ALL ‘CAPS: West Michigan Routs Loons on Fourth of July
MIDLAND, MI – On the Fourth of July, it was the West Michigan Whitecaps who brought the fireworks show to Dow Diamond, collecting a 15-0 victory over the Great Lakes Loons in front of 6,347 fans on Friday night. A five-run first inning set the tone when Andrew Jenkins blasted
MIDLAND, MI – On the Fourth of July, it was the West Michigan Whitecaps who brought the fireworks show to Dow Diamond, collecting a 15-0 victory over the Great Lakes Loons in front of 6,347 fans on Friday night.
A five-run first inning set the tone when Andrew Jenkins blasted the Whitecaps franchise-high seventh grand slam of the season to help even this series at two wins apiece. On the mound, starter Hayden Minton became just the second Whitecaps pitcher to toss six innings of scoreless baseball, allowing three hits and a walk while striking out seven batters, including the final batter he faced in each of the first five innings.
After Jenkins helped the Whitecaps jump out to a 5-0 lead with his fifth home run of the season – a ball hit 109 mph and 430 feet to left-center field – the 'Caps continued their assault on Loons pitchers. In the fourth, West Michigan scored six more times in an inning featuring run-scoring singles by Max Clark and Peyton Graham to extend the lead to 11-0. In the seventh, Clark reached base for the fourth time in the contest with his third hit of the day – a run-scoring double to help the 'Caps extend the lead to 13-0. Clark finished the contest going 3-for-5 at the plate with a walk, a double, two runs scored, and four RBI – his second straight three-hit game. Infielder Kevin McGonigle collected three hits as well, finishing the evening with a two-run double in the eighth inning to conclude the 'Caps portion of the scoring and sending West Michigan back to 30 games over .500 with the Fourth of July victory.
The Whitecaps improve to 10-3 in the second half and 54-24 overall, while the Loons fall to 6-7 in the second half and 40-38 overall. Minton (3-1) enjoyed his best start since arriving at the High-A level in picking up his third win of the season, while Loons starter Maddux Bruns (0-1) allowed eight runs in three frames in taking his first loss as a Loons pitcher this year. The victory nearly marked the Whitecaps' most lopsided shutout in franchise history, besting two different 14-0 victories in 1996 and 2000 before the Loons plated a run in the ninth inning to snap the shutout. Last season, the Whitecaps blanked the Loons in Midland in their third-biggest shutout by a score of 12-0 on April 18, 2024.
UP NEXT
The Whitecaps continue this series at Dow Diamond against the Great Lakes Loons on Saturday at 7:05 pm. Max Alba takes the mound for the Whitecaps against Eriq Swan. Broadcast coverage with Dan Hasty begins on the Whitecaps Baseball Network at 6:50 pm on MiLB.TV, 106.1 FM ‘The Ticket’ and 1340 WJRW-AM in Grand Rapids. Catch all the action on the radio or listen to the game live at whitecapsbaseball.com.
PLAYOFF PLANS
The ‘Caps will host a playoff game the second week of September, scheduled for Thursday the 11th at 6:35 pm against the second-half Midwest League Eastern Division champion. Individual tickets will go on sale July 8 at 10:00 am on whitecapsbaseball.com.