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Final: Chattanooga 5, Huntsville 3 Huntsville Box Score Not much offense for the Stars tonight as they managed only four hits. Hunter Morris went 2 for 4 and Josh Prince and Domnit Bolivar chipped in with the other two singles. T.J. Mittelstaedt, Scooter Gennett and Hainley Statia each drew a walk, but that was the exxtent of the Huntsville attack tonight. Brian Baker took the loss after going six inning and allowing four runs, three earned. Baker, Mittelstaedt and Tommy Manzella each committed an error. Huntsville Play By Play The 7th inning was the Stars downfall Chattanooga Top of the 7th Pedro Baez singles on a ground ball to center fielder Josh Prince. Jake Lemmerman walks. Pedro Baez to 2nd. Pitcher Change: Philippe Valiquette replaces Brian Baker, batting 9th. Matt Wallach out on a sacrifice bunt, third baseman Hainley Statia to second baseman Scooter Gennett. Pedro Baez to 3rd. Jake Lemmerman to 2nd. Offensive Substitution: Pinch hitter J. T. Wise replaces Matt Magill. J. T. Wise doubles (24) on a fly ball to center fielder Josh Prince. Pedro Baez scores. Jake Lemmerman scores. With Rafael Ynoa batting, wild pitch by Philippe Valiquette, J. T. Wise to 3rd. Rafael Ynoa walks. Nick Buss out on a sacrifice bunt, pitcher Philippe Valiquette to first baseman Hunter Morris. J. T. Wise scores. Rafael Ynoa to 2nd. Blake Smith lines out to left fielder T. J. Mittelstaedt.

Final: Chattanooga 1, Huntsville 5 Huntsville Box Score The Stars snapped their four game losing streak behind yet another solid start from Hiram Burgos. Burgos has to be right in the mix for the Brewers organizational pitcher of the year. I'll be honest, I didn't see this coming from him going in to the season, but he has been fantastic. Tonight's line was 6 innings of one run ball. He did allow six hits, but struck out seven. Darren Byrd, Mitch Stetter and Brandon Kintzler each threw one inning of scoreless relief. Offensively the Stars five runs came on seven hits. Josh Prince was 2 for 4 with a sac fly and stole two more bases to give him 28 for the season. Kentrail Davis stayed hot, going 1 for 3 with a double, an RBI and a run scored. He has now hit in 9 of his last 10 games. Hainley Statia was on base three times with a single, a walk and a hit by pitch. He scored 2 of Huntsville's 5 runs. Scooter Gennett, Hunter Morris and Anderson De La Rosa had the other Huntsville hits. Gennett also stole his 8th base. Hunstville Play By Play The Stars padded their lead thanks to some wildness from Luis Vasquez Huntsville Bottom of the 8th Hunter Morris singles on a ground ball to right fielder Kyle Russell. Hainley Statia grounds into a force out, second baseman Rafael Ynoa to shortstop Jake Lemmerman. Hunter Morris out at 2nd. Hainley Statia to 1st. Tommy Manzella walks. Hainley Statia to 2nd. Offensive Substitution: Pinch hitter Lee Haydel replaces Mitch Stetter. Defensive Substitution: Pedro Baez replaces pitcher Wes Roemer, batting 2nd, playing third base. Pitcher Change: Luis Vasquez replaces Wes Roemer, batting 5th. Defensive switch from third base to right field for Luis Nunez. Lee Haydel walks. Hainley Statia to 3rd. Tommy Manzella to 2nd. Anderson De La Rosa hit by pitch. Hainley Statia scores. Tommy Manzella to 3rd. Lee Haydel to 2nd. Juan Sanchez hit by pitch. Tommy Manzella scores. Lee Haydel to 3rd. Anderson De La Rosa to 2nd. Josh Prince out on a sacrifice fly to right fielder Luis Nunez. Lee Haydel scores. Anderson De La Rosa to 3rd. T. J. Mittelstaedt walks. Juan Sanchez to 2nd. Scooter Gennett grounds out, second baseman Rafael Ynoa to first baseman J. T. Wise.

Final: Wisconsin 10, Cedar Rapids 9 Rattlers rocket past Kernels with big eighth inning Wisconsin rallies; then, holds on to win at Cedar Rapids By Chris Mehring / Wisconsin Timber Rattlers CEDAR RAPIDS, IA - Chadwin Stang was not in the original starting lineup on Wednesday night for the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers. But, the late addition to the starting lineup contributed in a big way for Wisconsin's 10-9 win over the Cedar Rapids Kernels at Perfect Game Field. Stang lowered the boom on the Kernels with a grand slam home run in a six run eighth inning to bring Wisconsin all the way back from an early 5-1 deficit. Rattlers first baseman Nick Ramirez, who also homered for Wisconsin, had four hits and three RBI in the game. The Timber Rattlers (51-31 overall, 7-6 second half) grabbed the lead early. They had runners at the corners with no outs in the top of the second after a double by Ben McMahan and a single by Ramirez. Cameron Garfield grounded into a 5-4-3 double play to get the runner on third home. But, the Kernels (35-48, 3-10) responded with four runs in the bottom of the second inning. Rattlers starting pitcher David Goforth retired the first batter, but walked the next two batters. Then, Zach Borenstein sent a grounder to first that was misplayed and a run scored to tie the game. Trevor Hairgrove singled to drive in the go ahead run. Kevin Moesquit followed with a two-run double and the Kernels led 4-1. Cedar Rapids manager Jamie Burke was ejected before the second inning rally started. He was run from the game for arguing with the plate umpire about the strike zone after the second batter of the inning took a strike. The Rattlers rallied in the top of the sixth inning. McMahan tripled with one out and Ramirez got him home with a double. Max Walla singled in a run with two outs and Wisconsin was within two runs. But, the Kernels answered with a run in the bottom of the sixth to go back up by three. A two out double by Chevy Clarke knocked in a run for a 6-3. Wisconsin loaded the bases with no outs in the seventh, but could only manage one run on an RBI grounder by McMahan and the Rattlers were within a pair of runs again. Cedar Rapids had another answer when they scored a run in the bottom of the seventh on an RBI grounder by Zach Borenstein to make the score 7-3. The Kernels went to 2012 draft pick RJ Alvarez for the eighth inning. The third round pick of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim had appeared in six games prior to Wednesday night. He had allowed no runs on three hits with a walk and eleven strikeouts in seven innings since joining the Kernels from Florida Atlantic University. He would not get out of the eighth. Yadiel Rivera started the inning with a single. Walla followed with a walk. Carlos George was hit by a pitch and the Rattlers had the bases loaded with no outs for the second inning in a row. Stang worked the count to 3-2 and lined a homer over the wall in left field for a grand slam and an 8-7 lead. The home run was the fourth of the season for Stang and his first since April 29. Ramirez stepped in to the box two outs later with a runner at second base and put a ball into orbit for his seventh home run of the season and a 10-7 lead. Ramirez has seven home runs this season and has homered in two straight games. Tommy Toledo took the mound in the bottom of the ninth inning with that 10-7 lead. The leadoff batter reached on an error, but the Rattlers closer retired the next two batters. Zach Wright, a 12th round pick of the Angels in the 2012 draft, cracked a two-run homer to left-center and the Kernels cut Wisconsin's lead to a single run. Toledo would get the next batter to pop out to third base to end the game. Game two of the series in Cedar Rapids is Thursday night. Kevin Shackelford (1-2, 4.89) is the scheduled starting pitcher for the Timber Rattlers. The Kernels have Frank De Jiulio (3-2, 6.70) as their scheduled starter. Game time is 6:35pm. Tune in for the broadcast on AM1280, WNAM or timberrattlers.com starting with the Miller Lite Pregame Show at 6:15pm. HOME RUNS: WIS: Chadwin Stang (4th, GRAND SLAM in 8th inning off RJ Alvarez, 0 out) Nick Ramirez (7th, one on in 8th inning off RJ Alvarez, 2 out) CR: Zach Wright (5th, one on in 9th inning off Tommy Toledo, 2 out) WP: Stephen Peterson (2-1) LP: RJ Alvarez (0-1) SAVE: Tommy Toledo (5) TIME: 3:27 ATTN: 4,114 Wisconsin Box Score How appropriate that there were all kinds of fireworks in Cedar Rapids on the 4th of July. What an exciting game. The Rattlers fell behind early as the Kernels put up four in the second inning off starter David Goforth. Cedar Rapids got one more in the fifth off of Goforth before he was lifted. He wound up going 5 2/3 innings, allowing six runs, five earned on seven hits with four walks and four strikeouts. Stosh Wawrzasek finished out the sixth but surrendered a run in the seventh. Stephen Peterson pitched the next inning and a third and set himself up for his second win of the season after the Rattlers bats exploded late. Tommy Toledo pitched the ninth and did give up two unearned runs after giving up a two run homer following a Yadiel Rivera error, but Toledo buckled down and got the last out to earn his 5th save. Nick Ramirez had a huge night at the plate with a 4 for 5 performance that included his seventh home run. He also had a pair of doubles, three RBI and scored two runs. Chadwin Stang wasn't even in the initial starting lineup but took advantage of the late change, going 3 for 6 with a double and a grand slam. Ben McMahan also had three hits, a single, double and a triple while scoring two runs. Ramirez, Stang and McMahan all fell just one hit shy of a cycle. Ramirez and Stang needed triples and McMahan needed a home run. Max Walla reached base twice with a walk and a single and Carlos George was also on twice with a single and was hit by a pitch. Speaking of hit by a pitch, Brandon Macias was hit for the 15th time this season. Wisconsin Play By Play Stang and Ramirez both went yard to highlight a six run eighth Wisconsin Top of the 8th Pitcher Change: R. J. Alvarez replaces Shane Riedie. Yadiel Rivera singles on a ground ball to right fielder Gary Mitchell. Max Walla walks. Yadiel Rivera to 2nd. Carlos George hit by pitch. Yadiel Rivera to 3rd. Max Walla to 2nd. Chadwin Stang hits a grand slam (4) to left field. Yadiel Rivera scores. Max Walla scores. Carlos George scores. Brandon Macias flies out to left fielder Zachary Borenstein. Mitch Haniger doubles (3) on a fly ball to left fielder Zachary Borenstein. Ben McMahan strikes out swinging. Nick Ramirez homers (7) on a fly ball to right center field. Mitch Haniger scores. Pitcher Change: Joe Melioris replaces R. Alvarez. Cameron Garfield grounds out, second baseman Alex Yarbrough to first baseman Frazier Hall.

