‘Caps Roll Kernels in 13-2 Victory
COMSTOCK PARK, MI – The West Michigan Whitecaps piled on eight runs in the seventh inning as the pitching staff quelled the Cedar Rapids Kernels en route to a 13-2 win and a series victory in front of 6,232 fans Friday night at LMCU Ballpark. The Whitecaps have scored double-digit
COMSTOCK PARK, MI – The West Michigan Whitecaps piled on eight runs in the seventh inning as the pitching staff quelled the Cedar Rapids Kernels en route to a 13-2 win and a series victory in front of 6,232 fans Friday night at LMCU Ballpark.
The Whitecaps have scored double-digit runs in 19 games this season, a new franchise record, as they finished 6-for-11 with runners in scoring position, including a pair of home runs from Jack Penney and Izaac Pacheco. Meanwhile, West Michigan held Cedar Rapids to 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position in the blowout win.
Detroit Tigers pitcher Alex Cobb made his fifth rehab start with the Whitecaps, allowing just one run through 2.1 innings – an RBI single from shortstop Brandon Winokur – before CJ Weins finished the third inning off with Cedar Rapids in the lead, 1-0. West Michigan responded with three runs in the bottom half, highlighted by an RBI double from first baseman Garrett Pennington, rallying in front 3-1. Meanwhile, Whitecaps reliever Hayden Minton was dominant out of the pen, posting 4.2 scoreless innings with a pair of strikeouts as ‘Caps third baseman Izaac Pacheco added a two-run homer in the fifth, making it 5-1 in favor of West Michigan. They then exploded for eight in the seventh, featuring a three-run homer by Penney, increasing their advantage to 13-1. The Kernels scraped across a run in the ninth on a solo home run from pinch hitter Jefferson Valladares before closer Matt Stil got Kernels third baseman Danny De Andrade to ground out, finishing off the 13-2 blowout victory.
The Whitecaps improve to 28-12 in the second half and 72-33 overall, while the Kernels fall to 19-20 in the second and 59-46 overall. Minton (4-2) secures his fourth win while Cedar Rapids starting pitcher Jose Olivares (5-4) suffers his fourth loss, allowing three earned runs through three innings pitched. After the win tonight, the Whitecaps are now 20-6 on the season against the Midwest League West Division.
UP NEXT
The Whitecaps play the penultimate game of this six-game series against the Cedar Rapids Kernels on Saturday night from LMCU Ballpark at 7:05 pm. 21-year-old Rayner Castillo gets the start for West Michigan against newly-acquired lefty Garrett Horn. Broadcast coverage with Dan Hasty and Nate Wangler begins on the Whitecaps Baseball Network at 6:50 pm on 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 are on sale at whitecapsbaseball.com.