Winning Season Within Reach

MIDLAND, Mich. - Much like the first game of the final series in 2017 one night ago, offense took center stage under sunny skies at Dow Diamond on Sunday as the Great Lakes Loons used 13 hits to prevail 8-7 over the Lake County Captains. With the win, the Loons move to 69-69 on the season and have a chance to secure their first overall winning record since 2011, when they finished 72-67, with a victory on Labor Day.
Despite both pitching staffs combining to walk 13 batters in the game, the Loons and Captains together barreled up 20 hits. Seven different players had multi-hit games, but five of them wore the home green.
Gavin Lux 3-for-5, 2B, 3 RBI
Nick Yarnall 2-for-4, HR, 2 RBI
Saige Jenco 2-for-4, 2B, RBI, 3 R
Tyler Adkison 2-for-3, 2B, RBI, 2 R
Starling Heredia 2-for-4, R
It was another early lead for the Loons as they jumped out to a 3-0 advantage with a run in the 1st and two more in the 2nd inning. After Lake County tied it 3-3 in the 4th, the Loons used a two-run shot from Yarnall and three more base hits in the frame to hang four runs on the Captains for a sizable 7-3 lead. But the Captains wouldn't go down without a fight as two singles and a Todd Isaacs triple temporarily pulled them within in a run in the 6th. Jose Vincente's sixth home run of the season tied the game at 7-7 before Adkison's sacrifice fly in the bottom of the 7th was finally the nail in the coffin for the Loons win.

Jeren Kendall saw his 11-game hit streak end as he went 0-for-3. But he did get on base twice via the walk to extend his on-base streak to a hefty 16 games. Moises Perez also drove in a run for the hosts.

Riley Ottesen started for the Loons and worked through three innings before giving way to Jeremiah Muhammad. Dan Jagiello (BS, 1; W, 2-0) relieved Muhammad after he allowed five runs on four hits. Cameron Mingo (L, 0-2) tossed five innings in a losing effort for Lake County.

Labor Day will be the season finale for the Loons and Captains as neither team qualified for the 2017 Midwest League Playoffs. As such, the Loons will not be able to defend their league championship this year. Gates open at 1 p.m. on Monday with fans receiving a 2018 team magnet schedule. First pitch is set for 2:05 p.m.

The Great Lakes Loons are the 2016 Midwest League Champions and have been a Single-A partner of the Los Angeles Dodgers since 2007. Dow Diamond, home of the Loons, also houses ESPN 100.9-FM and the Michigan Baseball Foundation. For tickets and more information about the Loons, call 989-837-BALL or visit Loons.com.