(Davenport, IA) - The Lake County Captains (15-18) will play their fifth consecutive rubber game after losing to the Quad Cities River Bandits (19-14) on Friday night, 8-1. Lake County held a 1-0 lead until the sixth inning, but Quad Cities scored eight runs in the last three frames to
(Davenport, IA) - The Lake County Captains (15-18) will play their fifth consecutive rubber game after losing to the Quad Cities River Bandits (19-14) on Friday night, 8-1. Lake County held a 1-0 lead until the sixth inning, but Quad Cities scored eight runs in the last three frames to take game two of a three-game series at Modern Woodmen Park.
The Captains scored the first run of the game in the second, thanks to an erratic inning by Quad Cities starter Parker Mushinski. The left-hander walked Austen Wade with two outs, Ulysses Cantu followed with a double and Mushinski walked Todd Isaacs to load the bases. Mushinski then issued his third walk of the inning, throwing four balls to Tyler Friis to force home Wade and give the Captains a 1-0 lead.
Captains starter Francisco Perez coasted through the first four innings. The southpaw allowed just two baserunners on a single and a walk, but faced the minimum thanks to his defense. Catcher Jose Vicente threw out Ruben Castro at second base in the second and Lake County turned a double play following a leadoff single in the fourth. In the fifth, however, Perez began to falter.
Perez walked three men in the fifth, but managed to work out of trouble. The lefty walked Castro with one out and then issued back-to-back two-out walks to Cody Bohanek and Jonathan Lacroix. Corey Julks came up next and hit a grounder that looked like it was heading for centerfield. The ball then deflected off of Perez's foot and bounced toward Friis. The second baseman fielded and threw out Julks at first to end the inning and keep the Captains in front.
Quad Cities broke through in the sixth and took the lead. Jake Meyers doubled to lead off and Perez walked Jonathan Arauz. Miguelangel Sierra followed with an RBI single that scored Meyers and tied the game at 1-1. Arauz moved to third on the single and came home with the go-ahead run when Bryan De La Cruz lifted a sacrifice fly to center, giving the River Bandits a 2-1 lead.
The River Bandits tacked on two more runs in the seventh. Bohanek led off and swung away on a 3-0 pitch by reliever Dakody Clemmer , rolling a grounder in the grass at third. Nolan Jones fielded and threw on the run, but Cantu dropped the ball at first for an error. Two batters later, Julks singled and Meyers followed by lacing a two-run double to left that scored both runners and expanded the River Bandits' lead to 4-1.
Quad Cities might have scored another run in the seventh if not for a pair of great defensive plays by the Captains. Meyers was on third with one out, having been credited with a double and advancing to third base on a throw home. Arauz came up next and popped a ball up into foul territory outside of the River Bandits' left field bullpen. Isaacs raced in and covered a tremendous distance to make the running catch in foul ground. Sierra then hit a grounder to deep shortstop and Ernie Clement made perhaps the best play by a Captains infielder this year. The shortstop made a diving stop in the hole at third base, leapt to his feet and threw out Sierra at first to end the inning.
The River Bandits pulled away with four more runs in the eighth. Captains reliever Jonathan Teaney loaded the bases with one out on three walks. Jonathan Lacroix then hit a grounder in the grass toward first base, but Cantu could not throw home in time to retire De La Cruz who scored from third. With two outs and the bases still loaded, lefty Skylar Arias came in from the bullpen. Meyers greeted him by hitting a soft grounder into the shortstop hole for an infield single that scored Castro. Arauz then floated a single into centerfield that scored two to give Quad Cities an 8-1 lead.
Reliever Dariel Aquino picked up the win and Enoli Paredes earned his second save. The pair combined to hold the Captains scoreless and hitless over the final four innings. Aquino (1-0) pitched a scoreless sixth inning with two strikeouts and a walk. Paredes tossed the final three frames, striking out three and walking none. He allowed one baserunner on an error. The Captains managed just three hits, all against Mushinski.
Perez (1-3) took the loss. The lefty pitched 5.2 innings and gave up two runs on three hits. He struck out five and walked five. The Captains' pitching staff combined to walk a season-high eight batters.
Lake County has lost four straight series by virtue of losing four straight rubber games. The Captains will try to end that trend on Saturday night in the final game of their series at Quad Cities. First pitch at Modern Woodmen Park is scheduled for 7:35 p.m. EST.
Information about Classic Park or the Captains can be found online at www.captainsbaseball.com and by phone at 440-954-<st1:stockticker w:st="on">WINS (9467). Affordable ticket packages and group party and picnic options are available now.
