South Bend’s Comeback Attempt Falls Short

Box Score

WP: Brady Schanuel (2-0, 5.40 ERA)
LP: Samuel Reyes (3-3, 4.62 ERA)

Each team ended up with runners on second and third in the first inning, but with different results. The Cubs stranded their two fasted runners in Delvin Zinn and DJ Artis, but the Timber Rattlers had other plans. A Je’Von Ward ground out scored the first run of the game for Wisconsin, but two batters later is when the damage got done. Joe Gray Jr. got the swing away on 3-0 and belted a pitch to straightaway center to increase the Rattlers lead to 3-0.

Anything Gray could do, Dean Nevarez could do better. In his second game in the batting order for South Bend, Nevarez sent his second home run as a Cub over the centerfield wall to bring South Bend within one run in the second inning. Wisconsin got one right back in the first at-bat of the bottom half. Yeison Coca hit his first home run of the season into the Wisconsin bullpen to make it 4-2 Timber Rattlers. Korry Howell added a two-run shot before the inning was over but South Bend struck right back. Ahead in the count in the top of the third, Nelson Velazquez pulled a double down the left field line that scored DJ Artis easily, and Tyler Durna came motoring around third, legging it out to cut the lead in half. The two-RBI double from Velazquez made it 6-4 in the top third. He would score two batters later on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Ryan Reynolds.

South Bend tied the game up in the sixth, with three of the first four batters reaching base, and a game-tying one-out single by Josue Huma evened things up at six runs apiece. With two outs, Freisis Adames threw a wild pitch and Yonathan Perlaza took advantage, scoring from third to give South Bend their first lead of the ballgame 7-6.

And Perlaza wasn’t done.

After scoring the winning run the last time he reached base, Perlaza’s third hit of the ballgame was a two-run blast. He took the first pitch he saw in the seventh to triple South Bend’s lead. Into the seventh inning stretch the Cubs led 9-6.

In the eighth inning, trouble came a-knocking, as Samuel Reyes walked Chad McClanahan with the bases loaded to make it 9-7. That was the end of the night for Reyes, but not the Timber Rattlers. In a wild sequence, an errant throw from Josue Huma towards Delvin Zinn at second sailed into the outfield on a fielder’s choice and three runs scored for Wisconsin to give them the lead back at 10-9. The next two batters, David Hamilton and Korry Howell, would single in runs to extend the Rattler lead to 12-9. Two more batters reached base before Carlos Rodriguez hit a double off the left field wall. He was inches away from a grand slam, but the two-run double sent two more Wisconsin baserunners across the plate.

After the eighth, Wisconsin had stormed back with eight runs and held a 14-9 lead going into the final frame. Brady Schanuel shut down the Cubs in the ninth, with South Bend going down 1-2-3 to end the game.

Rowan Wick threw his third rehab appearance, and dominated again. He allowed one single and struck out two of the four batters he faced. Wick now has seven strikeouts in three rehab innings with South Bend. Dalton Stambaugh also threw a scoreless outing out of the bullpen, allowing one hit and striking out five in four innings of work.

Yonathan Perlaza (3-4, HR, 3 R, 2 RBI) shined on the offensive end, slugging his seventh homer of the season and scoring the go-ahead run in the seventh. Josue Huma also chipped in a multi-hit game, going 2-4 with an RBI single.

Next up: Max Bain (2-5, 6.66 ERA) vs. Victor Castaneda (2-4, 3.54 ERA). Max Bain takes the mound tomorrow night in a decisive game five of the series. The last time against the Timber Rattlers, Bain struck out a career-high ten batters. He looks to replicate that career-best performance with first pitch at 7:35 Saturday night.