Captains to Host Whitecaps in Six-Game Series at Classic Auto Group Park

EASTLAKE, OH – For the second time at home and third time this year, the Lake County Captains (22-17) will square off against the West Michigan Whitecaps (20-19) in a six-game series at Classic Auto Group Park starting Tuesday.

STANDINGS

• The Captains are tied for first place in the Midwest League East with the Great Lakes Loons, the High-A Affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers.
• The Whitecaps are tied for third in the Midwest League East with the Lansing Lugnuts, the High-A Affiliate of the Oakland Athletics, sitting two games behind Lake County and Great Lakes.

LAST SERIES

• Lake County
  • Lake County fell in its series at Lansing, winning game two 3-2 on May 15 and game six 13-9 in 10 innings on May 19.
  • In their 13-9 series finale victory, the Captains tied the game at 9-9 with two runs in the ninth inning and took the lead with four more in the 10th.
  • The Captains and Lugnuts scored a combined 87 runs, which were tied for the most runs in a series last week in all of High-A. The Spokane Indians (High-A Affiliate of the Colorado Rockies) and Vancouver Canadians (High-A Affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays) also scored 87 runs in a Northwest League set.
• West Michigan
  • After losing the first game of its series at Peoria, West Michigan won the final five games of the set to win its second straight series.

2024 AGAINST WEST MICHIGAN

• The Captains lead the season series against the Whitecaps 7-2.
• Lake County won two of three in the season-opening series at Classic Auto Group Park from April 5-7, and five of six at West Michigan from April 23-28.
• C Cooper Ingle is batting a team-high .545 (6-for-11) against West Michigan pitching.
• LHP Parker Messick, MLB Pipeline’s No. 21 Cleveland prospect, is 1-0 in two starts, while not surrendering an earned run in 11 innings against the Whitecaps this year. In three career starts against West Michigan, Messick has not allowed an earned run in 16 innings.

5 PLAYERS TO KNOW – LAKE COUNTY

• INF Nate Furman led the Midwest League with a .538 (14-for-26) batting average and 14 hits in Lake County’s series against Lansing. Furman hit leadoff home runs in back-to-back games on May 17 and May 18, becoming the first Captain to do so since OF Adam White on May 5 and May 6, 2008 versus Kannapolis.
• OF Guy Lipscomb leads the Midwest League with a .378 batting average and ranks second in the league with a .482 on-base percentage. The former Belmont Bruin has hit his first two High-A home runs in his last three games, and was named the Captain of the Week, presented by Official League, on Monday for his performance against Lansing last week.
• INF Alex Mooney, MLB Pipeline’s No. 20 Cleveland prospect, is tied with Cedar Rapids INF Rubel Cespedes for the Midwest League lead with 44 hits. The Rochester Hills, Michigan native is batting .346 with two home runs and six RBI in two series against West Michigan this year.
• INF/OF C.J. Kayfus, MLB Pipeline’s No. 28 Cleveland prospect, has driven in 33 runs through 30 games, which are tied for the second-most in the Midwest League. Kayfus’s 33 RBI are the most by a Captain in a 30-game span since at least 2005.
• RHP Jay Driver has posted eight straight scoreless outings out of the Lake County bullpen, the which is the longest active scoreless appearance streak in the Midwest League. Cleveland’s 2023 ninth-round pick out of Harvard has blanked opponents for 10.1 consecutive innings dating back to April 17.

5 PLAYERS TO KNOW – WEST MICHIGAN

• RHP Jaden Hamm, MLB Pipeline’s No. 18 Detroit prospect, leads the Midwest League with both a 1.07 ERA and 47 strikeouts through eight starts. Hamm’s 12.56 strikeouts per nine innings ranks 22^nd in Minor League Baseball.
• INF Luke Gold has cranked nine home runs, the second-most in the Midwest League. Gold also ranks fourth in the league in slugging (.579), and eighth in OPS (.949).
• RHP Colin Fields ranks fourth in the Midwest League with a 2.34 ERA through nine appearances (eight starts). Fields’s last three starts have been scoreless, as he has fanned 12 and walked just one in 13 innings during this span.
• INF Peyton Graham, MLB Pipeline’s No. 25 Detroit prospect, batted a team-best .375 (6-for-16) with one home run, one RBI, five runs scored, and seven walks in West Michigan’s series against Peoria last week. Graham’s .583 on-base percentage was the fourth-highest in the Midwest League in this span.
• INF Max Anderson, MLB Pipeline’s No. 20 Detroit prospect, has played in a team-high 37 games, which are tied for the eighth-most in the Midwest League. Anderson also ranks tied for fourth in the Midwest League with 42 hits. In the month of May, he has totaled four home runs, four doubles and 17 RBI.

SCHEDULE

• Tuesday, May 21: 6:35 p.m.
  • Picantes Night
  • Free mini golf
  • Exclusive access to the Pirate Bar
• Wednesday, May 22: 6:35 p.m.
  • Free mini golf
  • Exclusive access to the Pirate Bar
• Thursday, May 23: 6:35 p.m.
  • Dawg Day – Beagles
  • Free Mini Golf
  • Exclusive access to the Pirate Bar
• Friday, May 24: 6:35 p.m.
  • Cleveland’s First Bubblefest
    • The first 1,000 fans receive free bubbles, and fans may bring their own bubbles.
• Saturday, May 25: 6:35 p.m.
  • We Are Not Detroit Night
• Sunday, May 26: 1 p.m.
  • Mental Health Awareness Day
  • Family Fun Sunday (presented by Classic Auto Group)
    • Pregame autographs (12-12:20 p.m.)
    • Pregame catch on the field (12:10-12:30 p.m.)
    • Postgame kids run the bases

First pitch for the opening game of this week’s scheduled six-game series between the Captains and Whitecaps is scheduled for Tuesday night at 6:35 p.m. Lake County will play as its Copa de la Diversión alternate identity, Los Picantes de Lake County, for the fourth time this season. The series will be broadcast on both the Bally Live app and MiLB.TV, with social media coverage courtesy of @LCCaptains on both X and Instagram.