I was trying to watch Thornburg's start on one computer and Sheets' start on another while listening to Chris call the Rattlers game on the radio so I wasn't completely focused on any one game but from what I saw it looked like Thornburg pitched pretty well. Two runs on five hits but I didn't see anything hit really hard off of him. I know he gave up two to the opposing pitcher that were just little flares. He had six strikeouts. If anyone's interested, Sheets went 5 innings, gave up four runs but also struck out six for AA Mississippi. He started off a little rocky, giving up back to back triples to start the game but settled down and had a pretty easy 3rd, 4th and 5th before hitting his pitch count. They said on the broadcast the plan was for him to make at least one more AA start but the Braves are eager to get him in their rotation. I saw him drop a couple of those big old Ben Sheets hooks that just froze guys.

Final: Huntsville 1, Birmingham 5 Huntsville Box Score Hainley Statia had a huge night for the Stars, going 4 for 4 with a double. Outside of Statia there wasn't a whole lot of Huntsville offense. Kentrail Davis was 1 for 3 with a triple and a walk. He also stole his 13th base. T.J. Mittelstaedt was 1 for 4 with a double in his AA debut, though he did commit an error at third base. Josh Prince added a double and Domnit Bolivar was 1 for 3 with a walk. Kyle Heckathorn got hit pretty good, allowing four runs on eight hits in 4 2/3 innings. He also hit two batters. He did strike out six, but got his ninth loss of the season. Daniel Meadows relieved Heckathorn and gave up one run in 1 2/3 innings. Darren Byrd got the last two outs of the seventh and Brandon Kintzler pitched a 1-2-3 eighth. Huntsville Play By Play Huntsville Top of the 9th Pitcher Change: Nick McCully replaces Santos Rodriguez. Hunter Morris flies out to left fielder Brady Shoemaker. Domnit Bolivar flies out to left fielder Brady Shoemaker. T. J. Mittelstaedt doubles (1) on a fly ball to center fielder Jared Mitchell. Kentrail Davis triples (3) on a ground ball to right fielder Jose Martinez. T. Mittelstaedt scores. Juan Sanchez strikes out swinging.

Final: Wisconsin 5, Quad Cities 7 Quad Cities beats Rattlers 7-5 in series finale Teams split season series 7-7 By Chris Mehring / Wisconsin Timber Rattlers DAVENPORT, IA - The Quad Cities River Bandits built a 6-1 lead and held off the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers for a 7-5 victory on Tuesday night at Modern Woodmen Park. The Bandits scored twice in the fourth and four times in the fifth inning to erase a 1-0 Wisconsin lead. The Rattlers rallied to pull to within a run, but they could not close the gap. Lance Roenicke started the game with a double for Wisconsin (50-31 overall, 6-6 second half) in the top of the first inning. One out later Mitch Haniger blooped a single into right and Roenicke scored for a 1-0 Timber Rattlers lead. Wisconsin starter Chad Pierce walked Bandits third baseman Stephen Piscotty with one out in the fourth inning. Garcia blasted the next pitch over the wall in left-center and the Bandits (43-38, 8-4) led 2-1. Then, Quad Cities sent nine men to the plate in the fifth inning and scored four times off Pierce. There were two runners on with one out when Matt Williams doubled in a run. After a hit batsman loaded the bases, Piscotty doubled in two more runs. An RBI grounder by David Medina put the Bandits up 6-1. Wisconsin came storming back in the top of the seventh. Brandon Macias and Haniger drew walks to start the inning. Ben McMahan drove in Macias with a single. Then, Nick Ramirez crushed a three-run home run to right-center and Wisconsin pulled to within a run at 6-5. The Bandits took advantage of a rare Wisconsin error in the sixth inning to score a run. There was a runner at first with no outs against Wisconsin reliever Tyler Cravy. He got a grounder to short that was mishandled and the runner who would have been out at second scooted to third. An RBI grounder by Casey Rasmus knocked in that unearned run for a 7-5 lead. Both teams threatened to score after that, but the bullpens held and 7-5 was the final. Friday's game was the final meeting of the regular season between the teams. The Rattlers and River Bandits split the 14 game series as each recorded seven wins. Wisconsin begins a three game series at Cedar Rapids on Wednesday evening. David Goforth (5-2, 5.24) is the scheduled starting pitcher for the Timber Rattlers. Cedar Rapids has Dan Reynolds (0-3, 3.25) as their scheduled starter. Game time is 5:05pm. Tune in for the broadcast on AM1280, WNAM starting with the Miller Lite Pregame Show at 4:45pm. HOME RUNS: WIS: Nick Ramirez (6th, 2 on in 6th inning, off Robert Stock, 0 out) QC: Anthony Garcia (10th, 1 on in 4th inning off Chad Pierce, 1 out) WP: Robert Stock (5-0) LP: Chad Pierce (2-3) SAVE: Heath Wyatt (13) TIME: 2:51 ATTN: 7,380 Wisconsin Box Score Chad Pierce had another rough start for the Rattlers. He's really struggled since the end of May. Pierce gave up six runs in five innings and took the loss. The six runs were all earned and came on six hits and three walks. Tyler Cravy pitched the next two innings and allowed one unearned run. Michael Strong pitched a scoreless eighth and struck out two. Nick Ramirez belted his sixth home run of the season, a three run blast. Mitch Haniger was on base three times with a single, double, and a walk. He also scored a run and knocked in one. Rafael Neda and Lance Roenicke each had two hits. Roenicke got caught stealing again which makes him 0 for 3 since joing the Rattlers. Chadwin Stang was on base three times with a hit and a pair of walks. Yadiel Rivera made his ninth error of the season. Greg Hopkins was out again after being hit in the face the other night. Based on this picture he tweeted it looks like he could miss a couple more games yet. Hopefully he will be back soon. Wisconsin Play By Play The bulk of the Rattlers offense for the evening Wisconsin Top of the 6th Brandon Macias walks. Mitch Haniger walks. Brandon Macias to 2nd. Ben McMahan singles on a ground ball to right fielder Roberto Reyes. Brandon Macias scores. Mitch Haniger to 2nd. Nick Ramirez homers (6) on a fly ball to right center field. Mitch Haniger scores. Ben McMahan scores. Yadiel Rivera strikes out swinging. Chadwin Stang singles on a fly ball to left fielder Anthony Garcia. With Rafael Neda batting, Chadwin Stang caught stealing 2nd base, catcher Casey Rasmus to second baseman Neal Pritchard. Rafael Neda singles on a ground ball to center fielder Nick Martini. Pitcher Change: Danny Miranda replaces Robert Stock. Carlos George singles on a fly ball to left fielder Anthony Garcia. Rafael Neda to 2nd. Lance Roenicke strikes out swinging.

Final: Huntsville 4, Birmingham 13 Huntsville Box Score Not a good night for Huntsville pitching. Evan Anundsen started for the Stars and gave up eight runs, six earned in four innings. He allowed eight hits and a walk while striking out four. Dan Merklinger was up next and pitched an inning and a third, allowing two runs on two hits and three walks. R.J. Seidel mopped up the final 2 2/3 innings. He surrendered three runs on three hits and walked a pair. The offense tried to do their part, amazingly out-hitting Birmingham 14-13. Hunter Morris led the way with a 4 for 4 night. He doubled, walked, scored a run and knocked in one. Scooter Gennett had a 3 for 5 night with an RBI. Lee Haydel had two singles and walk. Kentrail Davis was on base three times with a single and a pair of walks. Davis also stole his 12th base. Josh Prince, Domnit Bolivar and Juan Sanchez each had a double. Huntsville Play By Play The Stars got one run in the 7th but it could have been a much bigger inning Huntsville Top of the 7th Pitcher Change: Leroy Hunt replaces Jon Bachanov. Scooter Gennett singles on a line drive to center fielder Jared Mitchell. Hunter Morris singles on a line drive to right fielder Kenneth Williams. Scooter Gennett to 2nd. Hainley Statia flies into double play, left fielder Brady Shoemaker to second baseman Daniel Wagner. Scooter Gennett doubled off 2nd. Anderson De La Rosa singles on a line drive to left fielder Brady Shoemaker. Hunter Morris to 2nd. Kentrail Davis singles on a line drive to right fielder Kenneth Williams. Hunter Morris to 3rd. Anderson De La Rosa to 2nd. Domnit Bolivar hit by pitch. Hunter Morris scores. Anderson De La Rosa to 3rd. Kentrail Davis to 2nd. Juan Sanchez flies out to center fielder Jared Mitchell

