Wild 10th Inning Dooms Loons to Third Straight Loss
MIDLAND, Mich. – After some low offensive performances in the first two games of a series at Dow Diamond, the Great Lakes Loons put up five runs in nine innings and were hoping for an extra-innings, walk-off win to give them some momentum. Instead, the Lake County Captains scored three
MIDLAND, Mich. – After some low offensive performances in the first two games of a series at Dow Diamond, the Great Lakes Loons put up five runs in nine innings and were hoping for an extra-innings, walk-off win to give them some momentum.
Instead, the Lake County Captains scored three runs on just one hit in the top of the 10th inning Thursday night, and the Loons had no answer in the bottom half.
In the third game of a six-game set, the Captains defeat Great Lakes, 8-5 in 10 innings, the third straight loss for Great Lakes. The Loons entered the set with a three-series winning streak, which now cannot continue, as Lake County has secured at least a split in the set.
The Loons (73-50, 33-24 second half) opened the scoring in the bottom of the first inning.
Lake County (72-49, 37-18) halved their deficit in the top of the second inning. Korey Holland led off the frame with a double, eventually scoring on an Aaron Bracho sacrifice fly, cutting the Loons lead to 2-1.
That was the only run scored against Adolfo Ramirez in his first Loons’ start, and he left in line for the win. Ramirez was excellent, spinning five frames of one-hit, one-run baseball. The right-hander struck out seven batters while walking none.
Great Lakes, the Los Angeles Dodgers’ High-A partner, regained a two-run lead come the third inning.
The Captains, High-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians, pounced on the Loons bullpen in the sixth inning. Five straight men reached on two walks, two doubles and a single. Three of them scored and the visitors had their first lead of the night, 4-3.
The game would go back and forth after that, with each team scoring a run in the next three half-innings. The Loons tied it up in the bottom of the sixth. Keith walked with two outs before
With the game tied at five, the Loons got some much-needed stability out of the bullpen from the ever-reliable Ben Harris. The southpaw tossed 1 1-3 innings without allowing a run, extending his scoreless innings streak to a Loons’ season-high 20 innings. He ceded a hit and a walk and struck out three Captains.
In the final two frames of regulation, the Loons were equally stymied by Captains reliever Zach Hart (W, 6-3). Great Lakes did load the bases in the ninth inning, but Hart notched the strikeout to send the game to extras.
In the 10th inning, things fell apart for Reinaldo De Paula (L, 0-1), the Loons’ reliever who tossed a scoreless ninth with three strikeouts. He allowed a walk and a single to load the bases (including the placed runner) with one out, then threw a wild pitch to score the go-ahead run. Joan Valdez came in after a second out, and his wild pitch scored the other two runners, making it an 8-5 Captains lead heading to the Loons’ half of the 10th.
In the bottom half, Jordan Jones (SV, 4) induced two groundouts and a strikeout in order to confirm the Captains’ fifth straight victory.
The Captains now hold a 3-0 lead in the series and a 12-9 lead in the season series against Great Lakes. They also still hold a three-game lead over the West Michigan Whitecaps for the second-half playoff spot in the Midwest League Eastern division with nine games to play in the regular season. The winner between the Whitecaps and Captains will play the Loons in the first round of the playoffs, beginning Tuesday, September 13. The six-game set continues into the weekend, with game four scheduled for 7:05 p.m. Friday at Dow Diamond. Right-handed pitcher River Ryan (1-1, 1.00 ERA) makes the start for the Loons, opposing southpaw Will Dion, making his High-A debut for Lake County. Pregame coverage on ESPN 100.9-FM begins with the Loons On-Deck Circle, driven by Garber Chevrolet Midland, at 6:50 p.m.
At Dow Diamond, it’s the final Feast Friday of the regular season, presented by Isabella Bank: enjoy deep discounts on myriad concession fare. In addition, don’t miss the annual Loons Hat Giveaway – the first 1,000 fans through the gate will receive a free Loons hat, thanks to Fidelity Investments. Great Lakes will also be wearing their Dodger Blue alternate uniforms for the game. Tickets are still available at Loons.com.
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.