Road trip begins the final series of the regular season

Wisconsin Rapids, Wis. – With only two days remaining in the regular season, the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters (48-21, 24-9) will travel to Battle Creek to round out their schedule against the Bombers (37-32, 19-14). Riding a franchise-record nine-game winning streak, the Rafters will look to extend their streak into double digits as they meet the Bombers for a double header on Saturday.

Due to a suspended game earlier in the campaign on July 27, the Rafters will play parts of three games in their two-game Michigan swing. On Saturday, the Rafters and Bombers will resume their suspended affair at 3:05 PM CT (4:05 PM local time) with the Rafters acting as the home team at C.O. Brown Stadium and trailing 1-0 entering the bottom of the second inning. Following the nine-inning completion of the game resumed from July 27, the clubs will square off in the official series opener, a seven-inning ballgame.

As the Rafters resume their July 27 home gain against the Bombers, the game will pick up in the bottom of the second inning with the Rafters batting and the bases empty and no men out. A scoreless inning by Taiwanese starter Chi-Ping Wu and two innings of one-run work from Chris Cooper (Texas A&M Corpus Christi) remain on the books. A curious element pertains to the roster turnover that has occurred since the squads began the game. Both teams will be forced to resume the game with nearly entirely new lineups after ample roster turnover between the game’s dates of beginning and completion.

In game two, the Rafters will hand the ball to right-hander Jay Peters (UW-Milwaukee), hoping that the Wisconsin native can turn in enough quality innings to supply their bullpen with a break. Peters is expected to make his eleventh start of the season, entering play with a 4-1 record, 4.72 ERA, and 42 strikeouts to 20 walks in 53 1/3 innings on the mound. In his second season with the Rafters, Peters has found his footing over the last month, posting a 2.12 ERA and victories in each of his last three starts. In his last 17 innings of work, Peters has surrendered just four earned runs on 12 base hits and six walks, while racking up 12 strikeouts. The last time Peters pitched, August 6 versus the Kenosha Kingfish, he earned the win by throwing five innings and allowing three runs on five hits and three walks, while striking out four.

Peters will be countered by left-hander Brian Fienhauer, who is expected to make his first appearance of the summer. A product of Saginaw Valley State, the southpaw looks to slow a Rafters lineup that has dominated left-handed pitching all season and has scored 19 runs in its last two games. 

First pitch for the front end of the twin bill is scheduled for 3:05 PM CT (4:05 PM local time) with the second ballgame slated to begin shortly after the first game’s conclusion.

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The Wisconsin Rapids Rafters are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. Playing its 23rd season of summer collegiate baseball, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 18 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 150 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (CWS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET), Curtis Granderson (NYM), Lucas Duda (NYM) and Ben Zobrist (CHC). 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 and set the Rafters as your favorite team.