Whitecaps Win, Back in First-Place Tie
COMSTOCK PARK, MI - Pitcher Dylan Smith dominated as the West Michigan Whitecaps used patient hitting and extra-base power to down the Lake County Captains 6-4 in front of 6,438 fans Tuesday night at LMCU Ballpark. The Whitecaps came one walk shy of tying their single-game high, drawing 11 free
COMSTOCK PARK, MI - Pitcher Dylan Smith dominated as the West Michigan Whitecaps used patient hitting and extra-base power to down the Lake County Captains 6-4 in front of 6,438 fans Tuesday night at LMCU Ballpark.
The Whitecaps came one walk shy of tying their single-game high, drawing 11 free passes as Josh Crouch and Ben Malgeri combined for five of the 'Caps six RBIs. Meanwhile, Smith collected his first victory for the Whitecaps since June 16, striking out six batters through five innings while allowing two runs in the slim win.
Lake County took the lead in the third inning as Angel Martinez pounded a ground-rule double in the third inning, scoring Mike Amditis and taking a 1-0 lead. West Michigan responded in the bottom half as Crouch smashed a two-run home run to forge in front 2-1. Martinez evened the game with an RBI in the fifth inning before the Whitecaps plated a pair, as Jace Jung lifted a sacrifice fly before a two-run single from Malgeri extended the lead to 5-2. Crouch plated his third RBI in the eighth before Amditis cracked a two-run homer in the ninth, trimming the advantage to 6-4. Still, the Captains couldn't rally, as Tim Holdgrafer struck out Martinez to end the game and secure the 6-4 victory.
Smith (7-4) picks up his seventh win of the season Captains starter Aaron Davenport (3-6) suffers his sixth loss, allowing four runs through 4.1 innings pitched. Jake Holton becomes the second Whitecap to draw four walks in a game this season - the first since Austin Murr did so against the Dayton Dragons on July 4. The Whitecaps and Captains are tied for first place in the Midwest League East Division second-half standings - with the Whitecaps holding the tiebreaker, currently leading the season series 4-3. The Whitecaps improve to 58-51 overall and 27-16 in the second half. The Captains fall to 61-46 and 26-15 in the second half. Malgeri, Crouch, and Jose King each had multi-hit games in the ‘Caps win.
UP NEXT
The Whitecaps continue this big six-game series against the division-leading Lake County Captains from LMCU Ballpark on Wednesday at 6:35 pm. Top-30 prospects for their respective teams and lefty pitchers Brant Hurter and Doug Nikhazy get the starts for West Michigan and Lake County. for the Broadcast coverage with Dan Hasty and Nate Wangler starts on the Whitecaps Baseball Network at 6:20 pm. Get your tickets for all 2022 home games now at www.whitecapsbaseball.com.