PEORIA, IL - The Peoria Chiefs defeated the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers 6-2 on Friday night at Dozer Park. Yariel Gonzalez homered and drove in three runs to pace the Chiefs. Wisconsin had chances to stage a comeback, but could not get the key hit in the right situation.Peoria (6-6) pelted
PEORIA, IL - The Peoria Chiefs defeated the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers 6-2 on Friday night at Dozer Park. Yariel Gonzalez homered and drove in three runs to pace the Chiefs. Wisconsin had chances to stage a comeback, but could not get the key hit in the right situation.
Peoria (6-6) pelted the Timber Rattlers with three home runs in the first two innings to take a 6-0 lead.
Irving Lopez reached base on an error with one out in the bottom of the first inning and Yariel Gonzalez followed with a home run off Wisconsin starter Dylan File. Gonzalez had also homered off File in game one of Sunday's doubleheader between the teams at Dozer Park.
Dylan Carlson hit a lead-off home run in the second inning to make it 3-0. File recorded the first out, but walked Nick Plummer and gave up a two-run home run to Edwin Figuera. Later in the second, Jonatan Machado singled and stole second. Gonzalez drove in Machado and the Chiefs were up 6-0.
The Timber Rattlers (3-11) loaded the bases with one out in the top of the third inning against Chiefs starter Johan Oviedo. Payton Henry drew a walk, Tristen Lutz singled, and Gabriel Garcia drew another walk, the fourth walk issued by Oviedo in the game. But, the next two Rattler batters struck out and the bases were left loaded.
Oviedo went six innings, allowed three hits, walked five and struck out eight while protecting that 6-0 lead.
The Wisconsin offense got going in the top of the eighth against the Peoria bullpen. Tristen Lutz singled and took second on an error to start the frame. Gabriel Garcia was next and doubled to left-center to send Lutz home. Joantgel Segovia singled with one out to move Garcia to third. Pat McInerney was next and he ripped a single to left to drive in Garcia and knock reliever Kodi Whitley out of the game.
Cory Malcom, who saved last Friday's game between the teams at Dozer Park, walked the first batter he faced to load the bases and bring the tying run to the plate with one out. But, Malcom regrouped and got a strikeout and a tapper back to the mound to end the inning with three Rattlers on base.
Lutz started a last-ditch rally for the Rattlers in the top of the ninth with a one-out double. Lutz had entered Friday's game 2-for-36 on the season, but the double was his third hit of the game. Garcia followed with a walk the Chiefs went to the bullpen again.
Bryan Dobzanski retired the final two batters on the game on a strikeout and a tapper back to the mound to close out Peoria's win.
Wisconsin hitters were 3-for-10 with runners in scoring position, stranded eleven runners, and struck out 15 times as they dropped their seventh straight game.
Game two of the series is set for Saturday night at 6:30pm. Christian Taugner (0-1, 4.15) is scheduled to start for the Timber Rattlers. Evan Guillory (0-1, 3.48) has been named the starter for the Chiefs. Game time is 6:30pm. The radio broadcast is on AM1280, WNAM starting with the Potawatomi Hotel & Casino Pregame Show at 6:10pm. The broadcast is also available on the Tune In and IHeart Radio apps. Subscribers to MiLB.tv can watch the game via the Chiefs feed over the internet.
