Dragons Pitchers Shut Down Loons in 4-1 Win on Saturday

DRAGONS 4, GREAT LAKES 1

Click here for the box score

Dayton (R-H-E): 4-6-0; Great Lakes (R-H-E): 1-8-2

Win: Beau Blanchard (2-0); Loss: Dilan Figueredo (1-1); Save: Jimmy Romano (2)

HR: Dayton: None HR: Great Lakes: None

Midland, Mich.—Dayton pitchers Beau Blanchard, Dylan Simmons, and Jimmy Romano combined to scatter eight hits and allow just one run as the Dragons defeated the Great Lakes Loons 4-1 on Saturday afternoon. The Dragons close out the six-game series with the Loons on Sunday, needing a win to split the set.

Game Recap: The Dragons collected just six hits but produced strong situational hitting and took advantage of some defensive miscues while getting excellent pitching for the win.

Dayton took a brief 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning when Carlos Sanchez reached on an error, stole second, and eventually scored on a balk. The Loons scored their only run in the bottom of the first to tie the game.

The Dragons took the lead in the third when Kien Vu reached on a two-base throwing error, went to third on Alfredo Duno’s groundout, and scored on a sacrifice fly by Ryan McCrystal to make it 2-1.

Dayton added another run in the fifth when Sanchez lined a single to left with one out, went to second on Vu’s bunt single, to third on Duno’s fly out, and then scampered home to score on a wild pitch that got only a few feet from the catcher to give the Dragons a 3-1 lead.

Meanwhile, Beau Blanchard, the Dayton starting pitcher, got into a groove after allowing one run in the first, retiring 12 of 13 batters going into the sixth inning. Blanchard gave up a hit and also hit a batter in the sixth and was replaced by Dylan Simmons with two outs. Simmons got an inning-ending fly out to center to end the threat.

The Dragons added another run in the seventh when Johnny Ascanio walked and scored on a broken bat triple down the right field line by Vu to make it 4-1.

Dragons reliever Jimmy Romano entered the game in the eighth and worked the final two frames for his second save. Blanchard earned the win to improve to 2-0, allowing one run on four hits in five and two-thirds innings, with one walk and two strikeouts.

The Dayton bullpen, with Simmons and Romano, combined for three and one-third scoreless innings to give the club another strong performance. On the year, Dayton relievers have the best combined ERA of any of the 120 teams in Minor League Baseball.

Vu and Ascanio each had two hits for the Dragons. Vu is 5 for 9 in his last three games.

Notes: Sanchez stole his seventh base of the year to move into a tie for the Midwest League lead, pending the completion of the other games. Sanchez has five steals in his last three games...McCrystal’s sacrifice fly was his team-leading 11^th RBI of the year…The Dragons have scored at least four runs in eight of their last nine games.

Up Next: The Dragons (6-7) play in Midland, Michigan against the Loons (9-5) in the final game of the six-game series on Sunday at 1:05 pm. Nestor Lorant (0-2, 6.00) will start for Dayton.

The next home game at Day Air Ballpark in the heart of the Water Street District is Tuesday, April 21 when the Dragons host the South Bend Cubs. For ticket information, go to daytondragons.com/tickets or call (937) 228-2287

On the Air: All Dragons home and road games are broadcast on radio on FOX Sports 980 AM WONE. Games can be heard on smart phones, iPads, and other mobile devices via the free Dragons Mobile App, or on a computer at wone.com. Games are also available on HD Radio on 104.7 WTUI HD 2.