Snappers smack Rattlers on Sunday in Beloit
Miguel Sano hit a solo homer to start the Beloit half of the second inning. The home run, an opposite field blast to right-center, was his 22nd of the season. Sano leads the Midwest League in that category.
Rattlers starting pitcher Chad Pierce retired the first two batters he faced in the bottom of the third inning. Then, Beloit (59-53 overall, 20-22 second half) would load the bases on two singles and a walk. An error on a ground ball off the bat of Kennys Vargas allowed two runs to score and the Snappers to take a 3-0 lead.
Wisconsin (65-46, 21-21) got on the board in the top of the fourth inning. Cameron Garfield walked and went to second on a wild pitch. Ben McMahan's fly ball to center was lost in the sun by Williams and Garfield took third on the play. Mike Garza's sacrifice fly got Garfield home for the run to pull within 3-1.
The first three Beloit batters to hit in the bottom of the fourth bunted. Wang Wei Lin bunted for a hit. Jairo Rodriguez attempted to bunt Lin into scoring position, but reached on a hit when his popped up bunt bounced away from Pierce, who made a diving attempt at a catch. Tyler Grimes completed the streak of bunts when his foul bunt was run down by Garfield behind home plate for the first out of the inning. But, Pierce would hit the next batter to load the bases.
Williams made up for his miscue in the field in the top of the inning by hitting a high fly ball down the right field line that carried over the wall for a grand slam and a 7-1 lead for Beloit.
Both offenses were silent until late in the game after that home run. Beloit scored a run on a wild pitch in the bottom of the eighth inning to go up 8-1.
Nick Ramirez launched a solo homer with two out in the top of the ninth for Wisconsin's first hit since McMahan's fourth inning single. The home run was the fourteenth of the season for Ramirez.
Beloit starting pitcher David Hurlbut allowed one run on two hits with five strikeouts over six innings for his fifth win of the season.
Each team has won a game in the first two played of the four game series.
Game three of the series is Monday night at Pohlman Field. David Goforth (8-5, 4.67) is the scheduled starting pitcher for the Timber Rattlers. Taylor Rogers (0-1, 7.00) is set to start for the Snappers. Game time is 7:00pm. Tune in for the radio broadcast on AM1280, WNAM starting with the Miller Lite Pregame Show at 6:40pm.
HOME RUNS:
WIS:
Nick Ramirez (14th, 0 on in 9th inning off Mason Melotakis, 2 out)
BEL:
Miguel Sano (22nd, 0 on in 3rd inning off Chad Pierce, 0 out)
JD Williams (3rd, 3 on in 4th inning off Chad Pierce, 1 out)
WP: David Hurlbut (5-5)
LP: Chad Pierce (5-4)
TIME: 2:26
ATTN: 2,430