Captains lose third straight to Whitecaps
(Comstock Park, MI) – The Lake County Captains (11-10) offense mustered just three hits in a 6-2 loss to the West Michigan Whitecaps (11-9) on Thursday night at LMCU Ballpark. The loss matches a season-long losing streak for the Captains with three consecutive losses and six defeats in their last
(Comstock Park, MI) – The Lake County Captains (11-10) offense mustered just three hits in a 6-2 loss to the West Michigan Whitecaps (11-9) on Thursday night at LMCU Ballpark. The loss matches a season-long losing streak for the Captains with three consecutive losses and six defeats in their last seven games.
West Michigan got on the scoreboard with three runs in the bottom of the first inning. Dillon Dingler started the rally with a double down the left field line. Captains starter Raymond Burgos walked Daniel Cabrera to put two men on base. Andre Lipcius followed with a sharp ground ball to second base. Aaron Bracho made a diving stop to his left but his feed to second base was offline, getting past Brayan Rocchio allowing Dingler to score and Cabrera to advance to third. The next batter was Rey Rivera who blooped a single to left field that score Cabrera. The final tally of the frame came on a single from Eliezer Alfonzo that scored Lipcius to make the score 3-0, Whitecaps.
In the third inning the Whitecaps rallied with two outs. Three consecutive singles from Lipcius, Rivera and Alfonso added another tally to give the Whitecaps a 4-0 lead.
West Michigan added a run in the fourth. Bryant Packard singled with one out and raced from first to third on a wild pitch. Dingler followed with an RBI single to centerfield to give West Michigan a 5-0 advantage.
The Captains rallied to break an 18-inning scoreless drought in the sixth. After Whitecaps starter Jesus Rodriguez fired five shutout frames, Sandel De La Cruz came in from the bullpen and walked the first two men he faced, Rocchio and Joe Naranjo. Bracho came up next and slammed an RBI double into the left-centerfield alley to score Rocchio from second. The Captains still trailed, 5-1.
De La Cruz faced just three batters without recording an out. The Whitecaps made a call to the bullpen after Bracho’s double and brought in Angel Reyes. Raynel Delgado came up with two men in scoring position and roped a line drive to third, but Lipcius made a diving catch for the first out. Victor Nova followed and the Captains caught a break, as Nova reached on catcher’s interference to load the bases. After Reyes struck out Daniel Schneemann, Reyes walked Gianpaul González to force home Naranjo and trim the Whitecaps’ lead to 5-2.
Rodriguez (1-1) pitched five scoreless innings to earn the win for the Whitecaps. He struck out four with two walks and two hits allowed.
Burgos (0-2) lasted 2.2 innings in his start for Lake County. He allowed four runs on eight hits with one strikeout to take the loss.
Ruben Garcia (4) earned the save with two innings of work out of the bullpen. He walked one and struck out four.
Right-hander Tanner Burns gets the start for the Captains in game four of the six-game series on Friday night. First pitch at LMCU Ballpark is set for 6:35 p.m.
About the CaptainsThe Lake County Captains are the High-A affiliate of the Cleveland Indians. For more information, visit the Captains’ website at www.CaptainsBaseball.com, Facebook page at www.Facebook.com/CaptainsBaseball, Twitter @LCCaptains and Instagram @LCCaptains. Fans can also get the latest Captains news and offers by signing up for the Captains’ newsletter, The Anchor.