Lugnuts turn four double plays, but fall to Loons

LANSING, Mich. – The Lansing Lugnuts (8-13, 39-47) turned four double plays, including one in each of the first three innings, but dropped a second straight game to the Great Lakes Loons (13-8, 58-28), 3-1, in front of 6,369 on Thursday night at Jackson® Field™.

Each game in the series has been decided by exactly two runs, with the Lugnuts winning the opener and the Loons prevailing in the last two contests.

Loons right fielder Chris Newell broke a scoreless tie in the fourth with a sacrifice fly, and then delivered a second sacrifice fly in a two-run sixth inning, bringing in Luis Díaz each time, to supply the winning margin for the visitors.

The Lugnuts’ only tally came in the bottom of the fourth inning, thanks to a Brennan Milone sacrifice fly.

In that pivotal sixth inning, with the score tied 1-1, Damon Keith led off with a double against Lugnuts reliever Brock Whittlesey. Díaz followed with a grounder to shortstop, where Euribiel Ángeles held Keith at second base before firing to first. But first baseman Danny Bautista, Jr. lost the throw in the sun and the ball ricocheted into the Lansing dugout, bringing Keith home for a 2-1 Loons lead. Newell followed with a fly ball to center two batters later, scoring Díaz with the game’s final run.

Lugnuts starter Jake Garland allowed one run on seven hits and a walk in five innings in a no-decision, striking out three. After Whittlesey pitched the sixth, John Beller escaped a bases-loaded jam in the seventh and Pedro Santos tossed a scoreless eighth and ninth; both Beller and Santos worked around three walks while striking out one.

Bautista, Jr. led the Lugnuts’ offense, going 2-for-3 with a single, a triple and a walk, though he grounded into a double play himself in the eighth inning. Daniel Susac went 1-for-4 with a single to extend his hitting streak to 11 games, a new team high for the season, and Colby Thomas went 1-for-5 with a single to hit safely in his ninth straight game since joining the Lugnuts from Stockton.

The Lansing Lugnuts will Pink Out the Park on Friday, Breast Cancer Awareness Night with postgame LAFCU Fireworks. First pitch is at 7:05 p.m. between Lansing right-hander Mitch Myers and Great Lakes lefty Maddux Bruns. Tickets are available via lansinglugnuts.com or by calling (517) 485-4500 during office hours.

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