both of them in Iowa and both of them on consecutive Sundays. Wisconsin was rained out in a game at Clinton on April 19. The next Sunday road game of in Iowa this season is June 14 in Burlington.
2009 SERIES: The Rattlers swept a season opening series from Quad Cities at Time Warner Cable Field. The Rattlers won by scores of 2-1, 10-1, and 3-2. Wisconsin leads the season series 3-1.
COMPARE AND CONTRAST: The Timber Rattlers are hitting .228 as a team. They have scored 56 runs (4.0/game) and hit seven home runs. The Bandits are hitting .234 as a team. They have scored 74 runs (5.3/game) and hit eight homers. Wisconsin pitchers have a team ERA of 3.92 while allowing a total of 61 runs (4.4/game). Quad Cities pitchers have a team ERA of 4.15 while allowing 70 runs (5.0/game). The Timber Rattler defense has committed 15 errors. The River Bandit defense has committed 27 errors. Wisconsin is 0-4 on the road this season. The River Bandits are 5-2 at Modern Woodmen Park this season.
QUAD CITIES STARTING PITCHER GAME ONE: RHP Arquimedes Nieto was signed as a non-drafted free agent out of Panama by the St. Louis Cardinals on March 3, 2007. After one season in the Dominican Summer League, Nieto pitched for the Batavia Muckdogs in the New York-Penn League in 2008. He was 6-1 with a 2.95 ERA in 15 games (nine starts). Nieto’s last appearance was three innings of scoreless relief on April 21 at Beloit. He struck out three, walked one, and gave up two hits. Nieto faced the Timber Rattlers on Opening Night and took the loss when he allowed two unearned runs. Nieto struck out three in 2-2/3 innings against the Rattlers.
QUAD CITITES STARTING PITCHER GAME TWO: RHP Hector Cardenas was signed as a non drafted free agent by the Cardinals on April 20, 2006. He pitched for Cardinal affiliates in the Dominican Summer League and the Gulf Coast League before pitching for Batavia in 2008. He was 5-0 with a 1.83ERA in 15 games (two starts) for the Muckdogs last season. Cardenas made his Midwest League debut on April 15 in a home game against the Beloit Snappers and he pitched five innings of no-hit ball to pick up the win. Cardenas did not walk a batter and struck out four. His last outing was two innings of relief at the Snappers on April 22 and picked up the win. Cardenas has never faced the Rattlers or an affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers.
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