Final: Wisconsin 9, Quad Cities 2 Rattlers rock River Bandits By Chris Mehring / Wisconsin Timber Rattlers DAVENPORT, IA - The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers defeated the Quad Cities River Bandits 9-2 Monday night at Modern Woodmen Park. Mitch Haniger homered and drove in four runs for the offense. Matt Miller pitched seven solid innings and Wisconsin's defense played error-free ball while the River Bandits committed three costly errors. Anthony Garcia put the River Bandits (42-38 overall, 7-4 second half) in front in the first inning. Stephen Piscotty doubled with two outs. Garcia, who drove in two runs for Quad Cities on Sunday, drove in Piscotty with a single for a 1-0 lead. Haniger got the Rattlers (50-30, 6-5) in front with one swing in the third inning. Max Walla reached on an error and took second on a wild pitch to start the inning. He was still at second base with two outs. Then, Bandits starting pitcher Willy Paulino hit Brandon Macias to extend the inning to Haniger. Haniger, the supplemental first round pick of the Milwaukee Brewers in the 2012 draft, worked the count to 3-1 before pasting a pitch from Paulino well past the fence in deepest left-center for a three-run homer. The long ball was the first professional home run for Haniger and it put Wisconsin up 3-1. Cameron Garfield scored on a wild pitch in the sixth inning against River Bandits reliever Jonathan Cornelius to pad their lead to 4-1. The Rattlers put the game away in the seventh inning with a little help from the River Bandits defense. The inning started with Carlos George and Chadwin Stang reaching on singles. A sacrifice bunt by Brandon Macias moved both runners into scoring position. Haniger drove in George and got Stang to third base with a sacrifice fly. Then, things got weird. Nick Ramirez struck out for the final out of the inning, but catcher Juan Castillo dropped the ball. He had an easy throw to first to get Ramirez, but the throw was wild and Stang scored. Garfield was next and he reached on an error to keep the frame going. Yadiel Rivera singled to load the bases. Lance Roenike cracked a two-run single to left-center and the Rattlers went up 8-1. Quad Cities got a run against Miller in the bottom of the seventh inning on an infield grounder by Roberto Reyes. But, Wisconsin responded with one more run in the top of the eighth. George tripled to start the inning and scored on a sac fly by Stang. Miller won his fourth straight decision by going seven innings, allowing two runs on six hits and striking out four. Stosh Wawrzasek came on to pitch two perfect innings of relief to close out the River Bandits. Game three of the series is Wednesday night at 6:00pm. Chad Pierce (2-2, 3.88) is the scheduled starting pitcher for the Timber Rattlers. Tyrell Jenkins (1-3, 5.36) is set to start for the River Bandits. Tune in for the broadcast on AM1280, WNAM or timberrattlers.com starting with the Miller Lite Pregame Show at 5:40pm. HOME RUN: WIS: Mitch Haniger (1st, 2 on in 3rd inning off Willy Paulino, 2 out) WP: Matt Miller (7-5) LP: Willy Paulino (2-6) TIME: 2:40 ATTN: 1,925 Wisconsin Box Score The Rattlers bats came alive tonight as they banged out 11 hits and scored 9 runs. As was previously mentioned, Mitch Haniger hit his first pro home run, a 3 run shot. He finished the night 1 for 3 with 4 RBI. He also drew a walk. Carlos George was 2 for 4 with a triple and scored two runs. Cameron Garfield had two hits in five at bats and scored a pair of runs. Yadiel Rivera was 2 for 4 with a double. Lance Roenicke had two hits as well. Chadwin Stang and Nick Ramirez had the Rattlers other two hits, though Ramirez did strike out four times. Matt Miller has had an up and down season but the good Miller showed up tonight. He went seven innings and gave up just two runs. Miller walked just one and struck out four. Stosh Wawrzasek pitched final two innings and didn't allow a hit. He struck out two of the six batters he faced. Wisconsin Play By Play Haniger's first pro bomb Wisconsin Top of the 3rd Max Walla reaches on fielding error by shortstop Matt Williams. With Carlos George batting, wild pitch by Willy Paulino, Max Walla to 2nd. Carlos George lines out to shortstop Matt Williams. Chadwin Stang strikes out swinging, catcher Juan Castillo to first baseman Roberto De La Cruz. Brandon Macias hit by pitch. Mitch Haniger homers (1) on a fly ball to left center field. Max Walla scores. Brandon Macias scores. Nick Ramirez strikes out swinging. Even the outs were productive in the seventh inning. Wisconsin Top of the 7th Carlos George singles on a ground ball to shortstop Matt Williams. With Chadwin Stang batting, Carlos George advances to 2nd on a balk. Chadwin Stang singles on a ground ball to shortstop Matt Williams. Brandon Macias out on a sacrifice bunt, third baseman Stephen Piscotty to second baseman Neal Pritchard. Carlos George to 3rd. Chadwin Stang to 2nd. Mitch Haniger out on a sacrifice fly to right fielder David Medina. Carlos George scores. Chadwin Stang to 3rd. Nick Ramirez strikes out swinging. Chadwin Stang scores. Nick Ramirez advances to 1st, on throwing error by catcher Juan Castillo. Cameron Garfield singles on a ground ball to third baseman Stephen Piscotty. Nick Ramirez to 2nd. Yadiel Rivera singles on a ground ball to left fielder Anthony Garcia. Nick Ramirez to 3rd. Cameron Garfield to 2nd. Lance Roenicke singles on a line drive to center fielder Nick Martini. Nick Ramirez scores. Cameron Garfield scores. Yadiel Rivera to 3rd. Max Walla pops out to shortstop Matt Williams.

Final: Wisconsin 1, Quad Cities 3 Quad Cities stops Rattlers win streak Wisconsin falls 3-1 to Bandits to start road trip By Chris Mehring / Wisconsin Timber Rattlers DAVENPORT, IA - Three Quad Cities River Bandits pitchers held the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers to a single run Sunday evening at Modern Woodmen Park. That was enough to edge Wisconsin 3-1. Anthony Garcia drove in a pair of runs for the Bandits offense to help Quad Cities stop Wisconsin's winning streak at five games. Stephen Piscotty, the 2012 first round pick of the Cardinals out of Stanford, doubled and went to third on an error to start the Quad Cities second inning. An RBI grounder by Garcia drove in Piscotty. David Medina followed with a solo homer to right for a 2-0 lead. Quad Cities (42-37 overall, 7-3 second half) had a chance to blow the game open at that point. Rattlers starting pitcher Chad Thompson walked the next three batters to load the bases with one out, But, Thompson got out of the jam with a 1-2-3 double play to end the inning. Wisconsin (49-30, 5-5) cut the two run deficit in half in the top of the fourth inning. Brandon Macias launched a long solo home run to left field. The homer was the second in as many games for Macias and made the score 2-1. The River Bandits went back up by two runs in the bottom of the fifth inning. A two-out single by Garcia made the score 3-1. Wisconsin threatened a couple of times after the Bandits went up 3-1. Carlos George drew a leadoff walk in the sixth inning, but the Rattlers couldn't do anything with that. In the seventh, Nick Ramirez doubled and Cameron Garfield singled with one out, but the Rattlers stranded both runners. Dail Villanueva, the starting pitcher for the Bandits, allowed a run on three hits over six innings. Travis Miller (2) and Ricky Martinez (1) worked the final two innings without allowing a run In the top of the ninth inning, Mitch Haniger appeared to hit a leadoff home run, but the ball was ruled foul. Wisconsin would get a two out single from Ramirez, but that runner was left stranded, too. The River Bandits extended their home winning streak to eight games with Sunday's win. Game two of the series is Monday night at 7:00pm. Matt Miller (6-5, 4.07) is the scheduled starting pitcher for the Timber Rattlers. Quad Cities has Willy Paulino (2-5, 5.10) as their scheduled starter. Tune in for the broadcast on AM1280, WNAM or TimberRattlers.com starting with the Miller Lite Pregame Show at 6:40pm. HOME RUNS: WIS: Brandon Macias (5th, none on in 5th inning off Dail Villanueva, 1 out) QC: David Medina (6th, none on in 2nd inning off Chad Thompson, 1 out) WP: Dail Villanueva (5-4) LP: Chad Thompson (3-2) SAVE: Ricky Martinez (1) TIME: 2:39 ATTN: 1,738 Wisconsin Box Score The Rattlers only run came on a home run by Brandon Macias. It was the fifth of the season for Macias. Nick Ramirez had a single and a double. Tyler Roberts went 1 for 3 with a double. Ben McMahan and Cameron Garfield each contributed a base hit and Carlos George drew the Timber Rattlers only walk. Ben McMahan committed his seventh error of the season. Chad Thompson started for Wisconsin and really struggled with his control. He walked six, had a pair of wild pitches and hit a batter. He wound up going 4 2/3 innings but limited the damage to only three runs. Jacob Barnes came on in relief and threw 3 1/3 shutout innings. Barnes has been great in his last three appearances, allowing only two hits in 10 1/3 innings over that time. Today was no different as he allowed no hits and walked just one while striking out five. Wisconsin Play By Play Quad Cities scored two in the second inning but it could have been much worse after Thompson walked the bases loaded with one out. Quad Cities Bottom of the 2nd Stephen Piscotty doubles (1) on a fly ball to right fielder Ben McMahan. Stephen Piscotty advances to 3rd, on fielding error by right fielder Ben McMahan. Anthony Garcia grounds out, second baseman Carlos George to first baseman Nick Ramirez. Stephen Piscotty scores. David Medina homers (6) on a fly ball to right field. Luis Mateo walks. Roberto De La Cruz walks. Luis Mateo to 2nd. With Casey Rasmus batting, wild pitch by Chad Thompson, Luis Mateo to 3rd. Roberto De La Cruz to 2nd. Casey Rasmus walks. Matt Williams grounds into double play, pitcher Chad Thompson to catcher Tyler Roberts to first baseman Nick Ramirez. Luis Mateo out at home.

