Dragons Outslug Loons 8-5, Morales Hits His Fourth Home Run of Series

DAYTON, Ohio. – The Dayton Dragons (57-48) (18-21) hit three home runs to the Great Lakes Loons (58-45) (22-17) two in an 8-5 Dragons win on an 84-degree cloudy Saturday night at Day Air Ballpark.

- Emil Morales hit his fourth home run of the series and eighth all-time against Dayton. The two-run shot made it 5-0 in the second inning. The eight home runs are the most career longballs by any Midwest Leaguer against the Dayton Dragons franchise. The 19-year-old accomplished the feat in 61 at-bats.

- Great Lakes scored the first five, Dayton tallied the final eight. The Loons pushed five across in the second inning. Jose Meza singled with one out and it was followed by a two-run homer to right field by Samuel Munoz. Victor Rodrigues next-up singled to center field. An error at third base and an Eduardo Quintero sacrifice fly made it 3-0. Morales’ deep fly later in the inning put Great Lakes up 5-0.

- The Dragons tied the game at 5-5 in the bottom of the second inning. Through rainfall that turned from drizzle to light rain, Dayton heated up with two two-run homers. Ty Doucette in his fourth game as a Dragon earned his first hit, a two-run jack to right field. Reds 2026 2nd round pick Eric Becker hit his first round-tripper in pro baseball with a game-tying three run blast.

- Before the bottom of the third inning, the rain stopped. But the potential for lightning and rain, delayed the game for 30 minutes. Great Lakes starter Isaac Ayon remained in the contest and was greeted with a first-pitch swing and solo shot by Dayton’s John Michael Faile to start the bottom of the third.

- The Dragons benefited from a Loons error and tacked on two in the fourth inning. Tyson Lewis hit an RBI double and in the next at-bat Alex Makarewich put a pitch in the dirt. Lewis went to third base but the throw to get him went into left field.

- Dayton’s Graham Osman struck out seven and did not allow a runner to reach. The Loons had two hits in the final six innings. Emil Morales doubled and Jaron Elkins beat out a ground ball to third base for an infield single in the eighth inning. A fielder’s choice, caught stealing and lineout to left field got Dragons’ reliever Jimmy Romano out of that frame.

Rounding Things Out

Dilan Figueredo threw two scoreless innings. The right-hander has a 3.72 ERA in 46 innings.

Up Next

Tomorrow Great Lakes goes for a series win, Dayton hopes for a split. The series finale is Sunday, August 9th at 1:05 p.m. ET.

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.