Wisconsin Rapids, Wis. – The wins continued rolling for the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters (2-1) Thursday night as they took down the Lakeshore Chinooks (1-2) with an 8-4 victory. The Rafters controlled the game from the get-go, and while there was a bit of trouble late in the game, they worked through it for a four-run win.
The offense, defense and pitching all clicked for the Rafters in the game. Wisconsin Rapids’ Hayden Carlson made some nifty defensive plays at shortstop while Junior Barajas had some nice picks at first. On the offense, Rafters outfielders Carson McEntire and Noah Hata each reached base four times while Junior Barajas had five RBIs thanks in part to a home run. As for the pitching staff, Seth Spencer (1-3) tied the Rafters season high with 5.2 innings, allowing just one unearned run while striking out five before he handed it off to the bullpen. Rafters newcomer Justin Battle didn’t allow a run in his 1.1 innings while Jafet Martinez earned his first save of the year, going two shutout innings to close it out.
The scoring started for Wisconsin Rapids in the first inning on an error from the Chinooks to make it 1-0.
The Rafters extended the lead to 5-0 in the bottom of the second as Wisconsin Rapids’ Hayden Carlson had an RBI double, Carson McEntire a two-RBI double and Junior Barajas an RBI single off Chinooks starter Nate Ciemny (1-1).
The Chinooks finally got on the scoreboard in the top of the fourth with a throwing error from the Rafters which made it a 5-1 game, but Wisconsin Rapids responded right after.
In the bottom of the fourth, it was time for Junior Barajas’ daily extra-base hit, this time a three-run no-doubter to right field to bring it to an 8-1 game. Barajas had three doubles in his first two games as a Rafter and followed with his first big fly of the year in game No. 3.
From there, the teams traded shutout innings until the top of the eighth, when things started to get dicey. Brent Gallegos struggled on the mound for the Rafters, allowing four walks and a hit before being pulled with the bases loaded and nobody out in an 8-3 ball game. That’s when Martinez took over for Wisconsin Rapids, allowing a sacrifice fly as the only run that came across before finishing the game.
With the win, the Rafters improved to over .500 for the first time this season and are now tied for first in the Great Lakes West with three other teams. The Chinooks and Rafters will rematch Friday afternoon as part of the July 4th celebration. First pitch is scheduled for 3:05 P.M. and will be broadcast for video on NWL+ and for radio on WFHR 97.5 FM/1320 AM.