Monsters edge Rapids to close Dairyland season

It was not for a Dairyland League Large division championship, like the River Monsters had hoped, but Rhinelander did close out league play Saturday with a win over the division’s top team.

Joe Schneider struck out eight in a complete game effort, Sam Schneider drove in a pair of runs and the River Monsters edged Wisconsin Rapids 3-1 at Stafford Field.

Rhinelander (8-5, 7-5 Dairyland Large) entered the final week of the regular season with a mathematical chance at sharing the league title with the Redhawks, but those hopes went out the window with a 6-5 loss in extra innings at Whittlesey last Sunday. That was followed by a 14-2 loss in a make-up game Wednesday at Marshfield. 

Saturday’s win put Rhinelander in  a tie for third in the Dairyland. The River Monsters finished two games behind Rapids and a game back of runner-up Everest. 

Regardless, manager Todd Johnson said Saturday’s win felt good, especially considering Rapids handed Rhinelander one of its three one-run losses on the season back on June 11. 

“We’ve lost a couple of games late, so you’re never sure until you get that third out in the ninth, but it was nice to get that win,” he said. “It was a nice way to end the Dairyland season.”

Joe Schneider scattered five hits and was efficient on the day. He walked only one batter and needed just 103 pitches to finish of Rhinelander’s first complete-game performance of the summer.

“You almost get spoiled because you just sort of expect Joe’s going to do that. It was a great game and really never too much trouble for him,” Johnson said. 

    Isaac Bixby catches a pop-up during the fourth inning of a Dairyland League baseball game against Wisconsin Rapids at Stafford Field Saturday, July 29. Bixby made his first appearance of the summer for the River Monsters on Sunday. He typically plays for the Antigo Polar Bears of the BABA, who will come to Stafford Field Friday for a non-league game against Rhinelander. (Bob Mainhardt for the River News)
  

Rhinelander Class of 2021 grad and UW-Platteville pitcher Isaac Bixby made a cameo appearance for the River Monsters on Saturday, collecting two hits and scoring two of the team’s three runs. He scored what proved to be the winning run in the third inning as he singled and crossed home on a Sam Schneider sacrifice fly to break a 1-all tie. Ryan Jamison tripled in Joe Schneider moments later to give Rhinelander a two-run lead. 

Bixby also singled in the first inning and scored on a Sam Schneider two-out hit to left, beating a throw to the plate that went up the line. 

“Bix is a ball player and it was great to have him here. I think he really enjoyed it and he enjoyed being back with a lot of the guys that he was playing ball with for a long time,” Johnson said.

Rhinelander’s 1-0 lead held until Rapids tied it in the top of the third. Brennan Hubler beat out a two-out grounder to second, stole a base and then scored on a Nathan Krommenakker base hit. 

That was the biggest bit of trouble for Joe Schneider the rest of the way. Aaron Livernash had an infield hit  and got to second with two out in the fifth, but Huber grounded out to end that threat. Vinnie Fonti got to second in the seventh on a fielder’s choice and a steal, but Jessie Fritz went down swinging to retire the side. 

Tyler Beyer singled to lead off the ninth for Rapids, but following a Ben Fonti strikeout, Joe Schneider got Vinnie Fonti to ground into a double play to end it. 

The River Monsters had a short bench Saturday with a number of their usual players unavailable. In addition to Bixby, Rhinelander have four players off the Rebels’ American Legion team make their first appearance of the season — Owen Kurtz, Dylan Vanderbunt, Seth Nofftz and Adrian Patrone. 

Another legion regular, Cody Everson, made his second appearance after debuting in Wednesday night’s loss at Marshfield.

“As of this morning we were pretty short-handed and the legion guys stepped up,” Johnson said. “That was nice to get those guys involved. They’re sort of the future of this and I told them that, ‘this is your team of the future.’ It was good to have them here and contribute to the win.”

Marshfield 14, Rhinelander 2

A pair of five-run innings were Rhinelander’s undoing last Wednesday as they fell 14-2 at Marshfield in a makeup of a game that was rained out July 12. 

The Chaparrals scored five times in the fourth, breaking open what was a 4-1 game at the time and then tacked on five more in the sixth inning. The game was called in the seventh due to the 10-run rule. 

“It was a weird game (assistant coach) Ken (Zuiker) and I were talking about it on the way home and if you looked at the book and saw that they had nine hits you wouldn’t think that they’d put up that many runs. It was just everything that sort of could go wrong did go wrong,” Johnson said. 

Quinn Lamers had two of Rhinelander’s five hits on the night, and scored both runs for the River Monsters. Sam Schneider plated him with a single in the fourth and Joe Schneider drove him in with a single in the sixth. 

Nick Spencer lasted 3 1/3 innings in the loss, giving up six runs on six hits. He was partially undone by an unearned run in the second and an error on a fielder’s choice with the bases loaded in the fourth that allowed two runs to score, sparking Marshfield’s big inning. 

Jamison, Kurt Zuiker and Lamers also saw time on the mound in the loss. 

“Kurt Zuiker got some time on the mound along with Nick Spencer and Quinn and Jamo. They threw well. We made some mistakes behind them. We certainly didn’t play our best game.”

Antigo added

Bixby is slated to be back in Rhinelander for the River Monsters’ final home game of the 2023 season, but he will be wearing a different uniform as the Antigo Polar Bears, the defending champions of the Badger Amateur Baseball Association, come to town this Friday night. 

Assuming Bixby gets the ball — he is one of five players who have pitched for Antigo so far this season — it would set up an intriguing matchup between two of the top pitchers on last summer’s Rhinelander Rebel American Legion state-qualifying team. 

“That will be fun, Joe against Bix. Hopefully we get some guys back and that should be a fun way to end the home series down at Stafford for the year,” Johnson said. 

Johnson added the non-league game will also help the River Monsters stay sharp for the start of the Wisconsin Baseball Association playoffs, slated to begin Aug. 11. 

“I’m glad we’re playing because otherwise we’d be off for a couple of weeks and we’d probably have to schedule a practice or two in there,” he said. “(It’s nice) just to sort of keep that continuity and get Joe on the mound again. I’m glad we have a game.”

Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].