Kayfus Homers in Second Consecutive Game, Captains Win Fifth Straight

EASTLAKE, OH – A three-run home run by 1B C.J. Kayfus fueled the Lake County Captains (18-11) to an 8-1 win over the Dayton Dragons (12-17) to win their fifth straight game on Wednesday afternoon at Classic Auto Group Park in Eastlake.

With a two-run home run in Tuesday night’s series-opening victory as well, the 2023 third-round pick has now homered in back-to-back games, becoming the second Captain to achieve this feat this season. OF Jake Fox, MLB Pipeline’s No. 18 Cleveland prospect, hit a home run on both April 20 and April 21 versus Lansing.

RHP Carter Spivey (2-1) earned the victory and his third straight quality start. The former East Carolina Pirate tossed a career-best six innings in his third consecutive start, allowing just one run on three hits, and tying his career-high with six strikeouts in 89 pitches (49 strikes).

In the top of the first inning, 2B Alex Mooney, MLB Pipeline’s No. 20 Cleveland prospect, and DH Maick Collado reached base on a pair of singles. Then, with SS Jose Devers, MLB Pipeline’s No. 19 Cleveland prospect, at the plate, the Mooney-Collado tandem attempted a double steal. The proceeding throw down to second went into center field, scoring Mooney. In the same at-bat, Devers doubled to bring in Collado, giving Lake County a 2-0 lead.

After Dayton cut its deficit to one on an RBI forceout by Dragons 1B Ruben Ibarra, the Captains exploded for four runs in the bottom of the fourth.

Lake County RF Angel Zarate began the half-inning with a single, which was immediately followed by a walk from 3B Tyresse Turner. Three hitters later, LF Guy Lipscomb eventually hit a two-out RBI single. C.J. Kayfus then emptied the bases in the ensuing at-bat with his fifth home run of the season, which tied him for the team lead.

But two innings later, Mooney regained the team lead with his sixth home run of the year, a two-run shot that put Lake County in front 8-1. The 2023 seventh-round pick recorded his second consecutive three-hit game, going 3-for-5 at the plate with a career-high two stolen bases.

The Captains’ bullpen trio of RHPs Alaska Abney, Allan Hernández, and Magnus Ellerts pitched a scoreless seventh, eighth, and ninth inning, respectively, to preserve the Lake County victory.

First pitch for the third game of this week’s scheduled six-game series between the Captains and Dragons is scheduled for Thursday night at 6:35 p.m. Lake County will host its third “Dawg Day” of the season at the ballpark, where dogs get in free, and the team will pay special tribute to Golden Retrievers. The game will be broadcast on both the Bally Live app and MiLB.TV, with social media coverage courtesy of @LCCaptains on both X and Instagram.

Notes To Know

- In two games against Dayton this series, nine of Lake County’s 14 runs scored have come with two outs. The Captains now lead the Midwest League with a .272 batting average with two outs this season.

- With his 3-for-5 performance at the plate, which included a three-run home run, INF/OF C.J. Kayfus now ranks top-three in the Midwest League in batting average (.354, second), slugging percentage (.634, second), OPS (1.060, second), and RBI (25, third).

- With an RBI single and a double, OF Guy Lipscomb is now on a seven-game hitting streak, which is the third-longest active streak in the Midwest League. During this span, the 2022 fifth-round pick is hitting .464 (13-for-28) with seven runs, two doubles, seven RBI, four walks, two stolen bases, a .531 on-base percentage, a .536 slugging percentage, and a 1.067 OPS.

- With a scoreless seventh inning of relief, RHP Alaska Abney has now recorded nine consecutive shutout appearances, which is the longest active streak in the Midwest League, and tied for the longest streak this season. Additionally, with his scoreless ninth inning of relief, RHP Magnus Ellerts has now recorded six consecutive shutout appearances, which is the league’s third-longest active streak.

- With an infield single in the bottom of the first inning, INF Maick Collado extended his on-base streak to 17 games, which is the longest by a Captain this season and second-longest streak in the Midwest League. During this span, the 21-year-old has tallied a .321 batting average, 17 walks, and a .486 on-base percentage.

The Lake County Captains are the High-A Affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians, and have been a Class A Affiliate of Cleveland since the team was founded in 2003. To find out more information about the Captains or purchase tickets, visit CaptainsBaseball.com, or call (440) 975-8085.

Contact: Logan Potosky, Play-by-Play Broadcaster & Media Relations Assistant
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