Whitecaps Offense Too Much for Chiefs in 9-1 Defeat

Peoria, IL – The Chiefs struggled to hold the Whitecaps bats in check as Peoria fell 9-1 Friday at Dozer Park.

West Michigan piled on 17 hits to go along with its nine runs and now have 57 hits over the first four games of the series.

Andrew Jenkins led the way with four hits going 4-for-5. Austin Murr and Seth Stephenson each went 3-for-5.

Stephenson reached on an error to start the contest against Peoria starter Trent Baker. After advancing to second base on a wild pitch, he scored on a Gage Workman single to give the Whitecaps an early 1-0 edge.

West Michigan put up back-to-back two-run innings in the third and fourth. In the third, Luke Gold led off with a single and was on second when Izaac Pacheco doubled him home. The next batter was Jenkins, who brought Pacheco home with a single which made it 3-0.

Stephenson was back at it again in the fourth, leading off with a single. After baker recorded two outs, Brady Allen hit a two-run home run, his third of the series which made it 5-0.

Baker was finished after four innings, allowing five runs on nine hits, walking two and striking out four.

Baker’s counterpart, Dylan Smith turned in a quality start to earn his first High-A win of 2023. Smith allowed just one run over six innings of work, allowing seven hits while punching out six.

The Chiefs scored their run off Smith in the sixth inning. Alex Iadisernia led off with a double. Ramon Mendoza followed with a double of his own which made it a 5-1 game.

After Jack Ralston worked two scoreless innings out of the bullpen, the Whitecaps scored three off of Matt Hickey. With runners on the corners and nobody out, Hickey issued a wild pitch to plate a run. Jenkins hit another single to put runners on first and third again, this time for Murr who drove in a run with a single to make it 7-1. After a walk and a strikeout, Workman worked a walk which scored a run and made it 8-1.

The Whitecaps capped the scoring in the top of the ninth against Edgar Manzo. Jenkins led off with a base hit and later scored on a Stephenson single which made it 9-1.

Stephenson had an RBI and scored two runs in his High-A debut. Murr made it seven straight games with an RBI with his single in the seventh.

The Chiefs fall to 62-56 and 29-23 in the second half. Despite the loss, their magic number was reduced to nine with a Wisconsin loss to Quad Cities. West Michigan improves to 62-54 and 30-21 in the latter half.

The series is now even at two games a side. Game five is scheduled for tomorrow at 6:35 p.m.