The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers and South Bend Cubs combined for 22 runs, 26 hits, 17 walks, and four errors on Wednesday night at Four Winds Field. The Timber Rattlers were able to grab the lead in the middle innings and hold off a scrappy Cubs squad for a 14-8 win over South Bend. The win was Wisconsin’s fourth straight.
In game one of the series on Tuesday night, the game was scoreless until the seventh inning. On Tuesday night, both teams scored in the first inning and just kept putting runners on base. There was only one perfect inning in the game, the top of the eighth inning when Joe Nahas set down the Rattlers in order.
Wisconsin (4-1) took the lead with two runs in the top of the first. Dylan O’Rae started the game with a walk, stole second, and stole third. Luis Lara knocked in O’Rae with a single. Cubs starting pitcher Will Sanders committed a balk when he was unsuccessful on a third pickoff attempt to get Lara at first base. Then, Lara took third on a grounder. Mike Boeve drove in Lara with a sacrifice fly for the 2-0 lead.
South Bend (1-4) answered in the bottom of the first with an unearned run against Rattlers starter Matt Manfredi. Brett Bateman was at second with Jefferson Rojas at the plate. Rattlers shortstop Gregory Barrios made a nice play on a Rojas grounder up the middle, but he rushed his throw to first and it was wild to allow Bateman to score.
The Rattlers added to their lead in the third inning, and it was O’Rae who started the inning with another lead-off walk. Sanders hit Lara and that was the end of the night for the South Bend starter. Cub reliever Tyler Santana almost got out of the inning but gave up a two-out, RBI single to Boeve. O’Rae scored for the 3-1 lead.
Manfredi struck out the first two Cubs batters he faced in the bottom of the fourth inning but could not find the third out. A walk and a single with a close play at third with the ball popping away from Boeve allowed South Bend to have runners at second and third. Then, Ethan Hearn singled to left to score both runners and the game was tied 3-3. Aaron Rund entered the game to replace Manfredi and got the final out.
The game got very offensive after that. Wisconsin sent eight men to the plate in the fifth inning to score four runs. The Cubs got a run off Rund in their half of the fifth before the Rattlers sent ten men to the plate in the sixth inning. Then, South Bend got three runs in the bottom of the sixth. When the dust cleared, the Rattlers lead was 11-7.
In the fifth inning, Gregory Barrios put the Rattlers in front with an RBI double. Jadher Areinamo made it 5-3 with an RBI double. An error let in the third run and Ram?n Rodríguez capped the inning with a sacrifice fly.
Pedro Ramirez singled in the run for the Cubs in the bottom of the fifth inning. However, Rund stopped the Cubs rally by getting an inning-ending double play.
Jheremy Vargas cracked the first Wisconsin home run of the season when he started the top of the sixth. Jesús Chirinos singled with the bases loaded and the infield in to get two more runs home for the Rattlers. Rodríguez again capped the scoring in the inning for the Rattlers with an RBI single and an 11-4 lead.
The Cubs loaded the bases with two walks and a single against Tate Kuehner, the Rattlers third pitcher of the night. Jefferson Rojas tightened up the score with a two-out, three-run triple.
Wisconsin added some insurance in the top of the ninth inning without the benefit of a hit. Three walks by South Bend reliever Angel Gonzalez loaded the bases with no outs. Lara drove in a run with a sacrifice fly. A throwing error let the second run of the inning score. Barrios got the final Wisconsin run of the night home with another sacrifice fly.
South Bend tallied one final run on a passed ball in the bottom of the ninth to account for the final score. The Cubs went 5-for-20 with runners in scoring position.
It took Wisconsin just five games to reach double digits in runs this season. The Rattlers first time to get to ten or more runs in 2023 was a 10-6 win over South Bend at home on May 12, their thirtieth game of the season.
Wisconsin hitters extended several streaks during Wednesday’s game. Areinamo has at least one RBI in four straight games. Boeve and O’Rae have reached base in all five games played this season. Lara, O’Rae, and Areinamo all have four-game hitting streaks.
O’Rae went 1-for-3 with three walks with three stolen bases and four runs scored. Lara was 2-for-2 and reached base five times with two singles, a walk, and two hit batsmen. Lara, Barrios, Boeve, and Chirinos each had two hits and two RBI in the victory.
Game three of the series is scheduled for Thursday night at Four Winds Field. Will Rudy is the scheduled starting pitcher for the Timber Rattlers and is set to make his 2024 debut. The Cubs have named Sam Armstrong (0-0, 0.00) as their starting pitcher. Game time is 6:05pm CDT.
