SOUTH BEND, IN - The West Michigan Whitecaps road woes continued Saturday night as part of an 11-0 loss to the South Bend Cubs in front of 7,067 fans at Four Winds Field. The loss drops the Whitecaps road record to 9-13 this season. West Michigan currently holds a 17-9
SOUTH BEND, IN - The West Michigan Whitecaps road woes continued Saturday night as part of an 11-0 loss to the South Bend Cubs in front of 7,067 fans at Four Winds Field.
The loss drops the Whitecaps road record to 9-13 this season. West Michigan currently holds a 17-9 record during home games at Fifth Third Ballpark. The 'Caps have scored just two runs and have been shut out twice in their last three games.
The Cubs controlled the action on Saturday from the first inning onward, as an RBI-single by Austin Filiere scored Jared Young to take a 1-0 lead in the opening frame. South Bend exploded for five runs in the fourth, highlighted by a three-run double from Johnny Bethancourt to extend the lead to 6-0. Meanwhile, Cubs starter Erich Uelmen (3-4) dominated the 'Caps with five innings of scoreless baseball while striking out eight batters to earn his third win of the season. Bethancourt highlighted a three-run sixth inning with a run-scoring double, then singled in a run as part of a two-run seventh to bring the score to 11-0. The loss becomes the Whitecaps most lopsided defeat this season, and worst loss since a 16-3 loss at Fort Wayne on August 4, 2017.
'Caps starter Jose Vasquez (1-1) struggled with his control in walking a career-high five batters in just 3.1 innings while giving up five runs in taking his first Midwest League loss. The loss is the Whitecaps third straight, and drops the club record to 26-22, while the Cubs improve to 21-26. The bottom three hitters in the Cubs order combined for seven hits and scored four of the nine Cubs runs. Jose Azocar, who played for the Whitecaps in 2016 and returned to the team earlier this week, had two hits including a double in his first game back with West Michigan.
UP NEXT
The Whitecaps play the third game of this four-game series Sunday at 7:05 pm. Pitcher Dane Myers gets his first road start for the Whitecaps against South Bend lefty Ricky Tyler Thomas. Broadcast coverage with Dan Hasty begins on the Whitecaps Baseball Network at 6:55 pm. Tickets are available for any Whitecaps 2018 home contest by calling the Whitecaps front office at 616-784-4131 or by visiting www.whitecapsbaseball.com.
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