(TIMBER RATTLERS) GRAND CHUTE, WI – The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers tried but could not dig out of an 8-1 hole as they fell 8-4 to the Lansing Lugnuts Friday afternoon at Neuroscience Group Field in the day game of the split doubleheader between the teams.
Lansing (8-5) sent six batters to the plate and scored twice in the top of the first inning against Brandon Woodruff. Rodney Green Jr started the game with a double and Tommy White walked. Nate Nankil singled with one out to drive in Green with the first run of the game.
A walk by Woodruff loaded the bases for TJ Schofield-Sam, who hit a line drive at shortstop Eduardo Garcia. Garcia dropped the liner and got a force play at second. However, Nankil, the runner at second, stayed in a rundown between second and third long enough for White to score before the final out was recorded.
The Lugnuts added to their lead in the third inning. White doubled to start the inning. He would score on a sacrifice fly by Schofield-Sam.
Woodruff would work four innings in the game. He walked three, struck out three, and allowed three runs on six hits over 68 pitches with 44 strikes.
The Timber Rattlers (4-9) got on the scoreboard in the bottom of the fourth. Eduardo Garcia doubled to start the inning, moved to third on a single by Blake Burke, and scored on a sacrifice fly by Juan Baez.
That was it for the Rattlers against Lansing starting pitcher Gage Jump, who allowed three hits, walked two, and struck out six over 5-1/3 innings.
Jump was able to leave the game with a bigger lead as his hitters scored a run on a two-out single by Jarred Dickey in the top of the fifth, and two more runs in the sixth on an RBI single by White and an RBI double by Cole Conn.
In the top of the seventh, Lansing tacked on two more two-out runs with a two-out double by Sahid Valenzuela to make the score 8-1.
Wisconsin rallied in their last at bat of the seven-inning game thanks to a pair of walks and an RBI single by Yhoswar Garcia scored a run and drove reliever Tom Reisinger from the game.
Jadher Areinamo greeted reliever Jake Christianson to the game with a double to left to score another run for the Rattlers. Eduardo Garcia knocked in the final run of the inning with a grounder to short and that was as close as the Rattlers would get.
Areinamo’s double in his last at bat moved his hitting streak to eight games. Yhoswar Garcia had two hits for the only multi-hit game by a Rattler.
Lansing clinched the series win in the six-game set with their victory in the day game of the split doubleheader. It was also their fifth win in a row.
Game 2 suspended: The nightcap of Friday’s split doubleheader between the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers and Lansing Lugnuts was suspended with one out in the top of the fifth inning at Neuroscience Group Field. Lansing scored three runs in the top of the fourth inning to erase a 2-0 Wisconsin advantage.
Friday’s game will restart Saturday afternoon at 1:10pm. The regularly scheduled game on Saturday will be a seven-inning contest and start approximately thirty minutes after the conclusion of the suspended game.
