Captains Outlast Lugnuts 5-2, Extend Win Streak to Four Games

EASTLAKE, OH – The Lake County Captains (10-6, 51-31) earned their fourth straight victory with a 5-2 win over the Lansing Lugnuts (6-11, 38-44) on Wednesday afternoon at Classic Auto Group Park.

RHP Rorik Maltrud (2-0) earned his second High-A win and second consecutive quality start, pitching six innings, allowing two runs on seven hits, striking out five, and walking one. LHP Steve Hajjar and RHP Juan Zapata pitched scoreless seventh and eighth innings, while RHP Magnus Ellerts spun a shutout ninth inning to earn his Midwest League-leading 10^th save.

The Captains struck first in the bottom of the second inning, when 3B Tyresse Turner hit an RBI single to right field, scoring CF Jonah Advincula. In the top of the fourth, the Lugnuts answered with a solo home run from 1B Will Simpson, MLB Pipeline’s No. 24 Oakland prospect.

The following half-inning, Captains LF Angel Zarate responded with a go-ahead solo home run, his first career High-A homer. Two batters later, C Johnny Tincher then flared an RBI single to extend Lake County’s lead to 3-1.

The Captains scored their final two runs of the game when RF Jorge Burgos blasted a two-run home run down the right field line for his ninth long ball of the season. Lugnuts CF Brayan Buelvas, MLB Pipeline’s No. 29 Oakland prospect, hit a solo home run in the top of the sixth before Lake County’s bullpen blanked Lansing for the final three innings.

The bottom four in the Captains’ batting order, Zarate, Turner, Tincher and DH Isaiah Greene, batted a combined .571 (8-for-14) with one homer and three RBI, each recording a two-hit game.

First pitch for the third game of this week’s scheduled six-game series between the Captains and Lugnuts is scheduled for Thursday night at 7 p.m. It will be Dawg Day at the ballpark, where the team will pay special tribute to Dachshunds. It will also be Faith Night at the ballpark. The game 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

- RHP Rorik Maltrud earned his second straight quality start, and third in his last four outings across Single-A Lynchburg and Lake County. His 0.75 ERA since May 31 ranks seventh in Minor League Baseball during this span.

- RHP Magnus Ellerts has 10 saves through the team’s first 82 games, the most by a Captain in that span since four-year MLB veteran and current Triple-A Oklahoma City RHP J.P. Feyereisen also recorded 10 in 2015.

- OF Angel Zarate hit his first home run as a Captain, and his first since July 18, 2023 versus Fayetteville (Single-A, Houston Astros) while with Single-A Lynchburg.

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.