Final: Huntsville 0, Birmingham 2 Huntsville Box Score The Stars got shutout for the second day in a row, losing at Birmingham by a score of 2-0. Let's chalk it up to the extreme heat. 103 degrees for today's game. Not a lot of offense for the Stars in this one as they managed only four hits and struck out 13 times. Domnit Bolivar was on base three times with a double and a pair of walks. Kentrail Davis also added a double in four trips to the plate. Scooter Gennett and Adam Weisenburger each had a single for the other two Huntsville hits. Josh Stinson started for the Stars and took the loss, giving up two runs in five innings of work. He gave up five hits, struck out three, walked six and hit a batter. Philippe Valiquette made his second appearance since being promoted from Brevard County and threw three shutout innings. Valiquette allowed just one hit. Huntsville Play By Play The only runs of the game came in the second inning. Birmingham Bottom of the 2nd Seth Loman grounds out, pitcher Josh Stinson to first baseman Hunter Morris. Erik Morrison walks. Luis Sierra singles on a line drive to left fielder Lee Haydel. Erik Morrison to 2nd. Kenneth Williams singles on a ground ball to center fielder Josh Prince. Erik Morrison scores. Luis Sierra to 3rd. With Daniel Wagner batting, Luis Sierra caught stealing home, catcher Adam Weisenburger to third baseman Juan Sanchez to catcher Adam Weisenburger, Kenneth Williams to 2nd. Daniel Wagner singles on a ground ball to right fielder Kentrail Davis. Kenneth Williams scores. With Tyler Saladino batting, Daniel Wagner steals (2) 2nd base. Tyler Saladino flies out to right fielder Kentrail Davis. Huntsville's best chance to score a run and the only time they had a runner past second base. Huntsville Top of the 7th Domnit Bolivar walks. Kentrail Davis grounds out, second baseman Daniel Wagner to first baseman Seth Loman. Domnit Bolivar to 2nd. Pitcher Change: Nevin Griffith replaces Cameron Bayne. Adam Weisenburger singles on a line drive to center fielder Jared Mitchell. Domnit Bolivar to 3rd. Juan Sanchez strikes out swinging. Lee Haydel grounds out, pitcher Nevin Griffith to first baseman Seth Loman.

Final: DSL Angels 4, DSL Brewers 1 DSL Brewers Box Score Not a lot of offense in this one. The Brewers managed only four hits in the game. DH Kevin Martinez was on base three times with a single and a pair of walks. Juan Ortiz had a double and the lone Brewers RBI. Jose Dicent and Natanael Mejia , who was making his 2012 season debut, had the other two hits for the DSL squad. Raphachel Colatosti stole his eighth base of the season. Milton Gomez started and went five innings. He gave up four runs, two earned and struck out three. The bullpen tossed four shutout innings, not allowing a hit. Miguel Diaz worked the sixth and seventh, walking two and striking out two. Joshua Torres , also making his season debut, had a 1-2-3 eighth inning and Doni Arias set the Angels down in order in the ninth, striking out two. DSL Brewers Play By Play The only exciting offense for the Dominican squad today came in the 7th inning DSL Brewers Bottom of the 7th Pitcher Change: Alexander Valdez replaces Alfonso Alcantara. Alejandro Mendoza grounds out, shortstop Erick Salcedo to first baseman Steven Mateo. Natanael Mejia grounds out, shortstop Erick Salcedo to first baseman Steven Mateo. Kevin Martinez singles on a ground ball to center fielder Ayendy Perez. Juan Ortiz doubles (5) on a fly ball to right fielder Ranyelmy Mendoza. Kevin Martinez scores. Raphachel Colatosti grounds out, second baseman Ismael Dionicio to first baseman Steven Mateo.

Final: Peoria 7, Wisconsin 8 Neda knocks in the game winner Rattlers beat Peoria 8-7 in ten innings for fourth straight win By Chris Mehring / Wisconsin Timber Rattlers http://wisconsin.timberrattlers.milb.com/images/2012/06/30/uuXpyJSQ.jpg The Rattlers celebrate Rafael Neda's game winning single to beat Peoria on June 29, 2012. (Ann Mollica/Wisconsin Timber Rattlers) GRAND CHUTE, WI - On Saturday night, it was Rafael Neda's turn at Time Warner Cable Field at Fox Cities Stadium. The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers catcher drove in the winning run with a single in the bottom of the tenth inning to beat the Peoria Chiefs 8-7. Neda also hit his first professional homer in the game to help the Rattlers come back to win their fourth straight game. Wisconsin (48-29 overall, 4-4 second half) scored a run in the bottom of the first inning on the first of four Peoria errors. The Chiefs (38-39, 3-5) took the lead in the top of the third inning by sending ten men to the plate against Wisconsin starting pitcher David Goforth. They scored six runs on five hits and three Wisconsin errors. Pin-Chieh Chen completed a streak of three straight singles to start the inning and drove in the tying run. Zeke DeVoss dropped a sacrifice bunt to move the runners along, but the throw to first by Goforth was wild to allow a run to score. Next, Taiwan Easterling's grounder to third base was mishandled for an error and Chen scored for a 3-1 lead. That play also put runners on first and third with no outs. Easterling would steal second and the throw skipped to past second to let DeVoss score. Later in the inning, Paul Hoilman and Anthony Giansanti had RBI singles for a 6-1 lead. It didn't take long for Wisconsin to rally. Nick Ramirez started the comeback with a single to start the fourth. Then, Ben McMahan hit a two-run homer into the Timber Rattlers bullpen. Yadiel Rivera reached on an error to bring Neda to the plate. Neda lined a 2-2 pitch down the left field line. The ball stayed fair and Wisconsin pulled to within 6-5. Carlos George kept the pressure on with a bunt and reached on an error. Lance Roenicke followed with a double to move George to third. Chadwin Stang tied the game at six with a sacrifice fly. Goforth settled in after his rough third inning to work two more scoreless innings. He did have to pitch his way out of a jam in the sixth. Javier Baez tripled to start the inning, but Goforth got a strikeout and - after Yasiel Balaguert reached on a fielder's choice that kept Baez at third base - an inning ending double play to keep the game tied. Peoria would go in front in the seventh inning. Stephen Peterson allowed a run on a two-out wild pitch that let DeVoss score from third for a 7-6 lead. Ramirez brought the Rattlers back in the eighth. Wisconsin's first baseman hit a long home run down the right field line to lead off the inning. The blast came against Yao-Lin Wang, the Peoria closer. Wang has ten saves this season and has blown two saves. Both blown saves are against Wisconsin. Rattlers closer Tommy Toledo pitched a perfect ninth and a perfect tenth to set up Wisconsin's eight walkoff hit of the season. Greg Hopkins singled to start the rally against Luis Liria. A wild pitch got Hopkins to second, but Liria retired Ramirez with a strikeout. The Chiefs elected to walk McMahan intentionally to set up the double play, but Yadiel Rivera worked the count full and drew a walk to load the bases after falling behind 1-2. Then, Neda lined a 2-2 pitch from Liria through the left side of the infield to drive home Hopkins with the winning run. The final game of the three game series is Saturday night. Mark Williams (4-6, 2.57) is the scheduled starting pitcher for the Rattlers. Peoria will counter with Zach Cates (0-1, 1.93). Game time is 6:35pm. REGGY!, the purple party dude returns to the Fox Cities to entertain with his skits and in-game antics. The first 1,000 fans to attend this game will receive a poster of Timber Rattlers All-Star Greg Hopkins. It's also a Fly Away Saturday and one lucky fan will win airfare for two from Funjet Vacations and Fox World Travel at this game! There is also a postgame fireworks display from Fox 11 scheduled on Saturday. If you can't make it out to the ballpark, tune in for the broadcast on AM1280, WNAM or timberrattlers.com starting with the Miller Lite Pregame Show at 6:15pm. MiLB.TV subscribers may also watch the game. HOME RUNS: WIS: Ben McMahan (6th, 1 on in 4th inning off Michael Jensen, 0 out) Rafael Neda (1st, 1 on in 4th inning off Michael Jensen, 0 out) Nick Ramirez (5th, 0 on in 8th inning off Yoa-Lin Wang, 0 out) WP: Tommy Toledo (7-0) LP: Luis Liria (1-3) TIME: 3:25 ATTN: 4,773 Wisconsin Box Score Rafael Neda was the hitting hero for the Rattlers. He went 2 for 5 with his first home run and the game winning hit in the 10th inning. Nick Ramirez also had a 2 for 5 night, including a clutch eighth inning bomb to right field. Ben McMahan had the T-Rats other home run, going 1 for 4 with a walk. Lance Roenicke and Chadwin Stang eached had two hit games as well. Mitch Haniger was 1 for 4 with a walk. David Goforth wound up going six innings, and aside from the third inning blowup, pitched pretty well. He was around 93-94 on the stadium gun but reached back a couple of times and got it up to 96. I wasn't sure he was going to make it out of the third inning, but Matt Erickson showed a lot of patience with him, and Goforth rewarded his manager with three more solid innings. Peoria tried to run quite a bit when they got on base, but Goforth made them pay with a couple of nice pickoffs. Stephen Peterson pitched two innings of relief, giving up one run. Tommy Toledo came on and worked a perfect ninth and tenth to get the win. Defensively the Rattlers committed four errors. One each by Carlos George, Greg Hopkins, Neda and Goforth. On the plus side, Yadiel Rivera is really fun to watch play defense. He had a couple of very nice defensive plays to help out his pitchers. Wisconsin Play By Play The Timber Rattlers fourth inning comeback Wisconsin Bottom of the 4th Nick Ramirez singles on a line drive to right fielder Anthony Giansanti. Ben McMahan homers (6) on a fly ball to center field. Nick Ramirez scores. Yadiel Rivera reaches on throwing error by third baseman Dustin Geiger. With Rafael Neda batting, Yadiel Rivera steals (3) 2nd base. Rafael Neda homers (1) on a fly ball to left field. Yadiel Rivera scores. Carlos George reaches on throwing error by third baseman Dustin Geiger. Lance Roenicke doubles (1) on a fly ball to left fielder Yasiel Balaguert. Carlos George to 3rd. Chadwin Stang out on a sacrifice fly to center fielder Taiwan Easterling. Carlos George scores. Lance Roenicke to 3rd. Mitch Haniger strikes out swinging. Gregory Hopkins grounds out, third baseman Dustin Geiger to first baseman Paul Hoilman. 10th inning walk-off Wisconsin Bottom of the 10th Pitcher Change: Luis Liria replaces Yao-Lin Wang. Gregory Hopkins singles on a line drive to center fielder Taiwan Easterling. With Nick Ramirez batting, wild pitch by Luis Liria, Gregory Hopkins to 2nd. Nick Ramirez strikes out swinging. Luis Liria intentionally walks Ben McMahan. Yadiel Rivera walks. Gregory Hopkins to 3rd. Ben McMahan to 2nd. Rafael Neda singles on a sharp ground ball to left fielder Yasiel Balaguert. Gregory Hopkins scores. Ben McMahan to 3rd. Yadiel Rivera to 2nd. Rattler Radio Video Highlights My photos from tonight's game The Timber Rattlers Report from the Appleton Post Crescent includes a photo gallery with 18 great shots by Dan Powers and Meg Vogel, along with a video interview with Rafael Neda.

