Loons Deny Whitecaps Postseason Berth

Comstock Park, Mich. – The Great Lakes Loons (76-55) (31-35) finished their regular season with a statement 4-1 win over the West Michigan Whitecaps (68-62) (36-29) denying West Michigan entry to the postseason in front of 8,414 fans on a 72-degree Sunday at LMCU Ballpark.

Entering the day, the Whitecaps trailed the Fort Wayne TinCaps by a half-game in the Midwest League East Division standings. The TinCaps lost 4-2, finishing their game midway through the action at LMCU Ballpark. The Whitecaps needed a win to reach the postseason. Instead, Great Lakes and Fort Wayne will begin a three-game playoff series on Tuesday, September 12th.

The first pitch of game one is at 6:35 p.m. Game two and game three, if necessary, are at Dow Diamond, on Thursday, September 14th, and Friday, September 15th. Both games will see a first pitch time of 7:05 p.m. Tickets are available at milb.com/great-lakes.

The Loons jumped out to an early lead. Taylor Young smoked a leadoff double to left center and Dalton Rushing’s infield single put runners at the corners in the first inning. Griffin Lockwood-Powell plated Rushing with a sacrifice fly to center field. It was the only run off Jackson Jobe, who went five innings. Jobe escaped no outs and bases loaded in the third with a double play and groundout.

Jared Karros started for Great Lakes and hurled four scoreless innings. The right-hander struck out three Whitecaps and forced a flyout to end the bottom of the second, stranding two runners on.

Peter Heubeck entered in relief in the fifth and worked in and out of trouble in the sixth. With two outs, West Michigan got back-to-back singles and a walk to load the bases. The 21-year-old won a six-pitch battle with Whitecaps catcher Eliezer Alfonzo, a strikeout caught looking.

The Loons padded their lead with three runs, all unearned. Dalton Rushing led off the sixth, reaching on an error at second base. Griffin Lockwood-Powell’s single put two on. After a groundout, Yunior Garcia lined a ball to Dom Johnson in right field. Johnson delayed throwing the ball in, and Rushing took advantage. Kenneth Betancourt's RBI single made it 3-0, scoring Lockwood-Powell.

Chris Alleyne led off the seventh with a single, stole second, and reached third on a throwing error from the catcher. A Taylor Young sacrifice fly extended the lead to 4-0.

In the final three innings, West Michigan left four runners on base. Sauryn Lao and Juan Morillo both worked clean innings. Carlos De Los Santos got the ninth and finished the hob. A leadoff single and error but two on, a Dom Johnson single loaded the bases. The right-hander followed with two strikeouts of the Whitecaps 1-2 hitters. Great Lakes won the season series 13-11 over West Michigan.

The Loons begin their quest for a second Midwest League championship Tuesday September 12th, at Parkview Field. First pitch is at 6:35 p.m.

The Great Lakes Loons have been the Single-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 ESPN 100.9-FM. For tickets or information about the Loons, call 989-837-BALL or visit Loons.com.