The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers were at the end of a road trip to Michigan that started with a travel day on June 5 as they took on the Great Lakes Loons on Sunday at Dow Diamond. The Rattlers were down 4-0 and 6-3, but they weren’t going home with a loss. The Rattlers stormed back for a 10-8 win over the Loons. Ernesto Martínez Jr led the way with three hits, including a three-run homer, and three runs scored. Robert Moore added three hits and two big RBI to Wisconsin’s thirteen-hit attack in the come-from-behind win.
Wisconsin (24-36) didn’t do themselves any favors in the bottom of the second inning as the Loons (42-20) scored four runs on just two hits. The inning started with Edwin Jimenez walking Damon Keith. Then, Jimenez uncorked a wild pitch that allowed Keith to race all the way to third. Jimenez got the first out on a shallow fly to right before walking Max Hewitt on a 3-2 pitch. Jimenez threw his second wild pitch of the inning to score Keith and send Hewitt to second.
Chris Alleyne reached on single on a weak grounder to first to put runners at the corners. Max Vogel followed with a double to the corner in left for a 3-0 lead.
Vogel would steal third and score when he beat the throw home on a slow grounder to second with the infield in on the grass to make it 4-0.
Great Lakes returned the favor in the top of the fourth inning as Wisconsin scored three unearned runs to get close. Alex Hall reached on an error and Eduardo García had an infield single. Martínez was down in the count 1-2 with two outs when he lined an opposite field homer to get the Rattlers to within a run.
However, Jimenez would hit a batter and walk a batter in the bottom of the inning to set the stage for Vogel, who lined a double to the corner in left to score both runners for a 6-3 lead.
Max Lazar took over in the fifth inning for Jimenez and worked to perfect innings of relief to hold the line.
The Wisconsin offense wasn’t fazed by the deficit. In the top of the seventh, Wisconsin got to reliever Robbie Peto for five runs on six hits to take the lead.
Martínez and Terence Doston started the inning with consecutive singles. Both hits came with two strikes. Moore, who homered against Peto on June 13, smacked a double off the top of the wall in right to score Martínez. Darrien Miller knocked in Doston with a grounder to pull Wisconsin to within a run.
Joe Gray Jr kept the inning rolling with a hard grounder towards left that was knocked down for an infield single to put runners on the corners.
Wisconsin took their first lead of the game when Alex Hall chopped a grounder behind the mound for an infield single to score Moore with the tying run. A wild throw to first allowed Gray, who was running on the pitch, scored easily and the Rattlers were up 7-6 with Hall taking second on the play.
García followed with an RBI single to score Hall for an 8-6 advantage.
The Loons made it a one-run game when Chris Newell blasted a two-out, solo homer to center in the bottom of the seventh off Tanner Shears.
Wisconsin got some insurance in the top of the eighth with a pair of runs. Martínez and Doston started the rally with a single and a walk. Moore cashed in Martínez with a single. Later in the inning, Gray drove in Doston with an infield grounder for a 10-7 lead.
Shears worked a scoreless eighth and got the first out in the ninth before walking the next two batters to bring the tying run to the plate.
Luis Amaya was called into the game from the Wisconsin bullpen, and he gave up a single to Frank Rodríguez to score a run, put runners on the corners, and bring the winning run to the plate.
Amaya didn’t blink. He got Yeiner Fernández to ground into a game-ending 4-6-3 double play for his first save of the season.
The win garnered the Timber Rattlers a split in the six-game series with the Loons. Wisconsin wrapped up their two-week road trip to Michigan with a 7-4 record. The Rattlers were 4-1 at West Michigan before going 3-3 with the Loons.
The Timber Rattlers are off on Monday and return to action on Tuesday night at Neuroscience Group Field at Fox Cities Stadium to begin a six-game series with the Lansing Lugnuts. Jacob Misiorowski (1-0, 0.00) is the scheduled starter for the Timber Rattlers. Joelvis Del Rosario (0-3, 3.51) is the announced starting pitcher for Lansing. Game time is 6:40pm CDT.
