Bees Take Game One From Rattlers in Extra Innings

BURLINGTON, IA - Harrison Wenson ended game one of Sunday's doubleheader at Community Field with an RBI single in the eighth inning to send the Burlington Bees to a 7-6 win over the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers.
Neither team had much going early, but a sudden rain shower forced a 12-minute delay with one out and a 2-0 count on Brent Díaz in the top of the third.

Bees starting pitcher Kyle Tyler struggled with his control after the game restarted as he walked Díaz and Gabriel García. Brice Turang and Jesús Lujano followed with RBI singles to give Wisconsin (18-21) a 2-0 lead. Later in the inning, David Fry singled to drive in the third run of the inning.

Burlington (25-17) responded with three runs of their own in the bottom of the third against Rattlers starter Scott Sunitsch. Justin Jones started the inning with a single. Kevin Arias followed with a triple to score Jones. Then, Kevin Maitan had a sacrifice fly to right to get Arias home. 

Sunitsch got the second out, but hit Nonie Williams with a pitch to extend the inning. The count went to 3-2 on Spencer Griffin, the next hitter for the Bees, and Sunitsch elected to throw to first. However, he stopped on the pickoff throw when he realized no one was covering the bag. That balk allowed Williams to take second base. That cost Sunitsch and the Rattlers as Griffin lined the next pitch to left to drive in Williams to tie the score.

Díaz put the Rattlers back in front in the top of the fourth when he lined a three-run home run to right. His first homer of the season gave the Rattlers a 6-3 lead.

In the bottom of the fourth, Sunitsch hit the lead-off batter and walked a hitter with one out. He struck out Arias for the second out. Kevin Maitan was next and his line drive to right just stayed fair and just cleared the wall for a three-run home run to tie the score 6-6.

Wisconsin got doubles from Díaz in the sixth and Fry in the seventh, but couldn't push them across the plate.

Robbie Hitt entered from the Wisconsin bullpen for Sunitsch to start the sixth inning and retired the side in order in the sixth and seventh to send the game to extra innings.
In the top of the eighth, Wisconsin started the frame with Chad McClanahan at second base, but he ended the inning at third base.

In the bottom of the eighth, Burlington started the inning with Jordyn Adams at second base. A poor sacrifice bunt by Williams resulted in Adams being retired on the bases. But, the Rattlers could not escape. Griffin reached on an infield single. Then, Wenson smacked a single to left-center to drive in the winning run.

The Bees also beat the Rattlers on a walk-off single in extra innings on Thursday night when they won 5-4 in ten innings. Burlington is now 6-1 in extra innings this season. The Rattlers are 1-4 in extra innings in 2019.