Bandits’ Bats by Woodruff, Big Leaguers in First Half Finale

Appleton, Wisconsin – The Quad Cities River Bandits totaled just four hits and one run on Thursday, the final night of the Midwest League first half, as they fell to the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers 3-1 at Neuroscience Group Field at Fox Cities Stadium.

Making his second Double-AA rehab start of the season, Quad Cities’ right-hander Zach Haake allowed just one base runner in his 3.0-inning start and went toe-to-toe with Brewers’ ace Brandon Woodruff, who stymied the Bandits with 4.0 perfect innings to start his night.

Wisconsin’s offense was the first to break through and did so against newly entered Caden Monke who allowed back-to-back singles in the fourth before Joe Gray Jr. brought home Mike Brosseau with a sacrifice fly.

The next batter, Darrien Miller, then took the southpaw deep for a two-run shot and a 3-0 Rattlers’ lead.

In the top of the fifth, Quad Cities got into both the hit and run columns for the first time, as Kale Emshoff took Woodruff’s first pitch of the inning to dead-center field for a solo blast, his team-leading tenth of the season.

Quad Cities worked two more base runners against the Wisconsin right-hander in the frame, but Woodruff struck out Rubendy Jaquez to strand the tying runs on base and notch his seventh strikeout.

Monke settled down over his next two frames and stranded a pair of runners over his next two frames, before handing the ball to Harrison Beethe for the seventh.

While Beethe and later Kasey Kalich would keep Wisconsin off the board for the remainder of the game, Quad Cities’ bats didn’t generate another base runner until the eighth, when James Meeker would strand two men in scoring position, including a leadoff double by Juan Carlos Negret.

Emshoff helped bring the game-tying run to the plate against Meeker in the ninth with a one-out double, but the right-hander got Saul Garza to ground out and Morgan McCullough to fly out to end the game.

Woodruff (1-0) earned the win for Wisconsin, allowing one run and three base runners in 5.0 innings, while Monke (0-3) was tagged for all three T-Rats’ runs on five hits over 3.0 frames.

The Bandits will look to even the six-game series at two games each on Friday, as they send Charlie Neuweiler (4-5, 5.19) to the hill against Wisconsin’s Justin Jarvis (5-3, 4.04). First pitch at Fox Cities Stadium is set for 6:40pm.