The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers fell behind the Cedar Rapids Kernels early on Thursday night at Neuroscience Group Field at Fox Cities Stadium. The Rattlers fought back to within a run, but their comeback, like the final flyball to right field fell just short as Cedar Rapids topped the Rattlers 6-5.
The Kernels (6-5) cracked four hits and scored twice in the first inning. Luke Keaschall, Gabriel Gonzalez, and Rubel Cespedes had three straight singles against Rattlers starting pitcher Will Rudy to start the game with the single by Cespedes scoring Gonzalez. Rudy got the next batter to ground into a 6-4-3 double play, but Jay Harry singled in Gonzalez for the 2-0 lead.
Wisconsin (7-5) answered in the bottom of the first inning. Dylan O’Rae doubled to start the inning. Mike Boeve and Gregory Barrios had consecutive two-out, RBI doubles to tie the game.
The first two hitters reached for Cedar Rapids in the top of the second inning. Rudy retired the next two batters on a popup and a strikeout. However, he could not escape the inning as Keaschall lined a double off the wall in left to score two runs for a 4-2 advantage.
Cespedes started the top of the third with a double. Ricardo Olivar followed with a two-run home run to left and the Kernels were up 6-2.
The Timber Rattlers chipped away at their deficit with two runs in the fourth and a run in the seventh. In the fourth, Boeve singled and Barrios doubled to put runners on second and third with no outs. Matt Wood drove in Boeve and moved Barrios to third with a grounder to the right side of the infield. Jadher Areinamo scored Barrios with a sacrifice fly and the Rattlers were down by two.
Mark Manfredi, the Wisconsin reliever mowed down the Kernels over four innings. The left-hander entered the game in the fifth and struck out the first six batters he faced. Manfredi worked through the eighth inning, struck out eight, and allowed just a two-out single in the top of the eighth.
By that time, Wisconsin have cut their deficit to a single run. O’Rae doubled to open the Rattlers seventh and went to third on wild pitch by Kernels reliever Gabriel Yanez.. Luis Lara got O’Rae home with a sacrifice fly.
Boeve made things interesting with a two-out single in the bottom of the seventh. Yanez balked Boeve to second with the tying run but got the final out to hold the lead. Boeve was on base four times in four plate appearances on Thursday night with a double, two singles, and a walk. He scored two runs and knocked in one to move his average to .528 and his on base percentage to .620 in twelve games this season.
Ricardo Velez came out of the Kernels bullpen to get the final three outs in the bottom of the ninth. He retired the first two batters. Lara, the last chance for the Rattlers, fell behind 0-2 before launching a towering fly to deep right to give the fans hope for a late comeback. However, the ball died short of the wall by the auxiliary scoreboard and landed in the glove of Gabriel Gonzalez for the final out of the game.
Game four of the series is scheduled for Friday night. Brett Wichrowski (0-1, 1.29) is the scheduled starting pitcher for the Timber Rattlers. Cedar Rapids had not announced a starting pitcher for tomorrow. Game time is 6:40pm.
