‘Caps Jump into First-Place Tie with 9-5 Win
LANSING, MI – The West Michigan Whitecaps used outstanding defense to stake themselves to an early lead before the bats took over in the later innings as part of a 9-5 victory over the Lansing Lugnuts Saturday at Jackson Field. The Whitecaps got multiple diving catches and a slick play
LANSING, MI – The West Michigan Whitecaps used outstanding defense to stake themselves to an early lead before the bats took over in the later innings as part of a 9-5 victory over the Lansing Lugnuts Saturday at Jackson Field.
The Whitecaps got multiple diving catches and a slick play turned into an inning-ending double play, helping jump out in front 3-1 heading into the bottom of the fifth, and even rallied from a 5-3 deficit en route to their sixth straight victory. Combined with a loss by the Great Lakes Loons on Saturday, West Michigan finds itself in a first-place tie in the Midwest League Eastern Division.
The Whitecaps plated the game's first run when new outfielder Nolan McCarthy delivered his first professional RBI on a sacrifice fly to take a 1-0 lead in the opening inning. The score remained the same until the fourth, as diving catches by McCarthy and Jackson Strong helped keep the Lugnuts offense in check, until Lansing outfielder and Athletics Top-10 Prospect Devin Taylor launched his second home run of the series to even the score. The two teams would trade jabs over the next two innings as Whitecaps catcher Ricardo Hurtado delivered a two-run single in the fifth before the Lugnuts jumped in front on a three-run homer by second baseman Casey Yamauchi to help give Lansing a 5-3 lead. In the sixth, Andrew Sojka slammed his first home run in a ‘Caps uniform with a solo shot to lead off the frame before a go-ahead two-run single by Junior Tilien helped West Michigan retake the lead at 6-5. In the seventh, Clayton Campbell launched his first home run of the season as part of a three-run frame to help the Whitecaps extend the lead to 9-5, concluding the scoring in the contest.
West Michigan’s record jumps to 9-5 on the early season, while Lansing falls to 5-8. Jalen Evans (2-0) contributed two innings out of the ‘Caps bullpen to earn his second win in the Midwest League, while Lugnuts reliever Ryan Brown (1-2) allowed three runs in 1.1 frames in taking his second loss of the young season. Tilien and first baseman Garrett Pennington each enjoyed a multi-hit performance, and every member of the Whitecaps starting lineup collected at least one base hit as part of the Whitecaps sixth straight win.
UP NEXT
The ‘Caps close out their six-game series against the Lansing Lugnuts with a Sunday matinee, scheduled to begin at 1:05pm. Pitchers Gabriel Reyes and Tzu-Chen Sha get the starts for West Michigan and Lansing. Broadcast coverage with Dan Hasty begins on the Whitecaps Baseball Network at 12:50 pm on 106.1 FM ‘The Ticket’, and 1340 WJRW-AM in Grand Rapids, or listen to all the action on whitecapsbaseball.com.