Excellent, thank you! Except for Saturday I can take Huntsville for the week too if you don't want to cover three teams.

Rattler Radio Highlights "I owed Peoria announcer Nathan Baliva a beer" I can totally see where Chris is coming from with no Nine after 9 tonight. Post game softball made link reporting tough enough for me. Speaking of which, is anyone able to pinch hit for me with the Rattlers on Saturday. I will be down in Milwaukee for the Brewers game and will be in no shape to be link reporting (and may not have access to a computer). Planning on going to the TRats game tomorrow though so should have some pics and a first hand account.

Final: Peoria 3, Wisconsin 7 McMahan has three hits, Pierce wins first start By Chris Mehring / Wisconsin Timber Rattlers06/28/2012 11:57 PM ET GRAND CHUTE, WI - Ben McMahan had three hits and three RBI to lead the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers to a 7-3 win over the Peoria Chiefs Thursday night at Time Warner Cable Field at Fox Cities Stadium. Wisconsin scored four runs in the first inning and pulled away late for their third straight victory. The Timber Rattlers (47-29 overall, 3-4 second half) jumped on Peoria with four runs in the first inning. Two singles and a walk loaded the bases with no outs in the first. Peoria starting pitcher Gerardo Concepcion got the first out, but Nick Ramirez singled to left to score a run. On the play a throw to the infield was wild and allowed Brandon Macias to score for a 2-0 lead. McMahan was the next batter and he singled to drive in two more runs for a 4-0 advantage. Rattlers starting pitcher Chad Pierce allowed a two-out RBI double to Oliver Zapata in the second inning. But, McMahan got that run back in the third inning with a two-out RBI double for a 5-1 lead. Peoria (38-38, 3-4) rallied against Pierce in the fifth inning. The Rattlers right-hander got the first two outs of the inning, but a walk to Zeke DeVoss kept the inning alive for the Chiefs. Taiwan Easterling and Dustin Geiger connected with consecutive RBI doubles and Peoria pulled within two runs. Pierce, a native of Fond du Lac, worked five innings in his first start of the season. He walked two, struck out three, scattered five hits, and turned the lead over to the bullpen. Peoria left the bases loaded in the sixth inning and stranded two more runners in the seventh against reliever Mike Strong. Then, the Rattlers offense added to their lead. Lance Roenicke, who went 2-for-4 on the night, singled in the first run. A pair of walks brought Greg Hopkins to the plate and the All-Star second baseman singled to left-center to drive in one more insurance run for a 7-3 lead. Strong ran into a little trouble in the eighth inning as the Chief had runners at first and second with one out. Strong got a strikeout for the second out and was replaced by Kevin Shackelford. Shackelford walked Easterling to load the bases and bring the potential tying run to the plate in the form of Geiger. Shackelford got the final out of the inning with a strikeout. A scoreless ninth inning allowed Shackelford to nail down his second save of the season. Game two of the series is Friday night at Time Warner Cable Field at Fox Cities Stadium. David Goforth (5-4, 5.42) is the scheduled starting pitcher for Wisconsin. Michael Jensen (7-3, 3.24) is set to start for the Chiefs. Game time is 7:05pm. The Amazing Spider-Man will be on hand to meet all the webheads and toss out a first pitch for the game. It is also a North Shore Bank Family night and children 12 and under eat free. Settle in after the game to watch a spectacular fireworks display. After the fireworks, children 14 and under may participate in Kids Run the Bases presented by Jernegan's Health Mart. If you can't make it out to the ballpark, tune in for the broadcast on AM1280, WNAM or timberrattlers.com starting with the Miller Lite Pregame Show at 6:45pm. Friday's game is also available to subscribers of MiLB.TV. WP: Chad Pierce (2-2) LP: Gerardo Concepcion (2-6) SAVE: Kevin Shackelford (2) TIME: 3:01 ATTN: 3,179 Wisconsin Box Score Lance Roenicke and Ben McMahan led the way with two hits each. McMahan knocked in three runs. Chadwin Stang, Mitch Haniger and McMahan all doubled for the TRats. Haniger was 1 for 2 and drew a pair of walks. Chad Pierce started for the Rattlers. He went 5 innings and gave up three runs. Michael Strong and Kevin Shackelford pitched the final four innings to preserve the victory. Wisconsin Play By Play Rattlers 4 run first inning Wisconsin Bottom of the 1st Lance Roenicke singles on a ground ball to right fielder Oliver Zapata. Brandon Macias singles on a bunt ground ball to first baseman Paul Hoilman. Lance Roenicke to 2nd. Mitch Haniger walks. Lance Roenicke to 3rd. Brandon Macias to 2nd. Gregory Hopkins pops out to shortstop Wes Darvill on the infield fly rule. Nick Ramirez singles on a soft line drive to left fielder Pin-Chieh Chen. Lance Roenicke scores. Brandon Macias scores. Mitch Haniger to 3rd. Nick Ramirez to 2nd. Throwing error by left fielder Pin-Chieh Chen. Ben McMahan singles on a line drive to left fielder Pin-Chieh Chen. Mitch Haniger scores. Nick Ramirez scores. Cameron Garfield grounds into a force out, first baseman Paul Hoilman to shortstop Wes Darvill. Ben McMahan out at 2nd. Cameron Garfield to 1st. Tyler Roberts pops out to shortstop Wes Darvill.

Per Adam McCalvy, The Brewers have claimed shortstop Hector Gomez off waivers from the Rockies and optioned him to Brevard County. Interesting move if he can stay healthy, certainly worth a look. Gomez was ranked as the Rockies #19 prospect by Baseball America coming in to this season. He's had a rough road as he had a son pass away in 2010 and has dealt with a ton of injuries including stress fractures in both legs, Tommy John surgery, and groin and back injuries. Here's hoping the best for the young man.

