(TIMBER RATTLERS) MIDLAND, MI – Jadher Areinamo broke a 1-1 tie with an RBI double in the top of the sixth inning to give the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers a 2-1 lead against the Great Lakes Loons Sunday afternoon at Dow Diamond. Areinamo added a two-run single in the seventh and another two-run single in the eighth to collect five RBI to lead the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers to a 10-4 victory over the Loons.
Wisconsin (33-30) scored first. In the top of the second, Loons starting pitcher Maddux Bruns walked Luiyin Alastre and Tayden Hall to start the inning. A 4-6-3 double play got Bruns two outs while moving Alastre to third. Kay-Lan Nicasia was at the plate with a 1-2 pitch due and Bruns threw a wild pitch to allow Alastre to score.
The Loons (32-31) responded in the bottom of the second on back-to-back doubles by Jake Gelof and Jordan Thompson.
Great Lakes threatened to take the lead in the second, but catcher Blayberg Diaz picked the lead runner off third for the second out before pitcher Ryan Birchard got the final out on a grounder to short.
Birchard was in trouble again in the third inning when he walked Josue DePaula to start the inning. DePaula stole second and third before Birchard walked Mike Sirota to put runners on the corners with no outs. The Rattlers escaped unscathed in the inning when Zyhir Hope popped out, Sirota was caught trying to steal second, and Birchard struck out Logan Wagner.
Patricio Aquino was the first Wisconsin reliever, and he pitched a perfect fourth but had two runners on with two outs in the fifth inning. Aquino struck out Hope to end that threat and keep the game tied.
The Rattlers went in front in the top of the sixth against Brooks Auger, the third of eight pitchers used by the Loons in the game. Juan Baez started the inning with a single. Areinamo doubled to the corner in right to drive in Baez with the go-ahead run. Later in the inning, Yhoswar Garcia doubled home a run for a 3-1 lead.
Areinamo, who had four hits in the game, had another chance with runners in scoring position with two outs in the seventh and added two insurance runs with a single for a 5-1 lead.
Thompson homered to start against Jesús Broca in the bottom of the seventh to pull the Loons within three runs.
Then, Wisconsin pulled away in the eighth as Alex Makarewich walked in a run with the bases loaded and his replacement Jorge Gonzalez walked in another run with the bases loaded. Areinamo knocked in two more runs with a single for a 9-1 lead.
Tayden Hall, who walked three times in the game, tacked on an RBI single in the top of the ninth off Reynaldo Yean, the seventh Loons pitcher on the afternoon.
Miles Langhorne, who got the final two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning, gave up a pair of two-out, RBI singles in the top of the ninth inning before closing out the game with a strikeout.
Wisconsin hitters banged twelve and walked eleven times.
Eduardo Garcia moved his on-base streak to 26 games with a double in the top of the first inning. Garcia holds the longest on-base streak in the Midwest League. He entered the day tied with Rattler teammate Blake Burke for the longest streak in the league at 25.
The Timber Rattlers have won four straight series and are 17-7 in their last 24 games.
The Rattlers continue their road trip to Michigan on Tuesday with the first game of a six-game series against the West Michigan Whitecaps at LMCU Ballpark in Comstock Park. Game time is 5:35pm CDT.
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