Loons Drop First Six-Game Series of 2023 

Midland, Mich. – The Great Lakes Loons (60-34) (15-14) had multiple base runners reach in just one inning as the Dayton Dragons’ (49-46) (16-13) won their fourth game in the five played this week, 5-2 on a 75-degree partly cloudy Saturday night at Dow Diamond.

Taylor Young had three of the seven Loons hits he singled to begin the bottom of the first. Alex Freeland followed that up with an opposite field single into right field. After a double play, Young moved to third base. Damon Keith was next-up and laced a payoff pitch 104 miles per hour into left field, an RBI single.

Dayton’s Chase Petty forced a flyout to end the first. The 20-year-old worked around two singles in the next two frames, finishing three innings, responsible for one run.

Justin Wrobleski started for Great Lakes and dominated through four innings. The southpaw permitted just one hit, a leadoff double. The 23-year-old struckout the side in the first, maneuvered around two walks in the second and punched out two in a 15-pitch 1-2-3 third inning.

Wrobleski struckout a seventh batter, Justice Thompson to close out the fourth. His 90 strikeouts are second-most in the Midwest League.

The Dragons, in the fifth, posted two runs on a home run from Edwin Arroyo. Mitchell Tyranski’s second home run allowed in 30.2 innings.

Great Lakes tied up the game in the bottom of the fifth, Taylor Young’s third hit, his third homer of the season. A payoff pitch sent 371 feet over the right field fence. Young has seven hits in the series.

Carlos De Los Santos kept the score knotted up at two, tossing two scoreless innings. The right-hander stranded two, ending the sixth and seventh with a strikeout, totaling three.

The Loons turned to Reinaldo De Paula in the eighth. Ruben Ibarra was hit by a pitch. Jay Allen II entered as a pinch runner and was sent in motion as Cade Hunter singled to center field. With runners on the corners, Justice Thompson poked a single to shallow center field. Jack Rogers with two on, tripled to deep center field plating two runs. De Paula closed the inning with two strikeouts.

Great Lakes left two on base in the final two innings. The eighth saw a Chris Alleyne single, he stole second and moved to third on a groundout. Max Hewitt with two outs, lined a ball to centerfield that was caught with a full extension dive from Justice Thompson.

The first pitch of the game was delayed 44 minutes due to a pop up rain shower.

Great Lakes and Dayton play the series finale tomorrow Sunday, July 30th. The first pitch is at 1:05 p.m. It is Inclusion Day presented by Corteva Agriscience and Kids Eat Free and Run the Bases brought to you by EGLE.

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.