Wisconsin Timber Rattlers' win serves as Roenickes' reunion Written by Mike Woods Post-Crescent staff writer GRAND CHUTE — Good days have been harder to come by for Milwaukee Brewers manager Ron Roenicke this season. But you can count Wednesday as a very good day. Roenicke started the day in Cincinnati and saw his Brewers get a much-needed 8-4 win against the first-place Reds and avoid a three-game sweep. Then he got home, hopped in his car and drove to Time Warner Cable Field at Fox Cities Stadium and watched his son Lance go three-for-four and drive in two runs as the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers won their second straight with a 6-5 victory over Quad Cities in Midwest League play. “Oh, they were both great,” Ron Roenicke said of the two games. “We needed a win badly in Cincinnati, but it sure is fun coming and seeing Lance. I don’t get to see him play many games so it was fun.” And to see your son play well is fantastic for any father, no matter what your occupation. “That was great,” said Roenicke of Lance, who raised his average to .625 in his brief time with the Rattlers. “We heard him get one hit on the drive up here and then got to see him get a couple more.” For the Roenickes, being on the same field at the same time has been a rarity. “I think this is just the third game he’s seen me since high school,” said Lance, who along with Mitch Heniger delivered two-out, two-run singles in a six-run second inning. “He saw two games in college, both of those games this year, and then tonight. It was nice having him here, I wish I would have known he was there (in the stands).” Ron Roenicke may be here again today, as the Brewers have a day off. But it will be because of Lance Roenicke’s play that will get him on the lineup card. “The report is he grinds out some ABs, and he’s shown to do that in limited opportunities here,” said Rattlers manager Matt Erickson. “But I think I should throw him in there again and give him another opportunity. I think that would be a good manager’s move.” Lance Roenicke would love that opportunity and would love to play in front of his father again. “There’s a little more pressure just because I know he’s here,” said Lance, “but I’ve played in front of him before; football and basketball back in high school. I like when he comes around. It’s a good feeling having him here.” In part because for Lance, it rekindles some pleasant childhood memories and brings together a nice symmetry. “I think it’s fun for him to come down here and see me play because this is how I grew up,’’ said Lance. “I watched my dad coach in the minor leagues when I was young, and so now I’m here playing and he’s watching me. So it’s kind of cool.’’

Rattler Radio Nine after 9 Home games always include video highlights! 5. Garfield wasn’t the only Rattler with three hits tonight. Lance Roenicke had three, including the two-run single in the second inning. You may want to check the Post-Crescent Sports section in the morning. Mike Woods got a quote from Lance’s dad, who was tuned in on the radio for the first hit and got to the ballpark to see the next two hits. Lance’s dad, you know, Ron Roenicke.

Rattlers game story from Quad Cities site Timber Rattlers knock out Jenkins early, down Quad Cities Wisconsin gets early 6-0 lead and hangs on for 6-5, series-clinching win By Marco LaNave Quad Cities River Bandits right-handed starter Tyrell Jenkins was knocked out in the second inning Wednesday night in his first start since June 2, and the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers' six runs in that inning were enough to get a 6-5 home win at Time Warner Cable Field at Fox Cities Stadium in Grand Chute, Wis. River Bandits second baseman Colin Walsh hit his league-leading 16th home run in the third inning, and left fielder Anthony Garcia brought Quad Cities within one run with his ninth home run in the seventh. But both Walsh and Garcia grounded out as the final two batters against Timber Rattlers right-hander Tommy Toledo with the tying run in scoring position in the ninth inning. Toledo earned his fourth save for Wisconsin (2-4, 46-29). Jenkins (1-3) lasted just 1 2/3 innings after he came off the disabled list to make his first start since June 2. He was charged with three hits, five runs and four earned runs, while he walked two and struck out three. After a 1-2-3 first inning with two strikeouts, Jenkins allowed the first four Timber Rattlers to reach in the second. Center fielder Mitch Haniger hit a leadoff single to center field, and first baseman Nick Ramirez drove in Haniger with a double to right field. Catcher Cameron Garfield then brought in Ramirez with a double to left field. Down 2-0 with no one out, Jenkins walked shortstop Yadiel Rivera before striking out right fielder Max Walla and getting a pop out by second baseman Carlos George for the first two outs. Jenkins walked designated hitter Chadwin Stang to load the bases and was removed with a 2-0 deficit. Left-hander Jonathan Cornelius relieved Jenkins and allowed a two-run single to Timber Rattlers left fielder Lance Roenicke. Cornelius then fanned third baseman Brandon Macias, but the inning continued, because the ball got past catcher Juan Castillo, who was charged with a season-high four passed balls to increase his season total to a Midwest League-high 14. Haniger, the 10th batter of the inning, capitalized with his second single of the inning, which brought in two runs and extended the Wisconsin lead to 6-0. On the play, the River Bandits got the final out of the inning by catching Macias in a rundown. Quad Cities (3-3, 38-37) answered in the top of the third inning, when Walsh hit a three-run home run against Wisconsin right-hander Matt Miller (6-5), who lasted five innings and allowed four runs on six hits. The homer increased Walsh's league-leading RBI total to 61. Designated hitter Matt Williams brought Quad Cities within 6-4 with a fourth-inning RBI single to drive in shortstop Luis Mateo. Cornelius pitched four innings in relief, allowing eight hits but only a single unearned run while walking one batter and striking out five. Right-handers Travis Miller and Ethan Cole combined for 2 1/3 shutout innings. The River Bandits lost their first series in their last five, but they will try to rebound in their first home series of the second half, a three-game set against the Cedar Rapids Kernels beginning Thursday night at Modern Woodmen Park. Right-hander Sam Gaviglio (3-5) will oppose Kernels right-hander Austin Wood (3-6). UP NEXT: "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan will be at Modern Woodmen Park for Pro Wrestling Night Thursday, June 28, to kick off the next River Bandits home stand. Gates open at 5:30 p.m. for the 7 p.m. game against the Cedar Rapids Kernels. It's also a Barrel House Thirst-Day presented by Rock 104.9, the CW and the River Cities' Reader. Single-game tickets are on sale at the River Bandits box office at Modern Woodmen Park, by phone at 563-322-6348 (563-3-BANDIT) and online at http://www.riverbandits.com. Season ticket and mini-plan packages start at just seven games and begin at less than $50. Call a River Bandits account representative today to choose your seats and get the details of our various mini-plan packages.

Final: Quad Cities 5, Wisconsin 6 Rattlers hold on for second straight win By Chris Mehring / Wisconsin Timber Rattlers GRAND CHUTE, WI - The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers scored six runs in the second inning against the Quad Cities River Bandits on Wednesday night. Then, they held on for a 6-5 win at Time Warner Cable Field at Fox Cities Stadium. Lance Roenicke and Cameron Garfield paced the Wisconsin offense with three hits each. The win was the second straight for the Rattlers. Wisconsin (46-20 overall, 2-4 second half) sent ten men to the plate in the bottom of the second inning to grab a 6-0 lead. Nick Ramirez and Garfield started the scoring with back-to-back RBI doubles. The Rattlers had two on with two outs when River Bandits starting pitcher Tyrell Jenkins walked Chadwin Stang to load the bases. Quad Cities went to the bullpen for lefty Jonathan Cornelius. Roenicke welcomed Cornelius to the game with a two-run single to left and the Rattlers were up 4-0. Cornelius struck out Brandon Macias, but the inning continued as the ball rolled to the backstop and Macias reached first to reload the bases. Mitch Haniger made Quad Cities pay for that mistake with his second hit of the inning, a two-run single to pad Wisconsin's lead to 6-0. The River Bandits (38-37, 3-3) came back in the top of the third inning against Wisconsin starter Matt Miller. Colin Walsh hit his sixteenth home run of the season, a three-run shot, to cut the Rattlers lead in half. Quad Cities made it a 6-4 game in the top of the fourth inning on a two-out RBI single by Matt Williams. The Rattlers offense had several chances to add to their lead in the middle innings, but could not tally any insurance runs. Miller worked out of a jam with runners on second and third with one out in the fifth inning to hold the two run lead, but he was done for the night. Miller struck out five, but tossed over 100 pitches in five innings. He turned the game over to relief pitcher Tyler Cravy in the sixth. Anthony Garcia hit a solo homer in the seventh inning off Cravy to make the score 6-5. Then, Cravy retired the final five batters he faced to protect that one run lead into the ninth inning. Tommy Toledo entered the game for the top of the ninth. He allowed a one-out single and threw a wild pitch to put the tying run at second base with Walsh and Garcia due up. Toledo calmly closed the game by inducing a pair of groundouts to end the ballgame and pick up his fourth save. The Timber Rattlers begin a three-game series with the Peoria Chiefs on Thursday night. Fond du Lac native Chad Pierce (1-2, 3.73) is scheduled to make the start for Wisconsin. Gerardo Concepcion (2-5, 7.38) is set to start for Peoria. Game time is 7:05pm. Thursday night is Ultimate Tailgate Night at Time Warner Cable Field at Fox Cities Stadium. Mad Dog & Merrill and 95.9 KISS FM's Dayton Kane will host the pre-game tailgate party in front of the ballpark. Festivities include: BBQ sampling, beverage sampling with the Miller Girls, and contests for Ultimate Griller and Ultimate Tailgater. Plus, Cher-Make will be giving away a 3-piece BBQ Grill set to the first 1,000 fans. All fans can enjoy 16oz soda and beer for just $2 as part of Thirsty Thursday presented by Slugger's Sports Bar! After the game, those in attendance can take their ticket stub to Sluggers Sports Bar - located in Super Bowl on Northland Avenue - to win Miller Lite drinks and prizes. If you can't make it out to the ballpark, tune in for the broadcast on AM1280, WNAM or timberrattlers.com starting with the Miller Lite Pregame Show at 6:45. Subscribers to MiLB.TV may watch the game over the internet. Sports 32 will broadcast the game to Time Warner Cable subscribers, too. HOME RUNS: QC: Colin Walsh (16th, 2 on in 3rd inning off Matt Miller, 0 outs) Anthony Garcia (9th, 0 on in 7th inning off Tyler Cravy, 1 out) WP: Matt Miller (6-5) LP: Tyrell Jenkins (1-3) SAVE: Tommy Toledo (4) TIME: 3:03 ATTN: 4,128 Wisconsin Box Score The Rattlers jumped on River Bandits starter Tyrell Jenkins early, knocking out the Cardinals #6 prospect in the second inning. Cameron Garfield led the attack with a perfect 3 for 3 night at the plate. He doubled, scored a run and knocked in one and was also hit by a pitch. Lance Roenicke also contributed three hits and walk to go along with a pair of RBI. Mitch Haniger and Nick Ramirez each had two hits and Yadiel Rivera went 1 for 3 with a walk. Matt Miller gave up four runs in five innings, tossing 109 pitches in those five innings of work, but that was good enough to earn him his sixth win of the season. Tyler Cravy pitched three solid innings of relief, allowing just one run on a very long home run by Anthony Garcia. Tommy Toledo closed the door in the ninth for his fourth save. Wisconsin Play By Play The big six run 2nd inning for the Rattlers Wisconsin Bottom of the 2nd Mitch Haniger singles on a ground ball to center fielder Nick Martini. Nick Ramirez doubles (10) on a line drive to right fielder David Medina. Mitch Haniger scores. Cameron Garfield doubles (6) on a ground ball to left fielder Anthony Garcia. Nick Ramirez scores. With Yadiel Rivera batting, passed ball by Juan Castillo, Cameron Garfield to 3rd. Yadiel Rivera walks. Max Walla strikes out swinging. With Carlos George batting, wild pitch by Tyrell Jenkins, Yadiel Rivera to 2nd. Carlos George pops out to catcher Juan Castillo in foul territory. Chadwin Stang walks. Pitcher Change: Jonathan Cornelius replaces Tyrell Jenkins. Lance Roenicke singles on a line drive to left fielder Anthony Garcia. Cameron Garfield scores. Yadiel Rivera scores. Chadwin Stang to 2nd. Brandon Macias strikes out swinging. Passed ball by catcher Juan Castillo. Chadwin Stang to 3rd. Lance Roenicke to 2nd. Brandon Macias to 1st. Mitch Haniger singles on a line drive to left fielder Anthony Garcia. Chadwin Stang scores. Lance Roenicke scores. Brandon Macias out at 3rd on the throw, left fielder Anthony Garcia to catcher Juan Castillo to second baseman Colin Walsh to shortstop Luis Mateo.

