FORT WAYNE, IN - The West Michigan Whitecaps are inching their way towards Midwest League History, as they pitched their 21st shutout as a team with an 8-0 victory over the Fort Wayne TinCaps at Parkview Field Wednesday night.Tweet from @wmwhitecaps: We post our 21st shutout of the season in
FORT WAYNE, IN - The West Michigan Whitecaps are inching their way towards Midwest League History, as they pitched their 21st shutout as a team with an 8-0 victory over the Fort Wayne TinCaps at Parkview Field Wednesday night.
Nearly all the scoring in the contest took place in the second inning, as the Whitecaps sent 10 batters to the plate in a five-run frame. A two-run double by Drew Longley opened the scoring, followed by a two-run triple by Derek Hill. Isaac Paredes continued his strong start in West Michigan with an RBI-single to cap off the five-run second. Meanwhile, 'Caps starter Greg Soto held the TinCaps scoreless through six innings while striking out nine. After plating a run in the sixth, Cole Bauml scored two with a ninth inning double to conclude the 'Caps offense, giving West Michigan an 8-0 lead.
Soto (10-1) becomes the Whitecaps first 10-game winner after tossing six shutout innings, allowing just two hits and three walks while striking out nine. Reggie Lawson (3-5) started for Fort Wayne and failed to escape the Whitecaps big second inning to take his fifth loss after surrendering five runs in 1.2 innings. Locke St. John struck out six over the final three innings to record his second save of the season. The Whitecaps improve to 27-10 in the second half, and 72-32 overall while the TinCaps drop to 51-58 overall with a 25-14 mark in the back half of 2017. Derek Hill led the Whitecaps with three hits and two RBI on the night. Isaac Paredes, Anthony Pereira and Drew Longley also had a pair of hits for West Michigan in the victory.
The shutout gives West Michigan 21 shutouts on the season - just two away from the Midwest League record of 23 set by Quad Cities in 1974.
UP NEXT
The Whitecaps continue this three-game series with the Fort Wayne TinCaps Thursday night at 7:05p.m. Pitcher Tom de Blok gets the start for West Michigan against TinCaps pitcher Jim McDade. Broadcast coverage with Dan Hasty begins on the Whitecaps Baseball Network at 6:55p.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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