Wisconsin Rapids heads into final week of regular season in first place

Sitting atop the Great Lakes West Division, the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters (20-10) travel to face the Kenosha Kingfish (16-15) as they begin the final week of the regular season.

The Rafters completed a sweep of the Kokomo Jackrabbits Sunday, closing the homestand with a 9-3 victory. Matt Oldham and Davion Downey both had home runs in the win. To clinch both a playoff spot and home-field advantage, the Rafters have a magic number of 3.

Wisconsin Rapids and Kenosha met earlier this season for a two-game series at Historic Witter Field, with the Rafters taking game one and falling in game two. Both contests were decided by one run.

All-star pitcher Matt Osterberg is projected to start for the Rafters. He has a 6-2 record and a 3.05 ERA in nine starts for Rapids. The Kingfish will give the ball to Keith Kutzler, who is 2-4 and holds a 4.15 ERA. He gave up one run on four hits in six innings of work in a loss to the Rafters on July 18.

Wisconsin Rapids will send six players to Tuesday’s Major League Dream Showcase in Madison before returning to Kenosha for game two on Wednesday. When the team returns to Historic Witter Field Thursday, they will face the Madison Mallards with special entertainment by the ZOOperstars! presented by Aspirus Riverview Hospital and Clinics.

As the Rafters gear up for a late-season run, you can experience the postseason action firsthand. For more information on playoff ticket offerings visit Raftersbaseball.com, call the Rafthouse at 715-424-5400, or visit historic Witter Field. The Rafters ticket office is open from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm, Monday through Friday at Witter Field, 521 Lincoln Street in Wisconsin Rapids.

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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 Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 22 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, over 200 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.raftersbaseball.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Rafters as your favorite team.