CEDAR RAPIDS, IA - An early lead was all that Luis Rijo needed to beat the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers on Thursday night at Perfect Game Field. The Cedar Rapids Kernels scored four runs in the first inning and Rijo cruised through seven innings on the way to a 6-1 victory.
CEDAR RAPIDS, IA - An early lead was all that Luis Rijo needed to beat the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers on Thursday night at Perfect Game Field. The Cedar Rapids Kernels scored four runs in the first inning and Rijo cruised through seven innings on the way to a 6-1 victory.
Cedar Rapids (58-44 overall, 19-13 second half) broke in front with four runs in the first inning. Spencer Steer started the inning with a single. Gabe Snyder singled with one out to put runners on the corners. Trevor Casanova was next and he singled to right to score Steer. Wander Javier followed with a towering home run to left to clear the bases and put the Kernels up 4-0.
Wisconsin (49-52, 18-14) got on the scoreboard in the top of the third inning. Yeison Coca tripled with one out. Leugim Castillo got Coca home with a grounder to second.
The Rattlers had a chance to chip away at the deficit in the top of the fourth when David Fry lined a double to the gap in left-center to start the frame. The double was the 35th of the season for Fry, but he was left stranded at second as the next three Wisconsin hitters were retired.
The Kernels loaded the bases with no outs in the bottom of the fourth inning on a double, a walk, and an error by starting pitcher Reese Olson on a potential double play ball. Olson got the first out of the inning with a strikeouts, but left the game.
Left-handed Wilfred Salaman was called on to face the left-handed Snyder in a tough spot. Snyder sent a fly ball to deep center, but the ball was dropped by Jesús Lujano. That allowed one run to score and the Kernels to leave the bases loaded with one out. Casanova followed with a sacrifice fly to right to score the second unearned run of the inning and the Kernels had a 6-1 lead.
The Timber Rattlers never threatened to score against Rijo. He set down nine batters in a row after the double by Fry in the fourth inning and closed out his night with a strikeout in the seventh inning, his eighth strikeout against no walks in the game.
Freisis Adames pitched three scoreless, hitless innings out of the Wisconsin bullpen, but it was not as easy as it sounds. Adames walked four, including three straight with one out in the eighth inning, but managed to hold the Kernels off the scoreboard while he was in the game.
The loss was the third straight for the Timber Rattlers as they dropped to three games under .500. Wisconsin had won five in a row to get to 49-49 on the season prior to the start of their current losing streak.
The Timber Rattlers and Kernels conclude their three-game series at Perfect Game Field on Friday night. Scotty Sunitsch (7-10, 4.76) is the scheduled starting pitcher for Wisconsin. Cedar Rapids is set to send Andrew Cabezas (4-5, 3.54) to the mound. Game time is 6:35pm. The radio broadcast is on AM1280, WNAM and the TuneIn Radio app starting with the Papa John's Pizza Pregame Show at 6:15pm. MiLB.tv subscribers can watch the game over the internet.
