Captains Earn Ninth Shutout in 2-0 Win Over Loons

EASTLAKE, OH – The Lake County Captains (24-19, 65-44) blanked the Great Lakes Loons (22-21, 56-53) 2-0 on Wednesday at Classic Auto Group Park, earning their ninth shutout of the season.

Captains LHP Matt Wilkinson (4-3) pitched 5.1 scoreless innings, allowing just two hits, fanning six and walking two. RHP Matt Jachec and LHP Steven Perez spun shutout seventh and eighth frames, respectively, before RHP Jay Driver struck out three of five batters faced in the top of the ninth to earn his first High-A save. Loons reliever Jose Rodriguez (1-3) garnered the loss, allowing two runs across four innings.

Lake County’s two runs off Rodriguez came in the bottom of the fifth. After LF Isaiah Greene and 2B Travis Bazzana, MLB Pipeline’s No. 1 Cleveland and No. 13 overall prospect, singled, SS Angel Genao, MLB Pipeline’s No. 6 Cleveland and No. 95 overall prospect, hit an RBI single to take the lead. Two batters later, 1B Ralphy Velazquez, MLB Pipeline’s No. 5 Cleveland and No. 77 overall prospect, hit a sacrifice fly for his first High-A RBI.

Great Lakes did not have multiple runners on base until the top of the ninth inning. With one out and runners on first and second, Driver struck out LF Sam Mongelli and SS Nick McLain to earn his first save since August 24, 2023 against Single-A Delmarva (Baltimore) while with Single-A Lynchburg.

The third and fourth games of this week’s scheduled seven-game series between the Captains and Loons are scheduled as a seven-inning doubleheader, which will begin on Thursday afternoon at 4:30 p.m. It will be Dawg Day at the ballpark, where the team will pay special tribute to Doodles. Lake County will also host Karen Night.

Both games will be broadcast on the Bally Live app and MiLB.TV, with social media coverage courtesy of @LCCaptains on X and Instagram.

Notes To Know

- Since August 2 versus Beloit, LHP Matt Wilkinson has retired 49 of 61 batters faced. The 2023 10th-round pick leads MiLB with a 1.84 ERA, while ranking second with 156 strikeouts and a .161 opposing average.

- C Jacob Cozart, MLB Pipeline’s No. 13 Cleveland prospect, singled on the first professional pitch he saw, and RF Wuilfredo Antunez singled in his first High-A plate appearance. Cozart, Antunez, and 1B Ralphy Velazquez, who singled on the first High-A pitch he saw on Tuesday, each tallied a single in their first High-A plate appearance this week.

- With three strikeouts on Wednesday, RHP Matt Jachec now leads Minor League relievers with 91 strikeouts this season.

- 2B Travis Bazzana went 2-for-3 with a double and a run scored, extending his on-base streak to 10 games.

The Lake County Captains are the High-A Affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians, and have been a Class A Affiliate of Cleveland since the team was founded in 2003. To find out more information about the Captains or purchase tickets, visit CaptainsBaseball.com, or call (440) 975-8085.