(WISCONSIN TIMBER RATTLERS) SOUTH BEND, IN – The Wisconsin Rattlers battled back to tie Sunday’s game against the South Bend Cubs at Four Winds Field with three runs in the top of the sixth inning. Then, the Cubs scored three runs in the bottom of the sixth and added two runs in the eighth to pull away for an 8-3 victory.
South Bend (56-36 overall, 17-13 second half) took a 1-0 lead on a one-out, RBI single by Angel Cepeda in the bottom of the first inning. The Cubs had runners at first and second with one out after the hit by Cepeda. Wisconsin starting pitcher Ethan Dorchies retired the next two hitters to hold the deficit to one run.
The Cubs added to their lead in the third inning. Josiah Hartshorn drove in the first run of the inning with a double. Cepeda got Hartshorn home moments later with an RBI single.
South Bend was poised to add to their lead in the fifth inning when Kane Kepley tripled to right. Wisconsin starter Ethan Dorchies retired Hartshorn on a sharp grounder to second with Kepley staying at third base. Reliever Jason Woodward entered the game and got a double play when Jose Escobar hit a liner to Daniel Dickinson at second base. Dickinson fired to third to catch Kepley too far from the bag to end the inning.
Pierce Coppola, the South Bend starting pitcher, left after allowing two hits over five scoreless innings. The Rattlers (49-42, 15-14) came alive against the Cubs bullpen the sixth.
Luis Peña started the inning with a single against JP Wheat. Braylon Payne doubled off the wall in left to put runners at second and third. Dickinson singled sharply to left to score both runners. The throw to the plate was wild and that allowed Dickinson to take second base. He would steal third a few pitches later. Wheat rebounded to strikeout the next two batters. However, he threw a wild pitch with Daniel Guilarte at the plate to let Dickinson score the tying run.
Guilarte and Tyler Rodriguez each drew walks against Wheat to force the Cubs to go to the bullpen again. Jackson Brockett got the final out on force play at second
Woodward got the first out in the bottom of the sixth but ran into trouble after that. He hit Matt Halback on a 2-2 pitch. Michael Carico doubled off the wall in right. Michael Hallquist followed with double to left to score both runners to give the Cubs a 5-3 lead. Justin Stransky added an insurance run with an RBI single for a 6-3 lead.
Stransky added two more runs for the Cubs on a two-out homer in the eighth inning off Jose Nova.
Brockett shut down the Rattlers over the final 3-1/3 innings. He allowed two hits, walked none, and struck out six to earn his sixth win of the season.
Payne went 3-for-4 for the Rattlers for his 21st multi-hit game of the season.
South Bend took five of six from the Rattlers in the series. Wisconsin is 2-9 in eleven games against the first half West Division Champions this season.
The Timber Rattlers are off on Monday. They return to action on Tuesday at Neuroscience Group Field to start a six-game series with the Lansing Lugnuts. Fans can enjoy Nathan’s Famous All-Beef hot dogs, 16-ounce Pepsi products, and 16-ounce domestic beers for $2 on a Bang for Your Buck Night sponsored by Northeast Wisconsin Manufacturing Alliance to start the homestand. Game time is 6:40pm CDT.
Comments