The TinCaps look for wins on consecutive nights against the Lansing Lugnuts at Parkview Field.
The TinCaps look for wins on consecutive nights against the Lansing Lugnuts at Parkview Field.
Fort Wayne TinCaps (16-22, 7th East) vs. Lansing Lugnuts (17-22, 6th East)
RHP Sam Keating vs. RHP Cobi Johnson (Piggyback: RHP Fitz Stadler)
Friday, May 17 • Parkview Field (Fort Wayne, Ind.) • First Pitch 7:05 PM (Game 39 / 139)
WATCH: Evan Stockton & Brett Rump (Comcast Network 81 & MiLB.TV)
LISTEN: Mike Maahs (ESPN Radio 1380 & 100.9 FM | TinCapsRadio.com | TuneIn)
THURSDAY NIGHT: The TinCaps won in dominating fashion , pounding out 14 hits in a rain-shortened 9-0 win over Lansing at Parkview Field (the game was called after six innings). The 'Caps had five extra-base hits, including a two-run triple by Luis Almanzar, a two-run double by Grant Little, and an RBI triple from Justin Lopez . Not to be outdone, Joey Cantillo twirled maybe the best start of the season for Fort Wayne. The 19-year-old faced the minimum 18 batters in his six innings of work, allowing just one hit while striking out six.
HOME SWEET HOME: The TinCaps are home for 8 games in a row through next Thursday. This is Fort Wayne's longest homestand in 2019.
X FACTOR: Infielder Xavier Edwards leads the Midwest League in Batting Average (.365) and OBP (.427), ranks tied for 3rd in Stolen Bases (11), 12th in OPS (.847), and tied for 11th in Runs (22)... Edwards also has the 2nd lowest K% in the MWL (7%) and the lowest Swinging Strike % (2.5%). His 1.40 BB/K ratio is the best in the MWL... 41 of Edwards' 46 hits this year have been singles… Edwards is presently on a 11-game Hitting Streak and a 19-game On-Base Streak, both of which are the longest on the TinCaps this season.
MAKING HIS MARK: Infielder Tucupita Marcano got off to a slow start this season, slashing .179/.270/.196 through his first 15 games. But since April 22, Marcano is 2nd to only Xavier Edwards in the MWL in hitting. Over his last 20 games, Marcano has slashed .402/.449/.549 with 7 doubles, a triple, a homer, and 12 RBIs. He was the MWL Player of the Week for April 29-May 5. Marcano had a 16-game on-base and 10-game hitting streak end on Saturday in Beloit. He's hit safely in 4 in a row since.
POWER OUTAGE: The TinCaps rank 14th out of 16 MWL teams in Slugging % (.334), and are tied for the fewest homers as a team (12). Fort Wayne has hit only 2 homers over the last 18 games - a Dwanya Williams-Sutton blast at Beloit last Thursday and a Justin Lopez shot Wednesday at Lake County. Yet, the worm is starting to turn. The 'Caps have a combined 10 extra-base hits in the last two games (five in each game).
LITTLE STREAK: Outfielder Grant Little has hit safely in 7 consecutive games. He's 10-for-24 (.417 AVG) with 5 walks (.517 OBP) and only 1 strikeout. This comes on the heels of an 0-for-22 stretch from April 25-May 3.
HUNTING HITS: Blake Hunt has the 15th lowest K% in the MWL (15.9%), but also the 13th lowest BABIP (.239). A typical BABIP is about .300.
CHANGE IN APPROACH: Infielder Luis Almanzar has walked in 15% of his plate appearances this season. That's the 19th highest BB% in the MWL. It's also a jump from his 9% BB% in 63 games with the TinCaps in 2018. That said, Almanzar's K% has risen as well from 31% last year to 34.5% this year (13th highest in the league).
WALK & RUN: Outfielder Jawuan Harris has walked in 19.2% of his plate appearances this season. That's the 3rd highest BB% in the MWL (and a jump from 14% for him last year as a rookie). Harris is also tied for 8th in Runs (23).
RUIZ RIPPING IT: Outfielder Agustin Ruiz is 5th in the MWL in RBIs (25) and tied for 9th in Doubles (10). Ruiz has a 28% Line Drive % on batted balls - 3rd highest in the MWL (and highest among any TinCap).
IN CONTROL: TinCaps pitchers have walked the fewest batters in the MWL this year (116 BB in 319.1 IP). Starters Gabe Mosser (1.51 BB/9, 4th lowest in the MWL) and Efraín Contreras (2.25 BB/9, 10th lowest) have best epitomized that.
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