Lockwood-Powell Hits for Cycle, Go-Ahead Ninth Inning Home Run

Lansing, Mich. – Griffin Lockwood-Powell drove in five runs with four hits, his fourth a ninth-inning three-run home run to complete a cycle and give the Great Lakes Loons (67-44) (22-24) a 7-5 win over the Lansing Lugnuts (50-61) (19-27) on a 72-degree partly cloudy Friday night at Jackson® Field™.

The Central Michigan Chippewa alum had his best night in his minor-league career. Lockwood-Powell drove in the game’s first run, an RBI double that scored Alex Freeland. The Loons scored first for the fourth straight night.

With the Lugnuts up 4-2 in the fifth inning, the 25-year-old with two outs slapped the first pitch he saw to center field, scoring Taylor Young from second base. Great Lakes trailed 5-3, entering the top of the eighth. On a 2-0 pitch from Christian Fernandez, Lockwood-Powell smacked it to deep left-center field, hitting off the wall. He raced to third for his first-ever triple in his 118th professional game.

A Nick Biddison sacrifice fly plated Lockwood-Powell. Then in the ninth, down a run, the Loons faced Pedro Santos. The right-hander had given up only one earned run in his previous 15.1 innings. Taylor Young walked, and Alex Freeland singled to set up the Great Lakes catcher with one out. The payoff pitch was the eighth of the at-bat and was powered 388 feet over the left-field fence.

Only two Loons have hit for the cycle before tonight. Alex De Jesus on June 16th, 2022, against the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers at Dow Diamond and Jaime Pedroza on June 5th, 2009, facing the West Michigan Whitecaps at LMCU Ballpark. The home run was Lockwood-Powell’s tenth of the year, the first in the clubhouse to reach double-digit longballs.

Michael Hobbs secured the comeback win by inducing a 6-3 double play in the ninth inning to earn his sixth save of 2023. Franklin De La Paz struck out two Lugnuts in the bottom of the eighth and earned the win.

Lansing took the lead in the fourth inning with a three-run four-hit frame. All nine-batters had an at-bat, with T.J. Schofield-Sam, Clark Elliott, and Euribiel Angeles registering RBI hits. Adolfo Ramirez bounced back with a scoreless fifth and sixth inning.

With the series tied at two, Great Lakes and Lansing square off in game five tomorrow Saturday, August 19th. The first pitch is 7:05 p.m.

The Great Lakes Loons have been the 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.