Quad Cities Shuts Down Timber Rattlers

GRAND CHUTE, WI - The Quad Cities River Bandits continued their mastery over the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers this season with an 8-0 victory at Neuroscience Group Field at Fox Cities Stadium. Quad Cities is 10-3 in thirteen games against the Timber Rattlers this season.

Zach Biermann, who played high school baseball for West Bend East before going to college at Coastal Carolina, put the River Bandits (70-44 overall, 27-21 second half) up 2-0 in the second inning. Biermann, a 2019 draft pick of the Houston Astros, lined a two-run homer over the wall in left field. 

Later in the second, Alex McKenna singled to score a run and Quad Cities was up 3-0.

Wisconsin starting pitcher Reese Olson rebounded and retired the final nine River Bandits batters he faced to keep the deficit at three runs.

The Rattlers (57-60, 26-22) put runners on in four of the five innings that River Bandits starting pitcher Abdiel Saldana was on the hill. But, Saldana kept the Rattlers off the scoreboard with seven strikeouts before turning the game over to the bullpen.

Quad Cities added to their lead in the top of the sixth against Wisconsin reliever Joey Matulovich. The Bandits loaded the bases with no outs and Orlando Marquez drove in a run with a sacrifice fly.

The River Bandits put the game away with four runs in the top of the seventh inning. The first two batters reached on a single and a double. A dropped popup let the first run of the frame score. Freudis Nova followed with a two-run single. Oscar Campos doubled in the final run and the River Bandits were up 8-0.

RJ Freure took over for Saldana in the bottom of the sixth inning and pitched four scoreless, hitless innings to close out the game. The only base-runner he allowed over his four innings was a one-out walk to Thomas Dillard in the sixth. Freure retired the final eleven Rattlers he faced.

Rattlers catcher Kekai Rios worked a scoreless top of the ninth with a 65mph fastball and was the first Timber Rattlers position player to pitch in a game since Nick Roscetti pitched an inning against Kane County at home on April 18, 2018.

Dillard had singled earlier in the game to move his on-base streak to 25 games. Dillard has 21 hits and 24 walks during his on-base streak, the longest of the season by a Timber Rattler hitter.

Saturday's game marked the fourth time Quad Cities has shutout the Rattlers this season. The River Bandits have recorded nineteen shutouts this season.

In the second half Western Division Wild Card race, Wisconsin dropped to two games behind the Clinton LumberKings. Clinton defeated Peoria 4-3 on the road on Saturday night.
Game two of the series is set for Sunday afternoon. Scotty Sunitsch (9-11, 4.69) is the scheduled starting pitcher for the Timber Rattlers. The River Bandits have named Brett Daniels (5-6, 1.87) as their starter. First pitch is scheduled for 1:05pm.
Super WHY from the PBS Kids' Show will be at the game on Sunday to meet fans before and during the game and the first 500 fans to attend this game will receive a magnet featuring 2019 Timber Rattlers pitcher Aaron Ashby courtesy of Lamers Bus Lines. All fans may play catch on-field courtesy of Rasmussen College starting at noon. 

Timber Rattlers players and coaches will wear their 2019 Brewers-themed jerseys for the final time on the final Brewers Sunday this season. The jersey auction is online right now and you may bid at this link now through 3:00pm CDT on Sunday afternoon.  Timber Rattlers players will be available for a postgame autograph session sponsored by Tundraland.
If you can't make it out to the ballpark, there are several ways to follow the action. Sunday's game will be televised on CW-14 in Northeastern Wisconsin and on My-24 in Southeastern Wisconsin starting at 1:00pm. The radio broadcast is on AM1280, WNAM and the TuneIn Radio app starting with the Papa John's Pizza Pregame Show at 12:45pm. MiLB.tv subscribers can watch the game over the internet.