Final: Quad Cities 2, Wisconsin 3 Rattlers end losing streak with one-run win By Chris Mehring / Wisconsin Timber Rattlers GRAND CHUTE, WI - It wasn't easy, but the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers ended their six game losing streak. The Rattlers edged the Quad Cities River Bandits 3-2 on Tuesday night at Time Warner Cable Field at Fox Cities Stadium. Chad Thompson pitched six strong innings and the Rattlers offense squeaked out just enough runs to defeat the Bandits. River Bandits starting pitcher Willy Paulino made his first start - after 21 relief appearances - of the season and it looked like it. Chadwin Stang singled to start the bottom of the first. Then, Paulino hit Brandon Macias and Ryan Haniger to load the bases with no outs. Nick Ramirez and Greg Hopkins drew back-to-back walks to force in two runs and give the Timber Rattlers (45-29 overall, 1-4 second half) a 2-0 lead. But, Paulino struck out the next two batters and got a force out to hold the Rattlers to a pair of first inning runs. Quad Cities (38-36, 3-2) struck back in the top of the second inning. David Medina hit a solo homer with one out and cut the Rattlers lead to 2-1. Thompson recovered after the homer and didn't allow another hit. The tall right-hander went six innings, walked two, and struck out eight. The eight strikeouts set a single game high as a professional for Thompson. The Rattlers hitters rewarded Thompson with an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth. Max Walla's two-out RBI single drove in Ben McMahan and put the Rattlers up 3-1 with Jacob Barnes coming on in relief. Barnes worked two scoreless innings before Tommy Toledo entered for the ninth. Toledo gave up a single to the leadoff hitter, but would get a 6-4-3 double play to bring the Rattlers one out from victory. But, it wasn't easy to slay the six-game losing streak. Juan Castillo singled and gave way to pinch runner Casey Rasmus. Toledo hit the next batter to put the tying run on base and bring Roberto De La Cruz to bat. The River Bandits first baseman lined a 1-0 pitch from Toledo high off the wall in left to score Rasmus. The throw went to third and De La Cruz, who held at first after the long single took second on that throw to move into scoring position with the go ahead run. But, Toledo ended the game - and the losing streak - by striking out Neal Pritchard. Rattlers pitchers combined for twelve strikeouts on the evening. The final game of the three game series between the Western Division rivals is Wednesday evening at 7:05pm. Matt Miller (5-5, 3.87) is the scheduled starting pitcher for the Timber Rattlers. Quad Cities had not named a starting pitcher, but it is believed to be Tyrell Jenkins (1-2, 4.74), who needs to be activated from the River Bandits disabled list before the game. Wednesday night is a 105.7, WAPL Bang for Your Buck Night with soda, hot dogs, and beer available for $1. Plus, Hardee's and Happy Star will be at the ballpark with t-shirt giveaways, coupons and more for Hardee's Night. If you can't make it to the ballpark, tune in for the broadcast on AM1280, WNAM or timberrattlers.com starting with the Miller Lite Pregame Show at 6:45pm. Wednesday's game is also available to MiLB.TV subscribers. HOME RUN: QC:<>br> David Medina (5th, 0 on in 2nd inning off Chad Thompson, 1 out) WP: Chad Thompson (3-1) LP: Willy Paulino (2-5) SAVE: Tommy Toledo (3) TIME: 2:21 ATTN: 1,987 Wisconsin Box Score The Rattlers managed only four hits, but that was enough to get it done. Nice outing from Chad Thompson who went six and only gave up one run while striking out eight. Jacob Barnes threw two scoreless innings of relief and new closer Tommy Toledo worked an eventful ninth to get the save. Brandon Macias went 1 for 2 with a walk, was hit by a pitch and scored a run. Greg Hopkins was 1 for 3 with a walk. Max Walla and Chadwin Stang had the other two hits for the Timber Rattlers. Wisconsin Play By Play The Rattlers took the lead in the first inning and wouldn't trail all game Wisconsin Bottom of the 1st Chadwin Stang singles on a line drive to center fielder Nick Martini. Brandon Macias hit by pitch. Chadwin Stang to 2nd. Mitch Haniger hit by pitch. Chadwin Stang to 3rd. Brandon Macias to 2nd. Nick Ramirez walks. Chadwin Stang scores. Brandon Macias to 3rd. Mitch Haniger to 2nd. Gregory Hopkins walks. Brandon Macias scores. Mitch Haniger to 3rd. Nick Ramirez to 2nd. Ben McMahan strikes out swinging. Cameron Garfield strikes out swinging. Max Walla grounds into a force out, third baseman Neal Pritchard to pitcher Willy Paulino. Nick Ramirez out at 3rd. Rattler Radio Nine after 9

Does anyone who follows the DSL squad know anything about Jorge Ortega? Nice little start by him today. 8 innings of three hit ball, struck out 11. Just turned 19 years old. Anything to get excited about here? *edit - I should have gone back and looked at previous link reports before asking, looks like he's strung a couple of pretty good appearances together to start the season. Even more impressive, he had zero walks. 30K/5BB for the season.

