Madison, Wis. – The Madison Mallards (14-3) take on the Green Bay Bullfrogs (6-11) tonight at Warner Park looking to sweep the two-game set and earn their 13th win in a row. The Mallards massive win streak is their longest since winning 16 straight in 2007. Last night, the Mallards bullpen came up clutch, preserving a one-run lead in the eighth inning before the Madison offense provided insurance runs in the bottom half of the frame.
The pitching staff has been spectacular during the Mallards hot streak, holding opposing teams to only 20 earned runs over the last ten games. Opposing teams have struck out 84 times while drawing only 32 walks over that span. Madison has also been productive at the dish, batting a South Division-leading .281 this season.
Probable Pitchers
Scheduled to start tonight for the Mallards is Illinois righty Ryan Kutt. Kutt will be making his third start of the summer after earning a win last time out, going 5.0 innings of scoreless ball against the Battle Creek Bombers. The righty currently holds an impressive 0.77 ERA over 11.2 innings while he has issued only four free passes. He follows his Illinois teammate Sean Leland who allowed only one run on four hits in 7.0 innings pitched last night.
The Bullfrogs plan to send Leo Perez to the mound to face Kutt. Perez will be making his third start of the season after a pair of one run outings. Perez is yet to last longer that 5.0 innings but he has held opposing batters to a .188 clip at the plate this summer.
Players to Watch
Mallards catcher Hunter Hisky (Southwest Baptist) has been an on base machine this season, currently holding a .500 OBP. Hisky has walked in eleven straight games and drew three free passes last night. Hisky has done damage with his bat as well, collecting eight hits over his last 18 at bats. Hisky has hit two home runs and has knocked in six runs over 12 games while only striking out nine times.
After getting a night off last night, Mallards closer Trace Norkus (North Florida) should be fresh tonight for a bullpen appearance. Norkus has earned four saves this season and is yet to allow a run. The junior righty has pitched 8.2 innings over seven appearances and has earned a record of 2-0. Norkus has not allowed multiple hits in a single appearance yet this season and has struck out ten while issuing only four free passes.
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The Madison Mallards are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. Now in its 25th anniversary season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 20 teams, drawing significantly more fans, in a friendly ballpark experience, than any league of its kind. A valuable training ground for coaches, umpires and front office staff, more than 190 former Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist (CHC) and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (BOS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET) and Curtis Granderson (TOR). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League portal. For more information, visit www.mallardsbaseball.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Mallards as your favorite team.
