ABOUT LAST NIGHT: The Timber Rattlers defeated the Whitecaps 5-3. Evan Frederickson pitched five scoreless innings, struck out four, and walked two for his second win. Brett Lawrie drove in a pair of runs for the offense.
EARLY: The Rattlers scored three times in the third and once in the fifth to take a 4-0 lead. Sean McCraw, who had a pair of hits in the game, drove in the first run with a single. Lawrie’s two-out, single made the score 3-0. Juan Sanchez knocked in a run with a sacrifice fly in the fifth to put the Rattlers up 4-0.
YOU NEVER KNOW WHEN YOU’LL NEED SOME: Wisconsin tacked on an insurance run in the top of the eighth inning. Chris Dennis, who had two doubles in the game, knocked in Sanchez from first with a two-out double to right to put the Rattlers up 5-0.
EVAN ALMIGHTY: Frederickson picked up his first win since April 10 with his five scoreless innings. Aside from the two walks, he also hit a batter and allowed five hits.
FLIRTING WITH DISASTER: The Whitecaps did not go down in order in any inning of last night’s game. They stranded a total of 13 runners and left at least a runner at third in seven innings.
PERALTA’S DAY: Wily Peralta, the reigning Midwest League Pitcher of the Week, worked 2-2/3 innings in relief of Frederickson. He allowed a walk and three hits with three strikeouts. Peralta left the game with the Rattlers up 5-0 and a runner at second and two outs in the bottom of the eighth.
THEY BROKE THROUGH: Brandon Ritchie relieved Peralta and gave up three consecutive RBI hits and the Whitecaps were within 5-3.
CLOSING TIME: Rattler closer Jim Henderson relieved Ritchie and gave up a single to the first batter he faced. But, he retired the next batter to keep Wisconsin up 5-3.
WHAT HAPPENED? Henderson retired the first two batters in the bottom of the ninth, but he would walk Billy Nowlin to bring up Ben Guez. On a two-strike pitch, Guez sent a high, deep fly ball down the left field line. The play was initially called a fair ball for a game tying home run. But, after the umpires conferred, the call was changed to a foul ball. Henderson got Guez to fly out to left to end the game.
DON’T MESS AROUND WITH JIM: Henderson is 12-for-12 in save situations this season. Last night was the second time this season he has picked up a save with an outing of longer than one inning. He also had a four out save at South Bend on May 10.
ROAD TRIP! The Rattlers began a 12-game, 12-day, 4-city road trip last Wednesday. Wisconsin is 5-5 so far with only two games at West Michigan left. The Rattlers return home on June 2 and begin a 12-game homestand against Cedar Rapids, Beloit, and Kane County.
A LITTLE HISTORY: The Timber Rattlers are 14-15 in the month of May with two games remaining. The team needs to win the final two games of this series with West Michigan to give them their first winning month (in a month with more than 10 games) since the 2007 Rattlers went 17-12 in August of that season.
TOSSING THIS IN TO SEE IF YOU MADE IT THIS FAR: The Rattlers won the first game in all four series of this road trip.
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS: The West Michigan Whitecaps are the Midwest League affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They currently hold the best record in the Midwest League with a 31-16 mark. The Whitecaps lead the Midwest League Eastern Division by 2-1/2 games over the Fort Wayne TinCaps. In their most recent series, West Michigan swept a three-game set from the Quad Cities River Bandits here at Fifth Third Ballpark.
COMPARE AND CONTRAST: The Timber Rattlers are hitting .252 as a team. They have scored 214 runs (4.5/game) and hit 29 home runs. The Whitecaps are hitting .272 as a team. They have scored 237 runs (5.0/game) and hit 25 homers. Wisconsin pitchers have a team ERA of 4.35 while allowing a total of 243 runs (5.1/game). West Michigan pitchers have a team ERA of 3.11 while allowing 164 runs (3.5/game). The Timber Rattler defense has committed 69 errors. The Whitecap defense has committed 33 errors. Wisconsin is 7-17 on the road this season. West Michigan is 14-7 at home this season.
WEST MICHIGAN STARTING PITCHER: RHP Luke Putkonen was a third round pick of the Tigers in the 2007 draft out of North Carolina. In his final season with the Tarheels, Putkonen was 8-2 with a 4.57ERA in 17 starts as a sophomore. He climbed from the Gulf Coast League in 2007 to Oneonta in the New York-Penn League in 2008 and was 2-2 with a 3.78ERA in nine career starts in the Detroit system before this season. Putkonen is 3-1 with a 2.72ERA in nine starts with the Whitecaps in 2009. In his start prior to this evening, he took a no decision with two runs allowed on five hits over five innings at Kane County on May 25. Tonight is Putkonen’s first appearance against the Timber Rattlers and his first appearance against an affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers.
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