Echavarria whiffs nine, offense explodes in 13-2 bludgeoning of Captains

LANSING, Mich. – Steven Echavarria struck out a career-high nine hitters in six innings and Pedro Pineda put the bow on an eight-run fifth inning with a three-run homer to center field to lead the Lansing Lugnuts (17-22, 46-57) to a 13-2 series-clinching victory over the Lake County Captains (17-21, 54-48) in front of a Friday night crowd of 7,425 at JacksonⓇ Field™.

The Lugnuts have now won five games in a row and seven straight at home.

A day after turning 21, Echavarria was brilliant over six innings, allowing just two hits and a single run – a Jace LaViolette solo home run in the first – with three walks. With nine strikeouts, Echavarria set a new personal record, besting his previous three seven-strikeout performances, the last of which came on June 29, 2025.

He finished with a flourish, firing a 100-mph fastball past LaViolette to end the sixth before pounding his chest with a roar of excitement.

“I turned 21 yesterday, so I was super excited to get this outing out of the way. … Family's in town, so it was a lot of emotions going into it,” Echavarria said. “And, Jace, really good player, and I struggled with him all year, so making sure I got him out was big for me. I mean he got me twice this year (with home runs), so that was big.”

“I feel like just the combo, the fastball, change-up, curveball was kinda key and essential in executing those pitches with two strikes, which I've been working on for the entire season, So I'm glad to see it finally paying off.”

A day after turning 21, Steven Echavarria dominated Lake County: 6 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 9 K.

Plus an exultant roar after whiffing Jace LaViolette on a 100-mph heater with his final pitch. pic.twitter.com/SL0amkIa5J

— Jesse Goldberg-Strassler (@jgoldstrass) August 8, 2026

After locking up the Lugnuts over the opening four innings, Captains starter Harrison Bodendorf ran out of gas in the fifth. After a Pineda strikeout and a C.J. Pittaro groundout, a hit-by-pitch of Bryan Arendt sparked a barrage of offense from nearly every player in the lineup.

A Rodney Green Jr. double (his third in two nights) set up a Jared Sprague-Lott two-run single to right-center field to give Lansing its first lead of the game, 2-1.

“Just being patient and looking for my pitch,” Green said about his recent success. “That's about it, you know, and trusting the process.”

Logan Sauve followed with a single to center, and Ali Camarillo tacked on a run with an RBI double off the wall in left field.

How about a two-out, eight-run rally! ⛄️ pic.twitter.com/flB57OWuax

— Lansing Lugnuts (@LansingLugnuts) August 8, 2026

The deluge of runs forced the Captains to make a pitching change, turning to reliever Luis Flores. Flores issued a walk to Daniel Bucciero and allowed a two-run single to Breyson Guedez to widen the deficit to 5-1.

“It's a great feeling to get something started, but it's even a better feeling to have that stuff backed up by your teammates, and I feel like that's the best part about having that success,” Green said.

Having batted around, Pineda capped off the eight-run inning with a 419-foot blast to center field, his fifth round-tripper of the season, leading to a mob of celebration in the dugout.

“It was one of the best feeling ever,” Pineda said about his emotions in the dugout. “Just supporting your team and helping your team to win is just the best feeling ever.”

In the seventh, the Nuts added two more runs off of reliever Cam Schuelke; a Pittaro RBI double brought in Bucciero and a groundout from Arendt scored Guedez for a 10-1 lead. In the eighth, a bases-loaded walk of Pineda, Pittaro RBI single and an Arendt fielder’s choice gave the Nuts a 13-1 advantage.

In the winning effort, Pineda finished 1-for-3 and led the team with four RBIs, also scoring a run and drawing two walks; Sauve went 2-for-4 with two runs scored and a walk; Guedez hit 2-for-5 with two RBIs and two runs scored; Pittaro finished 2-for-5 with two RBIs; Green went 2-for-4 with a run scored and a walk, Bucciero went 1-for-3 with two walks and three runs scored; and Sprague-Lott went 1-for-3 with two RBIs, two walks and a run scored.

In relief, Mitch Myers pitched a scoreless two innings before Gerlin Rosario finished the game, allowing a Welbyn Francisca solo home run in the ninth.

Samuel Dutton will take the mound for Lansing on Saturday, opposing Lake County’s Jacob Zibin. Gates open at 5:30 p.m. for Harry Potter Night, with the first 1,000 fans receiving a Leo De Vries wizard bobblehead and LAFCU fireworks set for after the game. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05. For tickets and more information, call (517) 485-4500 or visit www.milb.com/lansing.

# # #