(WISCONSIN TIMBER RATTLERS) DAVENPORT, IA – Eric Bitonti bounced back from a rough night at the plate on Thursday night to lead the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers to a 12-2 victory over the Quad Cities River Bandits on Friday at Modern Woodmen Park. Bitonti, who was 0-for-4 with four strikeouts in a loss to the Bandits on Thursday, went 5-for-5 with a homer, four RBI, and four runs scored for Wisconsin on Friday.
Luis Castillo gave Wisconsin (35-28 overall, 1-0 second half) the early lead with a two-out, two-run double in the first inning to score Braylon Payne and Bitonti who had both singled with one out in the inning. The Rattlers have scored in the first inning in all four games of this series
Quad Cities (30-34, 0-1) responded in the bottom of the first with two runs on one hit. Wisconsin starting pitcher Jason Woodward walked three straight batters with one out. Derlin Figueroa got the first run home with a single. Tyriq Kemp tied the game with a sacrifice fly to left.
Woodruff escaped a bases-loaded, one-out jam in the bottom of the second inning with a strikeout and a lineout to keep the game tied.
Wisconsin took advantage of some mistakes by the River Bandits to take the lead in the top of the third. Kendry Chourio, the Bandits pitcher and top prospect in the Kansas City Royals system, hit Payne with a pitch and committed a balk. Then, Bitonti lined a single to right. Right fielder Erick Torres missed the ball and tripped as he tried to turn and go after the ball. Payne scored easily and Bitonti raced around the bases to score sliding in headfirst well ahead of the throw home for a 4-2 lead.
Luiyin Alastre was a one-man, two-out rally in the top of the fourth. Chourio struck out the first two batters of the inning. Alastre doubled, moved to third on a balk, and scored on a wild pitch.
Bitonti struck again in the fifth inning. Josiah Ragsdale extended his on-base streak to 25 games with a lead-off double. Bitonti blasted an opposite field home run for a 7-2 lead. The homer was the tenth of the season for Bitonti.
Chourio, who was making his Midwest League debut on Friday night, left the game with two outs in the top of the fifth after he recorded his tenth strikeout.
Wande Torres took over for Woodward in the bottom of the third inning and kept the River Bandits in check for 5-2/3 innings. Torres scattered five hits, walked none, and struck out eight without allowing a run to maintain the lead. He would eventually pick up the win, his fourth of the season.
Ragsdale and Bitonti weren’t done. Ragsdale tripled to start the top of the seventh to record his eighteenth multi-hit game of the season. Bitonti’s fourth hit was a bloop single to right to drive in Ragsdale.
In the ninth, the Rattlers added four runs. Ragsdale’s RBI grounder scored David Garcia from third. Payne walked and Bitonti collected his fifth hit with a single through the right side of the infield. Tayden Hall was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Payne scored on a balk, the fourth of the night called on Quad Cities pitchers. Castillo made it a three-RBI night for him with a single to score Bitonti. Hall scored the final run of the game on a wild pitch.
Ragsdale has scored 25 runs during his 25-game on-base streak.
Friday was Bitonti’s second five-hit game of the season. He also went 5-for-5 at Peoria on May 10. He is the first Rattler to have two five-hit games in a single season since Marshall Hubbard who had five hits in a game at Lansing on May 17, 2005 and again at Beloit on June 19, 2005, exactly 21 years ago tonight.
Saturday’s game at Modern Woodmen Park is scheduled to start at 5:30pm. Jayden Dubanewicz (1-0, 5.40) is the scheduled starting pitcher for the Timber Rattlers. Blake Wolters (0-5, 12.49) is set to start for the River Bandits.
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