Dragons Five-Run Seventh, Gives Loons Third Straight Loss

DAYTON, Ohio. – The Dayton Dragons (18-20) scored five runs in the seventh inning, six unanswered runs in a 6-3 win over the Great Lakes Loons (21-17) on a sunny 84-degree Saturday night at a full-capacity Day Air Ballpark.

The Dragons have won the series, winning four of five played. The four wins match Dayton’s win total in 12 games between the Loons and Dragons at Day Air in 2023.

Dayton had three hits in the seventh. A single, bunt single, and walk loaded the bases against Kelvin Bautista. After a strikeout, Logan Tanner walked on six pitches to make it 3-2. Leadoff hitter Carlos Jorge then jumped on the first pitch, rifling it up the middle to give the Dragons a 4-3 lead. A Bautista walk, Kyle Nevin error, and Lucas Wepf balk plated two more.

In that inning, Jorge was tagged by Sam Mongelli for the second out. After an exchange of words, Loons catcher Nelson Quiroz and Dayton manager Vince Harrison Jr. joined the fray, leading to benches clearing but nothing more beyond that.

Jerming Rosario for the Loons and Kevin Abel for the Dragons, each finished five innings. Rosario struck out a season-high six Dragons, including the side in the second inning. The right-hander allowed just two hits, both to Ruben Ibarra, including a solo shot in the fifth inning. Rosario now has a 3.92 ERA in 20.2 innings.

The Loons scored three runs off Abel. After no hits through the first three innings, Great Lakes got three hits to start the fourth. Noah Miller singled, Dylan Campbell drove him home with a double to left field, and then Chris Newell homered for the tenth time this season. Newell extended his league lead with a 393-foot blast to deep right field, 107 mph off the bat.

Six of the final nine Loons were retired on strikeouts. Luis Mey struck out the side in the ninth to earn the save.

Rounding Things Out

Dayton has struck out at least 10 Great Lakes batters in all five games.

Up Next

The Loons and Dragons conclude their series tomorrow Sunday, May 19th. The first pitch is at 1:05 pm.

The Great Lakes Loons have been a partner of the Los Angeles Dodgers since the team’s inception in 2007. Dow Diamond serves as the team’s home and also houses the Michigan Baseball Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit public charity, and Sports Radio 100.9 The Mitt. For tickets or information about the Loons, call 989-837-BALL or visit Loons.com.