The Lansing Lugnuts manufactured enough runs and got stellar relief work to defeat the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers 4-2 Friday night at Neuroscience Group Field at Fox Cities Stadium in the opening game of the second half of the Midwest League season for both teams. The Lugnuts have won three straight in the series.
Lansing (32-34 overall, 1-0 second half) took the lead in the first inning. Max Muncy doubled to start the game. He went to third on a grounder up the middle. Daniel Susac followed with an RBI grounder for the 1-0 lead.
Wisconsin26-39, 0-1) went in front in the third inning. Darrien Miller knocked in Robert Moore and Matt Wood with a single to center.
Susac brought the Lugnuts back to even in the top of the fourth inning. He doubled to start the inning and took third on a flyout to deep right-center field. Brayan Buelvas tied the score with a sacrifice fly to left.
The Lugnuts went back in front in the top of the fifth. Muncy singled to drive in the go-ahead run for a 3-2 lead.
Wisconsin had a great opportunity to tie the game in their half of the fifth. Moore tripled to right with one out. However, he was cut down at the plate on a grounder to first base off the bat of Wood. Jack Winkler fielded the ball cleanly and fired home to get Moore and stop the Rattlers rally in its tracks.
An unearned run in the top of the eighth inning gave Lansing a 4-2 lead.
That lead was insurmountable for the Rattlers as the Lansing relievers retired all twelve batters they faced. Stevie Emanuels pitched a perfect sixth and seventh with four strikeouts. Tyler Baum is now 8-for-8 in save opportunities after he closed out the game with a perfect eighth and a perfect ninth with three strikeouts.
Tyler Woessner was the starter for the Timber Rattlers and allowed three runs on five hits over six innings for his fifth quality start of the season. Woessner walked one, struck out one, and was charged with the loss.
Game four of the series is Saturday night at Neuroscience Group Field. Edwin Jimenez (2-1, 3.38) is the scheduled starting pitcher for the Timber Rattlers. The Lugnuts have named Jacob Watters (1-5, 6.50) as their starting pitcher. Game time is 6:40pm CDT.
