Fourth-Inning DeLuca Homer Propels Loons to First Place

With 14 games to go in the first half, the Great Lakes Loons sat in second place, 8 ½ games behind the Dayton Dragons.

Now, with two games left until a first-half champion is crowned, the Loons are on top.

Dayton lost Tuesday night, while the Loons defeated the Fort Wayne TinCaps, 4-3, at Parkview Field in Fort Wayne, Ind., for their sixth straight win, and their 11th win in the last 12 games.

The Loons (39-25) opened the scoring in the fourth inning. With two outs, Jose Ramos walked, then Imanol Vargas singled to put two men aboard. That set the table for Jonny Deluca, who blasted an absolute no-doubter of a home run over the left-center field wall to give Great Lakes a 3-0 advantage.

Other than that, right-handed starter Dwayne Matos (0-1) was solid for Fort Wayne (26-38). In his 4 2-3 innings, he allowed five hits, walked one and struck out five. The only runs he allowed were the three on DeLuca’s homer, all of which were earned.

Great Lakes, High-A partner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, got some great pitching early on, posting zeroes on the board for the first five frames. Righty starter Carlos Duran allowed two hits and a walk in his two frames, but struck out five batters of the six outs he recorded. Emmet Sheehan (W, 2-2) walked three batters, but did not allow a hit in two innings, posting a pair of strikeouts. In one inning, Cole Duensing ceded one hit, but no other damage in a scoreless frame.

Fort Wayne, the San Diego Padres’ High-A affiliate, got a run back in the sixth inning. With one out and two on, a passed ball allowed both runners to move into scoring position before an RBI groundout scored a run. Because of the passed ball, the run was unearned to Braydon Fisher, who allowed a hit and a walk in the inning while recording one strikeout.

The Loons added on in the top of the seventh inning. Jorbit Vivas reached first on a two-out error, then got to second on a wild pitch before a Diego Cartaya bloop single scored him to push the Loons’ advantage to 4-1.

The TinCaps had life in them, though, scoring a run in each of the seventh and eighth innings. Corey Rosier reached on an error to lead off the seventh, scoring an unearned run after a pair of singles. In the eighth, Agustin Ruiz doubled to start the frame, reached third on a wild pitch, then scored on a bunt single from Anthony Vilar to bring the TinCaps within a run.

With one out and a runner on first in the bottom of the eighth inning, the Loons turned to lefty reliever Jeff Belge (SV, 2), and he was superb. Belge recorded the final five outs of the game with ease, the lone baserunner against him reaching on an error in the ninth, and recorded a strikeout as well to secure the 4-3 win for Great Lakes. Belge, in his first seven innings of the 2022 season, has not allowed a run.

Offensively, two Loons had a two-hit day. DeLuca doubled in the eighth inning to add to his homer, and Cartaya had a pair of singles in five at-bats.

The Loons, for the first time this season, stand in first place in the Midwest League East, with a half-game lead on Dayton. The Dragons have three games in two games to end the second half, while Great Lakes has two. Dayton needs to win two more games than the Loons win through Thursday to make the playoffs. If the Loons win both of their games, there is no way for Dayton to usurp them in the standings, and the Loons would claim the playoff spot. Great Lakes can clinch as early as Wednesday – if the Loons defeat Fort Wayne and Dayton loses either game of their doubleheader, the Loons will secure a spot in the postseason.

The six-game series in Fort Wayne continues Wednesday at 7:05 p.m., and the Loons now lead the season series, 4-3. Great Lakes will start right-hander Nick Nastrini (0-2, 4.76 ERA), opposing fellow righty Ryan Bergert (0-5, 5.40 ERA) for the TinCaps. Pregame coverage begins at 6:50 p.m. with the Loons On-Deck Circle, driven by Garber Chevrolet Midland.

The Great Lakes Loons have been a Single-A partner of the Los Angeles Dodgers since the team’s inception in 2007. Dow Diamond serves as the team’s home and also houses the Michigan Baseball Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit public charity, and ESPN 100.9-FM. For tickets or information about the Loons, call 989-837-BALL or visit Loons.com.