Lugnuts Best Loons in Pitchers’ Duel in Front of Sellout Crowd

MIDLAND, Mich. – The first time Lansing lefty Jack Owen faced off against Loons’ right-hander Carlos Duran, the Lugnuts squeaked out a 1-0 win in Lansing, Mich.

In a pitching rematch almost exactly three weeks later, Owen carried the Lugnuts to another one-run victory.

Lansing took advantage of just three hits to defeat the Great Lakes Loons, 2-1, in front of 5,335 fans Saturday night at Dow Diamond.

The Lugnuts (37-58, 12-17 second half) cracked the scoreboard first on the second batter of the game. Euribiel Ángeles homered for just the second time this season to put the visitors ahead, 1-0.

Lansing, the Oakland Athletics’ High-A affiliate, scored its second run on just one hit in the fourth inning. Duran (L, 0-2) allowed a Tyler Soderstrom single, then walked two to load the bases. Duran would strike out the next two batters, but toss a wild pitch in the second at-bat which allowed Soderstrom to score from third to double the Lansing advantage, 2-0. In his 3 2-3 innings, the Loons righty allowed two hits, three walks and two earned runs while striking out nine batters.

The Loons (57-38, 17-12) were kept off the bases until Alex De Jesus doubled with two outs in the fourth inning, breaking up a perfecto bid from Owen (W, 3-1). In the July 8 matchup between these two, Owen took a perfect game into the fifth inning, and allowed just one hit in six frames. Saturday, Owen tossed six more scoreless innings, allowing three hits this time while walking none and punching out four.

Great Lakes, the High-A partner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, turned to lefty Lael Lockhart, who was superb in his tandem start. The Arkansas alum tossed 4 1-3 innings of one-hit baseball, allowing no runs and just one walk while fanning five batters. Cole Duensing then pitched a scoreless eighth inning with no walks and a strikeout.

The Loons finally got on the scoreboard in the ninth inning, but their rally attempt would fall short. Jorbit Vivas took the first pitch of the frame into right field for a base hit, then after an out, Kekai Rios singled to move Vivas to third. With runners on the corners and one out, Luis Yanel Diaz hit into an RBI groundout to bring the Loons within a run and put the tying run in scoring position. Then, Osvaldo Berrios (SV, 2) registered his lone strikeout of the evening to confirm the 2-1 victory.

Despite losing the contest, Great Lakes outhit Lansing, seven to three. Vivas and Rios both had multi-hit games for the home side. Of the five games in the series, three have been won by the team with fewer hits – the Loons won Wednesday and Friday despite being outhit. It is just the 10th time this season that Great Lakes has outhit its opponent and lost.

The six-game series wraps up Sunday at 1:05 p.m. at Dow Diamond, with ESPN 100.9-FM pregame coverage starting at 12:50 p.m. with the Loons On-Deck Circle, driven by Garber Chevrolet Midland. Great Lakes starts lefty Ben Harris (1-0, 1.35 ERA) opposite Lansing right-hander Blake Beers (0-3, 3.67 ERA).

At Dow Diamond, it’s Inclusion Day, presented by Corteva Agriscience, aiming to bring together every demographic possible. Community partners and non-profit organizations supporting inclusion activities in the Great Lakes Bay region will be on hand, and stay tuned for a postgame all-star exhibition from the Middle of the Mitt and Great Lakes Bay Miracle Leagues. As always at Dow Diamond, kids eat free and run the bases postgame, presented by ESPN 100.9-FM. Tickets are still available at Loons.com.

The Great Lakes Loons have been a Single-A partner of the Los Angeles Dodgers since the team’s inception in 2007. Dow Diamond serves as the team’s home and also houses the Michigan Baseball Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit public charity, and ESPN 100.9-FM. For tickets or information about the Loons, call 989-837-BALL or visit Loons.com.