Rattler Radio Nine after 9

Final: Quad Cities 4, Wisconsin 1 Ratters get a rude welcome home from Bandits By Chris Mehring / Wisconsin Timber Rattlers GRAND CHUTE, WI - The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers were looking forward to some home cooking at Time Warner Cable Field at Fox Cities Stadium on Monday night. But, the Quad Cities River Bandits and Dail Villanueva spoiled the homecoming. The Bandits beat the Timber Rattlers 4-1 in Wisconsin's first home game since June 11. Villanueva was the main culprit as he struck out six over seven shutout innings. Quad Cities (38-35 overall, 3-1 second half) broke the scoreless tie in the fourth inning. But, they needed a couple of cracks at getting that first run. Anthony Garcia doubled with one out. David Medina followed with a sharp single to center. Garcia headed for the plate, but a strong throw from Mitch Haniger caught the River Bandits runner at home. Luis Mateo was next and he doubled off the wall in left field to drive in Medina with the first run of the game. Rattlers starting pitcher Mark Williams walked the first two batters in the top of the fifth inning. Then, Matt Williams hit a three-run home run to left and the River Bandits went up 4-0. Villanueva kept the Rattlers (44-29, 0-4) out of the hit column until the fifth inning. Chadwin Stang broke up the no-hitter with a two-out triple in the fifth. But, Stang was left stranded at third. Villanueva gave up a one out triple to Yadiel Rivera in the sixth and a two out double to Cameron Garfield in the seventh, but he ended each inning without allowing a run. In all, Wisconsin had a runner at third base four times in the game, but they could not get the key hit to score that runner. Cameron Garfield prevented the shutout with a two-out RBI single in the bottom of the ninth inning to drive in Mitch Haniger from second base. The loss was the sixth straight for the Timber Rattlers, Game two of the series is Tuesday night. Chad Thompson (2-1, 5.31) is the scheduled starting pitcher for the Timber Rattlers. Willy Paulino (2-4, 5.30) is set to start for the River Bandits. Game time is 7:05pm. The first in a series of four magnets from Lamers Bus Lines will be given away to the first 500 fans to attend this game. Timber Rattlers All-Star pitcher and Brewers prospect Drew Gagnon is on magnet #1. Plus, as part of WVBO, 103.9, American TV Tuesday one fan in attendance will win a 32" flat-screen TV from American TV of Appleton. If you can't make it to the game, tune in for the broadcast on AM1280, WNAM or timberrattlers.com starting with the Miller Lite Pregame Show at 6:45pm. Subscribers to MiLB.TV can watch the action, too. HOME RUN: QC: Matt Williams (3rd, 2 on in 5th inning off Mark Williams, 0 out) WP: Dail Villanueva (4-4) LP: Mark Williams (4-6) TIME: 2:29 ATTN: 1,765 Wisconsin Box Score Cameron Garfield went 2 for 4 for the Timber Rattlers with a double and the team's lone RBI. Yadiel Rivera and Chadwin Stang each had a triple and Mitch Haniger had the only other hit for the Rattlers. Ben McMahan had a couple of really hard hit outs, including one that he crushed to center that was caught with a leaping grab at the wall by the River Bandits center fielder. Haniger showed off a good arm to gun down a runner at the plate. Rafael Neda threw out the only Quad Cities runner who attempted to steal. Wisconsin was only 1 for 7 with runners in scoring position. Mark Williams started and gave up 4 runs in 4 1/3 innings. He breezed through the lineup the first time but then got hit pretty hard after that. Kevin Shackelford came on in relief and tossed 3 2/3 innings of perfect baseball, striking out three. Stephen Peterson worked a 1-2-3 ninth inning. Wisconsin Play By Play The Rattlers only run came in the ninth inning when Garfield knocked in Haniger Wisconsin Bottom of the 9th Mitch Haniger singles on a line drive to left fielder Anthony Garcia. Gregory Hopkins strikes out on foul tip. Ben McMahan grounds out softly, second baseman Luis Mateo to first baseman Roberto De La Cruz. Mitch Haniger to 2nd. Cameron Garfield singles on a ground ball to right fielder David Medina. Mitch Haniger scores. Offensive Substitution: Pinch runner Max Walla replaces Cameron Garfield. Chadwin Stang grounds out, pitcher Danny Miranda to first baseman Roberto De La Cruz.

Final: Wisconsin 4, Burlington 5 Rattlers drop one in Burlington By Chris Mehring / Wisconsin Timber Rattlers BURLINGTON, IA - The Burlington Bees completed a three-game sweep of the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers to open the second half of the Midwest League season. Burlington edged the Rattlers 5-4 on Sunday afternoon at Community Field. The Bees rallied from a 4-2 deficit with three runs in the bottom of the sixth inning and held on for the win. Max Muncy put the Bees (35-37 overall, 3-0 second half) in front with his first professional hit. Oakland's 2012 fifth round pick out of Baylor hit a two-run home run in the bottom of the second inning made t 2-0 in favor of Burlington. The Rattlers (44-28, 0-3) rallied for a run in the top of the second inning. Chadwin Stang doubled with one out. Lance Roenicke followed with a single to shallow left. Stang rounded third, but held. However, Roenicke rounded first base too far and drew a throw. But, the Bees had no one covering first base and Roenicke outran Chih-Fang Pan back to the first base bag as Stang broke for the plate to score the first Rattlers run. It was Stang and Roenicke who started a two-out rally in the top of the fifth to put Wisconsin in front for the first time of the afternoon. Stang drew a two-out walk against Bees starter Drew Granier on a 3-2 pitch. Roenicke followed with a base hit to left to put runners on the corners. Then, Brandon Macias dropped a drag bunt up the third base line for a single. The throw to first was wild and both Stang and Roenicke scored as Macias motored around to third base. Mitch Haniger followed with a single to left to send Macias home for a 4-2 lead. Goforth rebounded from his rough second inning and shut the Bees through the fifth inning. He allowed one hit - the homer by Muncy - walked four and struck out four. But, he was not involved in the decision. Chad Pierce relieved Goforth to start the bottom of the sixth inning and gave up singles to the first two batters he faced. Rashun Dixon was next and he doubled high off the wall in left field to drive in both runners. Muncy singled on the next pitch to score Dixon and give the Bees a 5-4 lead. Stang reached first on a bunt single with one out in the top of the seventh and stole second base, but he was left stranded when the inning ended. Burlington's bullpen shutdown the Rattlers over the final four innings of the game. Bees relievers extended their current scoreless streak to 18-1/3 innings with their work on Sunday. The Timber Rattlers begin a six-game homestand on Monday night when they return home to face the Quad Cities River Bandits. Mark Williams (4-5, 2.15) is the scheduled starting pitcher for Wisconsin. Dail Villanueva (3-4, 4.19) is scheduled to start for Quad Cities. Game time is 7:05pm. Monday is Peanut Free Night at Time Warner Cable Field at Fox Cities Stadium. No peanuts will be sold or be on the premises to allow fans with peanut allergies to attend the game. Monday is also US Cellular You Run the Show Night. Fans have selected many of the promotions that will occur during the game by voting on the Timber Rattlers facebook page. Fans voted to have the US Cellulatr drawstring backpack as the item that will be given away to the first 1,000 fans to enter stadium before the game. Additionally, the Timber Rattlers and Fox Cities Social have set up an interactive scavenger hunt during the game for a chance to win prizes. There will also be a designated meet-up area for fans to catch up with their social media friends. Follow the action for "You Run the Show Night" on Twitter through the hashtag #tratnation. It's a B104.7 Qdoba Q*Monday, too. Fans may receive a free ticket to this game or any Monday home game on the 2012 schedule when they purchase a lunch entrée at the Qdoba by the Fox River Mall on Monday. If you can't make it out to the ballpark on Monday, you may catch Timber Rattlers action on the radio, on the internet, or on TV. The radio broadcast is on AM1280, WNAM and timberrattlers.com starting with the Miller Lite Pregame Show at 6:45pm. If you subscribe to MiLB.TV, you can follow the video action. Sports32 will telecast the game to Time Warner Cable subscribers. HOME RUN: BUR: Max Muncy (1st, 1 on in 2nd off David Goforth, 0 out) WP: Chas Mye (2-0) LP: Chad Pierce (1-2) SAVE: Jeff Urlaub (1) TIME: 3:00 ATTN: 891 Wisconsin Box Score Chadwin Stang led the Rattlers offense with a 2 for 3 day. He doubled, drew a walk, stole his 13th base of the season and scored two runs. Lance Roenicke got his first two hits as a Timber Rattler, batting out of the leadoff spot. He scored a run but also struck out twice and was caught stealing. Brandon Macias was 1 for 3 with a walk. Mitch Haniger had a single and stole his first base. Wisconsin had seven total hits, but Stang's double was the only one that went for extra bases. They were going up against Drew Granier who was the starting pitcher for the Western Division in the Midwest League All-Star Game. David Goforth started and allowed two runs on just one hit over five innings. He struck out four, but also walked four. Chad Pierce came on in relief and gave up 3 runs in 2 2/3 innings. He also struggled with his control, walking four and giving up four hits. The damage could have been worse for Pierce as he loaded the bases in the eighth, but Mike Strong came in and struck out Bobby Crocker (Oakland's 10th best prospect according to Baseball America) to end the inning. Wisconsin Play By Play The Timber Rattlers took the lead with three runs in the fifth inning Wisconsin Top of the 5th Yadiel Rivera strikes out swinging. Tyler Roberts flies out to right fielder Eliezer Mesa. Chadwin Stang walks. Lance Roenicke singles on a line drive to left fielder Royce Consigli. Chadwin Stang to 3rd. Brandon Macias singles on a bunt ground ball to third baseman Ryan Pineda. Chadwin Stang scores. Lance Roenicke scores. Brandon Macias to 3rd. Throwing error by third baseman Ryan Pineda. Mitch Haniger singles on a ground ball to shortstop Sean Jamieson. Brandon Macias scores. With Nick Ramirez batting, Mitch Haniger steals (1) 2nd base, . Mitch Haniger advances to 3rd, on throwing error by catcher John Nester. Nick Ramirez strikes out swinging. But Burlington scored three in the sixth to re-take the lead Burlington Bottom of the 6th Pitcher Change: Chad Pierce replaces David Goforth. Chih Fang Pan singles on a line drive to left fielder Ben McMahan. Eliezer Mesa singles on a line drive to right fielder Chadwin Stang. Chih Fang Pan to 2nd. Rashun Dixon doubles (2) on a line drive to left fielder Ben McMahan. Chih Fang Pan scores. Eliezer Mesa scores. Maxwell Muncy singles on a line drive to left fielder Ben McMahan. Rashun Dixon scores. Royce Consigli strikes out swinging. Ryan Pineda strikes out swinging. John Nester called out on strikes.