COMSTOCK PARK, MI - The West Michigan Whitecaps offense struggled against quality Great Lakes Loons pitching and an untimely error spelled the difference in a 3-0 defeat in front of a crowd of over 9,000 Saturday night at Fifth Third Ballpark.Tweet from @wmwhitecaps: Can't win them all....FINAL: @greatlakesloons 3 -
COMSTOCK PARK, MI - The West Michigan Whitecaps offense struggled against quality Great Lakes Loons pitching and an untimely error spelled the difference in a 3-0 defeat in front of a crowd of over 9,000 Saturday night at Fifth Third Ballpark.
Both 'Caps starter Eudis Idrogo and Loons starter Chris Mathewson escaped early harm in the second inning as both teams ended potential run scoring opportunities with double plays. Idrogo ran into trouble in the fourth inning, surrendering two consecutive singles followed by a run-scoring base hit off the bat of Connor Wong. The 1-0 Loons lead increased to 3-0 two batters later, as Idrogo threw wildly to first base after bobbling an infield grounder to send home two more runs and extend the lead to 3-0.
Meanwhile, Mathewson grew stronger as the game progressed, limiting the Whitecaps to only two singles over his last five innings of work. West Michigan produced a walk by Danny Woodrow and a single by Danny Pinero in the eighth inning off Loons reliever Ryan Moseley but could not push a run across as Isaac Paredes struck out to end the 'Caps threat.
Idrogo (6-5) allowed seven hits, one earned run and struck out seven Loons in taking his first loss since July 4, spanning in six starts. Evan Hill worked three innings of relief - his longest stint of 2017 while striking out five and only giving up two hits. Mathewson (4-3) tied a season best with nine strikeouts for Great Lakes, allowing only four singles in the win. Chad Sedio recorded two of the five hits for West Michigan and Cole Bauml extended a hitting streak to ten games with a fourth inning base hit. West Michigan fell to 79-35 on the year as they saw their five-game win streak come to an end. Great Lakes snapped a six-game slide with the victory and improved to 57-60.
UP NEXT
The Whitecaps conclude this four-game series against the Great Lakes Loons Sunday at 1:00p.m. Pitcher Alfred Gutierrez gets the start on the mound against Riley Ottesen for Great Lakes. Broadcast coverage with Dan Hasty and Mike Coleman begins on the Whitecaps Baseball Network at 12:50p.m. Tickets can be reserved for any Whitecaps 2017 home contest by calling the Whitecaps front office at 616-784-4131 or by visiting www.whitecapsbaseball.com.
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