Late-Inning Heroics Carry Chiefs over Timber Rattlers

Site: Appleton, Wis. (Fox Cities Stadium)

Score: Peoria Chiefs- 12, Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, 9

Records: Peoria Chiefs (12-17), Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (14-15)

Next Chiefs Game: Sunday, June 6 -- at Wisconsin (Appleton, Wis.), 1:05 p.m.

Appleton, Wis. -- In a wild see-saw affair, the Peoria Chiefs pounded out 17 total hits to beat the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers 12-9 on Saturday.

Wisconsin got on the board in the bottom of the first inning after a single from Thomas Dillard and a double from Je’Von Ward. Peoria answered back in the top of the second inning after a bases-loaded walk from Brendan Donovan, scoring Leandro Cedeno.

A lead-off home run by Chandler Redmond, his fifth of the year, set the tone for the Chiefs in the top of the third inning. Peoria would load the bases again via two walks from Zade Richardson and Tyler Reichenborn and a base hit from Leandro Cedeno. An RBI single from Jhon Torres scored Richardson and Cedeno to give the Chiefs a 4-2 lead. Donovan would pad the Chiefs lead at 5-2 with a RBI groundout that brought Reichenborn across the plate.

Wisconsin answered with a three-run inning in the bottom half of the frame to tie the game at 5-5. They would re-take the lead in the fourth inning off a RBI groundout by Garrett Mitchell. The back-and-forth action would continue in the fifth inning. Two singles by Reichenborn and Torres and a walk from Donovan loaded the bases for the Chiefs yet again. Peoria would tie the game 6-6 via a Pedro Pages hit by pitch, scoring Reichenborn. The Timber Rattlers responded by scoring three runs in the bottom half of the frame to re-capture the lead at 9-6.

After a lead-off walk from Redmond to begin the sixth inning, Richardson followed with a two-run homer to bring the Chiefs back to within a run. It was his fourth of the season and third in the last two days. The next two innings featured scoreless action. Jacob Schlesener retired six out of the next seven Wisconsin batters to keep the Chiefs in the ballgame. Five of the outs came from strikeouts.

Facing their last three outs, Brendan Donovan began the ninth inning with a lead-off single to right field. Pedro Pages followed with a base hit of his own, advancing Donovan to second base. Brady Whalen walked to load the bases. The Chiefs tied the ballgame at 9-all off a single from Moises Castillo, scoring Donovan. An RBI fielder's-choice by Zade Richardson scored Pages from third, giving Peoria a 10-9 advantage. The lead would be extended to 12-9 after a two two-run double by Leandro Cedeno, scoring Castillo and Richardson.

In the bottom half of the ninth, Carlos Rodriguez reached with two outs left in the inning. But Schlesener was able to record his first save of the season by striking out Je’Von Ward and Gabriel Garcia and by forcing a groundout to Brendan Donovan.

The Chiefs will go for the series victory tomorrow in the finale of their current 12-game road trip. First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 pm.

Single Game Ticket Information

June single game tickets are now on sale! Tickets can be purchased online or at the box office Monday-Thursday from 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. and on Friday’s from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. The box office will be closed for lunch daily between 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Tickets for July, August and September will be available at a later date

The Peoria Chiefs are a locally owned and operated and play their games at Dozer Park. The Chiefs are a committed community asset and premier entertainment venue for families and individuals in Central Illinois.