Walbec Group Road Report: August 11-16

Cedar Rapids, IA: The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers finished their road trip strong by winning the final three games of their series with the Cedar Rapids Kernels at Veterans Memorial Stadium.

The Rattlers sit in third place going into the new week with a second half record of 26-21 (60-49 overall), two and a half games behind the Beloit Sky Carp and Quad Cities River Bandits in the race for the Midwest League West Division second half title.

Wisconsin finished 11-6 against the Kernels in the head-to-head series for 2026.

The Kernels got off to a hot start in the series opener as the Rattlers fell 6-3. It took thirteen innings before Cedar Rapids won 6-5 on Wednesday. After getting shut out by the Kernels 4-0 on Thursday, the Rattlers turned the puzzle around and returned the favor in a 6-0 shutout win Friday. The bats refused to show mercy in Saturday’s 15-3 victory while having enough in the tank to earn the split by winning 5-1 on Sunday.

The Rattlers now have a series record of 12-5-3 this season. Their 34-23 road record remains the best in the Midwest League.

Pitching was a strength for the Rattlers in the series. The staff rang up 56 strikeouts while walking just eighteen in six games.. Last week’s mound performance shrunk the team ERA to 5.54 in 2026.

Ethan Dorchies continues to shine. His Friday performance was his fourth quality start since June 25. Dorchies struck out nine to tie his professional high. The 19-year-old prospect pitched 6 2⁄3 scoreless innings with one walk, four hits en route to his fifth win of the season.

Jayden Dubanewicz led the team with eight innings in the series.He was on the losing side in the opener, but dialed in first win since June 20 on Sunday. The Brewers No. 23 prospect pitched five scoreless, walkless innings in the finale with three hits and three strikeouts in the series finale.

The dynamic duo of Wande Torres and Daniel Corniel took care of business on Saturday. Torres earned his team-leading eighth win by pitching five innings with two earned runs and five strikeouts while Corniel pitched the final four innings to obtain his third save. Corniel issued five strikeouts, a new season-high.

Other notable pitching performances include:

• Andrew Healy made his Midwest League debut as the starter on Wednesday and dealt five innings with five strikeouts and two earned runs allowed for a no decision

• Jacob Morrison pitched five innings as a reliever on Wednesday, allowed one earned run with four strikeouts

• Bjorn Johnson retired all nine batters he faced in three perfect innings across two relief appearances

• Jose Meneses, who has allowed one earned run in his last seven games, added two scoreless appearances to his ledger in Cedar Rapids

The Rattlers offense against the Kernels was highlighted by matching their season single-game high for runs scored when they scored fifteen in Saturday’s slugfest.

Wisconsin hitters enjoyed a jolt from the arrival of Sawyer Strosnider, the Milwaukee Brewers 2026 second-round draft pick. Strosnider's first professional hit was a triple in the opener, setting the tone for a solid 8-for-22 series. The former TCU outfielder had a pair of multi-RBI games while tallying three hits and three runs on Friday. Strosnider carries a five-game hitting streak into the new week with five pro games under his belt.

Strosnider gives us ✌️ more! @sawyerstro @TCU_Baseball

A 2-run single makes it 5- 0! #tratnation pic.twitter.com/uthnSSX5xB

— Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (@TimberRattlers) August 15, 2026

Daniel Dickinson also secured eight hits in the series. Six of them went for extra bases; four doubles and two homers. Dickisnon’s seven RBIs lead the team in the series while also stealing five bases. Dickinson has 46 stolen bases this season and has an excellent chance to be only the third Rattler to reach fifty steals in a season (Ramon Valera 52 in 1998 and Pedro Liriano 65 in 2001).

Daniel Dickinson has been on fire of late, bruising High-A pitching since the beginning of July for a .483 OBP / .593 SLG / 1.076 OPS with 7 HR and 9 2B 💥

In these 34 games Dickinson ranks among the best hitters in the minors in minimizing strikeouts (18% K), drawing walks (23%… pic.twitter.com/zaX6qM97fo

— Brewers Player Development (@BrewersPD) August 14, 2026

Luis Castillo ticked his second-half batting average up to .291 after a 7-for-22 series. Castillo also hit his 16th home run of the season, inching closer to his professional single-season high of 18 set with the Carolina Mudcats in 2024. He also drove in five runs during the series to put his team-leading total at 77.

Castillo brings two home‼️🏠

Rattlers 6 | Kernels 2 #tratnation pic.twitter.com/GiTleP71tD

— Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (@TimberRattlers) August 16, 2026

Other solid sequences from the Rattler bats included:

• Eric Bitonti hitting homers in back-to-back innings in the Saturday win, his second multi-homer game of the season

• Yannic Walther batting 4-for-12 with three runs in three games against the Kernels

• Luis Lemeda connecting with his first triple of the season to jump start a five-run rally in the fourth inning on Saturday to put the Rattlers in control of that game

• Tayden Hall adding six hits, four walks, three RBI and three runs

If one Bitonti bomb wasn't enough for you, here's another one. 👀💣 @ericbitonti10

Bitonti blasts a 3-run shot and makes it HR No. 19 on the season‼️

Rattlers 12 | Kernels 2 #tratnation pic.twitter.com/TOzmxIeIhO

— Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (@TimberRattlers) August 16, 2026

The Rattlers return to Neuroscience Group Field on Tuesday, August 18, taking on the Lake County Captains (59-51 overall, 22-24 second half) to begin a 12-game homestand, their final stretch of home games for the 2026 season.

SCHEDULE, PITCHERS & PROMOTIONS

TUE, August 18th - 6:40 PM: RHP Jacob Morrison (1-1, 4.15) v. LHP Nelson Kelijo (0-1, 5.40) (Star Cars & Bang For Your Buck)

WED, August 19th - 12:10 PM: RHP Josh Knoth (4-3, 4.68) v. RHP Aidan Major (0-0 4.50) (Silver Foxes Special)

THU, August 20th - 6:40 PM: RHP Ethan Dorchies (5-8, 5.03) v. LHP Harrison Bodendorf (0-2, 6.20) (Fauxback Night + Craft Brews and Brats)

FRI, August 21st - 6:40 PM: LHP Wande Torres (8-5, 4.57) v. LHP Jackson Humphries (1-6, 5.37) (Fang’s Birthday w/ Hat Giveaway)

SAT, August 22nd - 6:40 PM: RHP Jayden Dubanewicz (3-4, 5.11) v. RHP Jacob Zibin (3-2, 3.02) (Comic Book Hero Night & Fireworks)

SUN, August 23rd - 1:10 PM: LHP Andrew Healy (0-0, 3.60) vs. LHP Nelson Keljo (0-1, 5.40) (Softball Day)