Neal steals the show in 10-4 Nuts romp

LANSING, Mich. - Right fielder D.J. Neal went 3-for-3 with a two-run homer, drew two walks, stole two bases and scored four runs, and the Lansing Lugnuts (12-14) avoided a three-game sweep with an easy 10-4 win over the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (12-13) on Thursday night at Cooley Law School Stadium.

The victory ended a four-game losing streak for the Lugnuts, who scored in six of their eight at-bats, including every inning from the fourth onward.
 

Neal opened the scoring in the second inning, lining a one-out single to right field off Wisconsin starter Adam Hill (Loss, 2-2), stealing second and taking third on a throwing error by catcher David Fry, and coming home on a Jake Brodt RBI single for a 1-0 Lansing lead.

After the Timber Rattlers tied the score in the top of the fourth on Connor McVey's first home run of the year, it was Neal who broke the tie with a two-run blast to left-center in the bottom of the fourth - his third home run of the year - and the Lugnuts were on their way.

The Nuts scored three runs in total in the fourth, one in the fifth on an Otto Lopez sacrifice fly, one in the sixth on Hagen Danner 's second RBI single of the night, three in the seventh capped by a Johnny Aiello two-run single, and one in the eighth on a pair of Timber Rattlers errors.

The offense benefitted right-hander Joey Murray (Win, 3-1), who gave up two runs on five hits in six innings while striking out seven, giving him a league-leading 40 strikeouts.

Marcus Reyes , Sean Rackoski and Joey Pulido pitched an inning apiece in relief to finish the victory, with Rackoski and Pulido firing scoreless frames.

The Lugnuts now become the Lansing Locos for a Copa de la Diversión three-game series against the Beloit Snappers, running from Friday through Sunday at Cooley Law School Stadium.

Friday is Education Night with college booths, trade booths, player autographs and a meet and greet, and postgame LAFCU Fireworks. Gates open at 6:00 p.m. with first pitch at 7:05 p.m. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit lansinglugnuts.com or call (517) 485-4500.
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