(WISCONSIN TIMBER RATTLERS) CEDAR RAPIDS, IA – The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers fought back from an early 4-0 deficit to send Sunday’s game against the Cedar Rapids Kernels to extra innings at Veterans Memorial Stadium only to see the Kernels celebrate their second walkoff win of the series in a 5-4, ten-inning victory in the final meeting of the season between the rivals.
Both teams left the bases loaded early in the game. The Kernels had the sacks full with one out in the bottom of the third inning. Wisconsin starting pitcher Tanner Gillis kept the game scoreless with a force play at the plate and a foul popout. The Rattlers loaded the bases in the top of the fourth against Cedar Rapids starting pitcher Jose Olivares on a lead-off single and a pair of two-out walks. Olivares escaped on a popup.
Cedar Rapids (53-36 overall, 13-10 second half) got on the scoreboard first with four runs in the bottom of the fourth. Gillis gave up singles to the first three batters of the inning – Danny DeAndrade, Poncho Ruiz, and Kyle Hess – with the single by Hess knocking in DeAndrade. The throw to the plate was late and also allowed Ruiz and Hess to both move into scoring position. Jaime Ferrer followed with a sacrifice fly to score Ruiz and knock Gillis out of the game.
Reliever Stiven Cruz got the second out of the inning. However, Luke Napleton was next, and he hit a two-out, two-run home run to right to give the Kernels a 4-0 lead.
Wisconsin (41-48, 7-17) rallied with a homer of their own in the top of the sixth inning. Eduardo Garcia walked with one out against Cade Bragg. Hedbert Pérez stepped into the box and crushed a two-run homer to right-center. Pérez has hit twelve homers this season.
The Rattlers bullpen held the line after the fourth inning. Cruz worked around a one-out single in the fifth. Yerlin Rodriguez hit the lead-off batter in the sixth before a double play and a strikeout for a scoreless inning.
Jack Seppings had allowed a walk and a single with one out in the seventh when the runners pulled a successful double steal with Brandon Winokur at the plate. Wisconsin walked Winokur intentionally to load the bases and Seppings got Danny De Andrade to ground into an inning ending double play.
In the eighth inning, Eduardo Garcia walked and stole second base to start the inning against reliever Jeremy Lee. Garcia moved to third on a ground out and scored on an infield single by Andrick Nava. Lee got the second out on a force play at second with Juan Baez beating out the potential double play at first base. The Kernels elected to go to the bullpen and brought in Nick Trabacchi.
Trabacchi walked Tayden Hall to move Baez to second base. Then, Luiyin Alastre lined an 0-2 pitch to left for a single to score Baez with the tying run.
Patricio Aquino, the fifth Wisconsin pitcher of the game, kept the score tied with two perfect innings and three strikeouts to send the game to extra innings.
Daniel Guilarte pinch-ran for Pérez as the placed runner at second base in the top of the tenth with Hunter Hoopes on the mound for the Kernels. Hoopes got a strikeout for the first out with a grounder to second moving Guilarte to third. Yhoswar Garcia, who entered the game as a defensive replacement in the bottom of the eighth inning, faced Hoopes and sent a slow grounder up the middle. Winokur ranged over from short and fielded the ball cleanly. However, his throw to first pulled Ferrer off the base. Ferrer appeared to get the tag on Garcia before he got to the base, but base umpire Caleb George called Garcia safe. There was a brief conference with plate umpire Theo Arndt and the call was overturned with Garcia called out and the score still tied.
The bottom of the tenth for the Kernels started with Kyle DeBarge, the Midwest League leader in stolen bases, at second base as the placed runner. Bayden Root struck out Caden Kendle for the first out, but DeBarge was running on the pitch and just beat the throw to third from Nava. That stolen base by DeBarge was his 49th of the season and set the stage for Winokur.
Winokur hit a sinking line drive to left and it fell in for an RBI single to give the Kernels the win.
Hoopes was also the winning pitcher for the Kernels on Friday night in their 5-4, ten-inning win over the Rattlers. Wisconsin has suffered three of their four walkoff losses this season at the hands of Cedar Rapids.
The Rattlers dropped two out of the three games in the series with the Kernels but ended the season series even with the first half West Division Champions. Wisconsin went 9-9 in eighteen games against the Kernels in 2025.
The Timber Rattlers are off on Monday. They return to action on Tuesday with a game against the Quad Cities River Bandits at Modern Woodmen Park in Davenport, Iowa. Sam Garcia (1-5, 6.10) is the scheduled starting pitcher for the Timber Rattlers. Mason Miller (0-0, 0.00) is set to start for the River Bandits. Game time is 6:30pm.
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