Great Lakes Strikes for 15 Runs, Routs Cedar Rapids 15-3
Cedar Rapids, IA - The Great Lakes offense exploded for 15 runs on 13 hits as the Loons handed the Kernels their largest loss of the season, 15-3. After Cedar Rapids came from behind to knock off the Loons in game one of the series Tuesday in walk-off fashion, Great
Cedar Rapids, IA - The Great Lakes offense exploded for 15 runs on 13 hits as the Loons handed the Kernels their largest loss of the season, 15-3.
After Cedar Rapids came from behind to knock off the Loons in game one of the series Tuesday in walk-off fashion, Great Lakes hopped on the board first Wednesday. In the top of the second, a single followed by three straight walks scored a run to put the Loons on top 1-0. Up by a run, the next batter, Josue De Paula, touched a two-run double to up the Great Lakes edge to 3-0. Behind him, a Noah Miller RBI groundout and an error scored two more Great Lakes runs to make it 5-0.
In the third, after Jordan Thompson was hit by a pitch, he stole second, moved to third on a flyout, and scored on a passed ball, to extend the lead to 6-0.
The Kernels got on the board for the first time in the bottom of the third. To begin the frame, Walker Jenkins recorded his first high-A hit. After Gabriel Gonzalez was hit by a pitch, a wild pitch moved the pair into scoring position, and Jenkins came home to score on a Rubel Cespedes RBI groundout. The next batter, Rayne Doncon, lifted a line drive single to right, scoring Gonzalez to cut the Great Lakes lead down to 6-2.
But that was the closest the Kernels got. The Loons blew it back open with four runs in the fifth to open a commanding 10-2 lead.
In the eighth, with a position player pitching, the Loons scored three times and twice more in the ninth to grow their lead to a game-high 13 runs at 15-2.
In the bottom of the ninth, Kyle Hess produced a two-out double and scored a batter later on a Dillon Tatum RBI single to put the Kernels back on the board at 15-3, but it was far too little, too late, and 15-3 stood as the final score.
The loss is the largest of the year for the Kernels and drops Cedar Rapids down to 55-41 on the season and 18-14 in the second half. Game three of the six-game series is set for Thursday at 6:35. Darren Bowen gets the start for the Kernels opposite Jackson Ferris.