Dayton, Ohio - Otto Lopez returned from the IL with a bang, literally. The first pitch the 20-year old saw was smacked out for his third home run of the year. The Lansing Lugnuts (1-1, 33-38) used that early spark in the first inning and shut down the Dayton Dragons
Dayton, Ohio - Otto Lopez returned from the IL with a bang, literally. The first pitch the 20-year old saw was smacked out for his third home run of the year. The Lansing Lugnuts (1-1, 33-38) used that early spark in the first inning and shut down the Dayton Dragons (1-1, 29-43) offense at Fifth Third Field in Dayton on Friday night.
Lugnuts starter Troy Watson (Win, 2-1) was fantastic. He pitched six innings of shutout ball, allowing only four hits, with two strikeouts and no walks. Those four hits are all the Dragons would get after having 11 Thursday night.
Dayton, Ohio - Otto Lopez returned from the IL with a bang, literally. The first pitch the 20-year old saw was smacked out for his third home run of the year. The Lansing Lugnuts (1-1, 33-38) used that early spark in the first inning and shut down the Dayton Dragons (1-1, 29-43) offense at Fifth Third Field in Dayton on Friday night.
Lugnuts starter Troy Watson (Win, 2-1) was fantastic. He pitched six innings of shutout ball, allowing only four hits, with two strikeouts and no walks. Those four hits are all the Dragons would get after having 11 Thursday night.
The offense wouldn't add anything more until the 6th inning, when they knocked out Dragons starter, James Marinan (L, 2-7). After a base hit and a stolen base for Reggie Pruitt , he then scored on an error from Marinan. Then the 20-year old faced his final batter as Ryan Gold doubled, scoring Gabriel Moreno . The two-bagger was his team-leading fifteenth, and the second of three hits for the lefty.
After the offense extended the lead, Joey Pulido and Cre Finfrock would do the rest of the work. The two combined to pitch three hitless and scoreless innings to finish off the Dragons. Pulido struck out one in the seventh and eighth, while Finfrock set down the middle of the order with a couple of strikeouts in the ninth.
The Lugnuts fourth and final run came in the top of the ninth inning thanks to LJ Talley's third base hit as a Lugnut, and first RBI as he drove in Moreno.
When Otto Lopez went down on the IL on June 1, he was carrying a 22 game on-base streak, it took him no time to extend that streak in the first inning on his home run to left. The streak for Lopez started back on May 5.
Combined the Lugnuts had 10 hits and only two batters didn't reach against the Dragons. After stranding 10 base runners yesterday, Lansing left just five on tonight.
The Lugnuts and Dragons will get together again tomorrow night in game three of the second half. First pitch is at 7 p.m. with Lugnuts RHP Fitz Stadler expected to start and RHP Cobi Johnson piggybacking him against RHP Ricky Salinas .
The next Lugnuts homestand is a seven-gamer from June 25-July 1 against Lake County and Bowling Green, including Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. Jersey Giveaway Night on June 28th and Backyard Baseball Night 2 with a Pete Wheeler Bobblehead Giveaway on June 29th! To live the Lug Life and purchase tickets, visit lansinglugnuts.com, call (517) 485-4500 or come to the Cooley Law School Stadium box office at 505 E. Michigan Ave. in downtown Lansing.
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