Rattlers scratch out a 3-2 win at Kane County
Published on June 25, 2014 under Midwest League (MWL1)
Wisconsin Timber Rattlers News Release
GENEVA, IL - Pitchers Anthony Banda and Victor Diaz held the Kane County Cougars to two runs and Johnny Davis made a spectacular catch in the bottom of the ninth inning to preserve a Wisconsin Timber Rattlers victory on Wednesday afternoon. Wisconsin held on to defeat the Cougars 3-2 at Fifth Third Bank Ballpark.
The Cougars (49-26 overall, 4-2 second half) went in front in the bottom of the third inning. Kyle Schwarber, the player taken by the Chicago Cubs with the #4 pick in the 2014 draft, hit a 3-0 pitch from Banda over the wall in right for his second homer since joining Kane County on June 19. Schwarber has six homers in eleven games as a professional.
The Rattlers (41-34, 5-1) responded in the top of the fourth. Clint Coulter was hit by a pitch from Cougars starter Tyler Skulina with one out. Garrett Cooper doubled off the wall in right with two outs and Coulter raced home with the tying run.
Jake Hannemann created a run for the Cougars in the bottom of the fifth inning to put them back in front. Hannemann drew a four-pitch walk from Banda, stole second on the next pitch, and went to third on a wild pitch on the next pitch. Hannemann broke for the plate on the next pitch as Carlos Penalver squared to bunt on a suicide squeeze attempt. The pitch was low and in and got away from catcher Paul Eshleman. Hannemann scored and was credited with a steal of home.
Skulina turned the game over to the bullpen for the top of the sixth and the Rattlers rallied almost immediately. Coulter and Jose Pena walked with one out against Zak Hermans. Cooper was next and he was hit by a pitch to load the bases.
Both managers made switches after that pitch loaded the bases. Kane County's Mark Johnson went back to the bullpen for Corbin Hoffner to face Steve Halcomb. Wisconsin's Matt Erickson put Francisco Castillo in as a pinch-runner for Jose Pena at second base.
Hoffner got Halcomb to send a one-hop grounder to Ben Carhart at first base. Carhart stepped on the bag at first for the out on Halcomb, but he needed to throw to second for a tag play on Cooper to complete the inning-ending double play. The throw was wild and wound up in left field. Coulter and Castillo both scored on the play and the Rattlers were up 3-2.
Diaz took over for Banda in the bottom of the sixth and proceeded to pitch four eventful - but scoreless and hitless innings.
Diaz tosses a 1-2-3 bottom of the sixth inning, but had a long wait before he went back to the mound of the bottom of the seventh as there was a 27-minute rain delay during the top of the seventh.
When play resumed, Diaz walked David Bote to lead off the bottom of the seventh Trey Martin was asked to bunt Bote to second base. Martin missed the ball, Bote strayed too far from first, and Eshleman threw a strike to first to pick Bote off for the out.
Schwarber came to the plate in the bottom of the eighth with one out and none on base. He launched a deep fly to center on a 1-2 pitch from Diaz, but the ball died just shy of the warning track and Davis made an easy catch.
In the bottom of the ninth, Diaz got the first out, but walked Jeimer Candelario to put the tying run on base. Kane County called on lefty Jacob Rogers to pinch hit for Cael Brockmeyer and face the right-handed Diaz. Rogers leads Kane County in doubles with nineteen and has also hit seven home runs this season.
Rogers hit a 2-2 pitch from Diaz high and deep to right-center. Davis had been shading Rogers to left-center, but raced back to the warning track and made a great catch. Candelario, thinking that no one could catch that ball, was racing around the bases and was about ten feet from third when Davis made the catch. Davis fired the ball into second and it rolled to third baseman Taylor Brennan on the infield grass just as Candelario was rounding second on his way back to first. Brennan lobbed the ball to Cooper covering at first to easily double off Candelario for the final out of the game.
Diaz has allowed one hit and no runs over his last two appearances which total ten innings. He also earned his first professional save with four innings on Wednesday.
The Timber Rattlers have won nine of their last ten games.
The final game of the series is Thursday night at 6:30pm. Tristan Archer (2-2, 3.98) is the scheduled starting pitcher for the Timber Rattlers. Kane County sends Daury Torrez (7-3, 3.48) to the mound. Tune in for the broadcast on AM1280, WNAM or IHeartRadio starting with the Miller Lite Pregame Show at 6:10pm.
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