MIDLAND, MI - The West Michigan Whitecaps shocked everyone and turned the tables on the Great Lakes Loons, rallying back from a 6-0 deficit to post a 9-6 victory in the final road game of the first half Thursday in front of 6,383 fans - the biggest single-game crowd in
MIDLAND, MI - The West Michigan Whitecaps shocked everyone and turned the tables on the Great Lakes Loons, rallying back from a 6-0 deficit to post a 9-6 victory in the final road game of the first half Thursday in front of 6,383 fans - the biggest single-game crowd in Dow Diamond history.
The Loons piled on West Michigan starter Brad Bass in the opening inning, tallying three runs on run-scoring singles from Brandon Montgomery, Romer Cuadrado and Mitchell Hansen to take a 3-0 advantage. The Loons plated single runs in the third, fourth and fifth innings to extend their lead to 6-0 before the 'Caps offense awoke in the seventh with three runs of their own.
Rey Rivera's RBI-double highlighted the seventh, then delivered a two-run triple to help the 'Caps bring their deficit to 6-5. One pitch later, Brady Policelli's RBI-single scored Rivera to tie the game at six in the eighth. In the ninth, Jose Azocar hammered a 1-0 pitch into the right-center field gap for a go-ahead two-run triple to take an 8-6 lead. He scored on a groundout by Jordan Pearce to bring the edge to 9-6. In the ninth, Whitecaps returnee Johan Belisario worked around a pair of hits to retire Loons All-Star Jared Walker on a groundout to end the game and give the Whitecaps their most significant victory of the season.
Reliever Max Green (2-3) turned in his best appearance of the season, tossing three shutout innings while striking out four and allowing West Michigan the time they needed to rally for his second win of the season, while Loons reliever Andre Scrubb (3-2) gave up six runs in his only frame to take his second loss. The Whitecaps improve to 33-34 with the unexpected victory, while the Loons fall to 24-41 with the loss as the 'Caps avoid a three-game sweep. Rivera finished 3-for-5 and a home run shy of the cycle with three RBIs to lead the offense. Brady Policelli had a single, walked twice and stole a Whitecaps season-high three bases in the win. The victory was the first for the Whitecaps in any game this year in which the club had been tied or losing entering the ninth inning of a contest.
UP NEXT
The Whitecaps return home for the final series of the first half with a three-game set against the Dayton Dragons on Friday at 7:05 pm. Pitcher Tom de Blok returns from Lakeland to start for the Whitecaps. Broadcast coverage with Mike Coleman 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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