Rafters and Kingfish Play Season Series Finale on Sunday

Wisconsin Rapids seeks to finish series a perfect 8-0 this year

 

Wisconsin Rapids, Wis. – One game remains on the schedule for Wisconsin Rapids (46-18, 19-9) against Kenosha (33-31, 11-18) as the two teams finish the season series on Sunday from Witter Field. 

 

The Rafters opened the series with a 2-1 win on Saturday, moving to 7-0 against the Kingfish this season. 

 

Kenosha opened the scoring in the first on consecutive singles with one out. Derek Bangert drove a sacrifice fly to center to give the Kingfish a 1-0 lead after one. 

 

It did not take long for the Rapids offense to tie things up. With one swing, Dustin Woodcock tied the game with a solo home run in the second. The only other run of the game came on an RBI double off the bat of Rapids Bryson Stott in the seventh to give the Rafters a 2-1 lead. Layne Henderson closed the game out for his league-leading 17th save of the season. 

 

During the Rafters 7-0 start against the Kingfish this year, there have been two, one-run games and three, two-run games. The Rafters finished 4-0 in Kenosha, and seek a 4-0 finish at Witter Field. 

 

On Sunday, the Rafters send Jesse Slinger (7-1) to the mound. The right-hander, who is tied with his teammate Jack Eagan for the most wins in the Northwoods League this year, has a chance to lead the league in wins for the first time this season. 

 

Slinger has totaled 55 innings, with 25 strikeouts and just 11 walks. Four starts have gone past six innings, with two of them over eight. One of his best starts of the year came against Kenosha on the road, tallying eight innings of shutout baseball. 

 

The sophomore carried a no-hitter through four innings, losing it on a single in the fifth. He went on to give up two hits; tossing 86 pitches in a 3-0 shutout win for the Rafters. His counterpart on the mound Sunday for the Kingfish is Cole Erickson, making his first start against the Rafters this year. The right-hander sits at 2-1 with a 2.77 ERA.

 

First pitch set for 4:05 p.m. at Witter Field. Incourage presents an iRosco Bobblehead Giveaway, the world’s first smart bobble head. Pregame coverage begins at 3:50 p.m. on AM 1320 WFHR and WFHR.com, the Rafters Radio Network.

 

 

 

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The Wisconsin Rapids Rafters are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. The 23-year-old summer collegiate 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, 180 former Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including two-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champion Ben Zobrist (CHC) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (BOS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET), Curtis Granderson (NYM) and Lucas Duda (NYM).  All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League portal. For more information, visit www.raftersbaseball.comor download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Rafters as your favorite team.