Perez is Grand in 8-0 Shutout
EASTLAKE, OH – Wenceel Perez delivered a grand slam as the West Michigan Whitecaps enjoyed dominant pitching in an 8-0 shutout victory over the Lake County Captains Wednesday morning at Classic Park. Perez becomes the second Whitecap to hit a grand slam this season, as West Michigan drew ten walks,
EASTLAKE, OH – Wenceel Perez delivered a grand slam as the West Michigan Whitecaps enjoyed dominant pitching in an 8-0 shutout victory over the Lake County Captains Wednesday morning at Classic Park.
Perez becomes the second Whitecap to hit a grand slam this season, as West Michigan drew ten walks, a new single game-high, in the resounding win. Meanwhile, starting pitcher Carlos Guzman tossed five shutout innings with three strikeouts as the Whitecaps held Lake County to a 2-for-8 mark with runners in scoring position. The shutout marks the seventh time West Michigan has held their opponent scoreless in a contest this season.
Perez drew a bases-loaded walk in the top half of the second inning before Jake Holton was hit by a pitch, putting the 'Caps on top 2-0. In the bottom half, Lake County loaded the bases with just one out before Perez turned an unassisted double play to keep the lead at 2-0. In the fifth inning, Ulrich Bojarski blasted a solo home run to extend the advantage to 3-0. West Michigan plated one run in the sixth inning before Perez added his grand slam in the seventh, expanding the lead to 8-0. The Captains advanced three runners into scoring position in the seventh and eighth innings. Still, they failed to capitalize, as Andrew Magno, Michael Bienlien, and Angel Reyes combined to strike out five Captains hitters through for shutout frames to earn the win.
Guzman (2-4) picks up his second win as Captains starter Aaron Davenport (2-3) suffers his third loss, allowing two runs through three innings while walking six 'Caps hitters. Perez becomes the first Whitecap to drive in five runs in a game as manager Brayan Peña secures his 150th career victory. The last time West Michigan enjoyed a grand slam was by Bojarski in a 12-1 win at Jackson Field in Lansing on May 8. The Whitecaps improve to 21-26 while the Captains fall to 24-22.
UP NEXT
The Whitecaps take on the Lake County Captains as this six-game weeklong series progresses on Thursday night at 7:00 pm. Detroit Tigers Top-10 prospect Dylan Smith gets the start for the Whitecaps against the Captains. Broadcast coverage with Nate Wangler starts on the Whitecaps Baseball Network at 6:45 pm. Get your tickets for all 2022 home games now at www.whitecapsbaseball.com.