Whitecaps Walk Off Loons in Crazy 10-Inning Comeback

COMSTOCK PARK, Mich. – The Great Lakes Loons felt like they had something figured out Saturday night. In nine innings of offense, they collected four runs on nine hits and took a 4-0 lead into the bottom of the ninth inning.

And when the West Michigan Whitecaps came to the plate in the bottom of the ninth at LMCU Ballpark, they’d have to face off against the Loons’ best reliever, Ben Harris, who had not allowed a run in his last 23 innings of work.

The Whitecaps still found a way to victory.

West Michigan scored four runs in the bottom of the ninth inning, including three with two strikes and two outs, and walked the game off in the 10th inning, defeating the Loons 5-4.

The Loons (76-55, 36-29 second half) struck first in the second inning thanks to a solo home run from Aldrich De Jongh, his ninth of the season. Great Lakes took a 1-0 lead at that point.

For the Whitecaps (72-59, 41-24), that was the only run allowed by starting right-handed pitcher Jackson Jobe, the top prospect in the Tigers’ organization. He tossed five innings of two-hit baseball, walking one and striking out four.

Great Lakes, the Los Angeles Dodgers’ High-A partner, had an excellent start from Kendall Williams. The righty tossed five innings and allowed just three hits and four hits with a pair of punchouts.

In the seventh inning, the Loons doubled their advantage. Yunior Garcia led off the frame with a single, followed by a walk drawn by Austin Gauthier. That set up an RBI single for Diego Cartaya and gave Great Lakes a 2-0 advantage.

The Whitecaps, High-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers, continued to be stifled by Loons pitching. Jeff Belge, Michael Hobbs and Ryan Sublette each tossed a perfect inning in relief, and each hurler struck out one batter.

The ninth inning saw the Loons add to their advantage again. Eddys Leonard hit a one-out double before Cartaya was intentionally walked, putting two on with one out for Jorbit Vivas. He hit an RBI single, as did Damon Keith later in the frame, and the Loons doubled their lead once again, taking a 4-0 lead into the bottom of the ninth.

Harris came on and got off to a rough start. The first batter he faced, Jace Jung, hit a triple off the wall in straight-away center field, then the next two batters walked to load the bases with nobody out. After a strikeout, Harris walked another batter to score the first West Michigan run, then recorded another strikeout. With two outs and two strikes, Ben Malgeri lofted a ball to middle-depth right-center, which the two Loons outfielders both dove for – and neither came up with the baseball. That allowed all three runners to score and tied the game at four. Danny Serretti nearly hit a walk-off homer right there, but Luis Diaz robbed him with a leaping catch at the wall in left field to send the game to extras.

In the top of the 10th, Trevin Michael (W, 1-0) walked the first batter he faced, but elicited a ground ball double play to put the placed runner on third with two outs. A groundout sent the game to the bottom of the 10th with the Loons empty-handed.

Aldry Acosta (L, 1-2) came in for the bottom of the 10th and recorded no outs. A single and an intentional walk loaded the bases (in combo with the placed runner) with nobody outs. Jake Holton grounded a ball to Leonard at short who threw home, but the ball popped out of Cartaya’s mitt and the winning run scored on a no-out fielder’s choice. West Michigan 5, Great Lakes 4.

Despite the comeback win, West Michigan was eliminated from playoff contention. The Lake County Captains defeated Fort Wayne on Saturday to clinch the MWL East second-half title, and will face the Loons in the playoffs on Tuesday in Eastlake, Ohio. Games two and (if necessary) three of the first round series will take place at Dow Diamond in Midland, Mich., on Thursday and Friday – tickets are available at Loons.com.

The Whitecaps take a 4-1 lead in this series, clinching the set victory a day early. They also claim a 9-8 advantage in the season series. The final game of the regular season is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. Sunday at LMCU Ballpark, with ESPN 100.9-FM pregame coverage kicking off at 1:45 p.m. with the Loons On-Deck Circle, driven by Garber Chevrolet Midland. Great Lakes will start Christian Suarez (0-0, 0.00 ERA), facing fellow lefty Matt Walker (2-2, 4.40 ERA).

The Great Lakes Loons have been a 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.