Bazzana's Grand Slam Helps Power Captains' Doubleheader Sweep

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MWL Lake County Captains

Bazzana's Grand Slam Helps Power Captains' Doubleheader Sweep

August 1, 2024 - Midwest League (MWL)
Lake County Captains News Release


EASTLAKE, OH - In the first and second games of a scheduled six-game series, the Lake County Captains (18-13, 59-38) swept a doubleheader against the Beloit Sky Carp (15-17, 45-50) on Wednesday at Classic Auto Group Park in Eastlake.

Lake County won Game 1 (nine innings) by a final score of 17-5, and Game 2 (scheduled for seven innings) by a final score of 5-4 in eight innings.

Game 1

This past Tuesday night, the first game of this week's series was suspended with no outs in the top of the second inning, with the score tied at 0-0. Captains RHP Rorik Maltrud (ND) struck out the side in order to begin the game, needing just 13 pitches to do so. Then, after he threw a first pitch ball to Sky Carp DH Brock Vradenburg, the game was delayed for an hour and 12 minutes before being suspended.

On Wednesday, the two teams picked up where they left off. Lake County's offense scored at least one run in each of its seven innings at the plate, which was headlined by four runs each in the bottom of the third, fourth, and fifth innings.

All four of the Captains' runs in the fifth came on one swing. After the first three Lake County hitters reached to load the bases, 2B Travis Bazzana, Baseball America's No. 1 Cleveland and No. 19 MLB prospect, hit a grand slam to right field, extending the Captains' lead to 13-5. This was the 2024 MLB Draft No. 1 overall pick's first career professional home run. He finished his Minor League home debut 2-for-4 at the plate, tying game-highs with four RBI and three runs scored.

SS Angel Genao, MLB Pipeline's No. 10 Cleveland prospect, and CF Jake Fox, MLB Pipeline's No. 17 Cleveland prospect, each finished a triple shy of the cycle. Genao finished 3-for-5 with four RBI, which included a two-run homer in the bottom of the third inning. Fox went 3-for-5 with a home run as well, which was a solo shot one inning prior.

LF Jorge Burgos also tied a game-high with four RBI, ripping a three-run home run in the bottom of the fourth inning.

RHP Juan Zapata (2-5) tied his season-high with four innings of long relief, allowing six hits, five earned runs, and one walk, while throwing two strikeouts in 70 pitches (42 strikes). His five earned runs allowed were courtesy of three Sky Carp home runs: a three-run shot from Beloit 2B Carlos Santiago, a solo blast from RF Mark Coley II, MLB Pipeline's No. 28 Miami prospect, and another solo homer from Santiago.

Finally, RHP Jay Driver and RHP Josh Harlow, who made his High-A debut, each pitched two scoreless innings of relief and threw four strikeouts apiece out of the Lake County bullpen.

Game 2

A walk-off single by 1B Tyresse Turner in the bottom of the eighth inning secured a 5-4 Captains victory and a doubleheader sweep over the Sky Carp.

After Beloit took a 1-0 lead on a solo home run by 1B Torin Montgomery in the top of the second, Lake County answered with four runs in the bottom of the second. DH Maick Collado hit a two-run home run, and C Johnny Tincher ripped a two-run single, extending his hitting streak to seven games and his on-base streak to 10 games.

The Sky Carp rallied for three runs in the top of the fourth after LF Jake DeLeo walked in a run and CF Osiris Johnson lined a game-tying, two-run single.

In the top of the seventh, Beloit had Johnson on second with no outs. RHP Matt Jachec struck out Sky Carp RF Mark Coley II, MLB Pipeline's No. 28 Miami prospect, then picked off Johnson at second and fanned SS Johnny Olmstead to end the inning.

With the game in extra innings, Captains LHP Steven Perez retired all three batters faced in the top of the eighth in his High-A home debut, which included his first career High-A strikeout to end the half-inning.

In the home half of the eighth, SS Angel Genao, MLB Pipeline's No. 10 Cleveland prospect, singled, and RF Jorge Burgos was intentionally walked to load the bases. After Beloit picked up two strikeouts, Turner rolled a two-out RBI single to walk it off.

Perez (1-0) was the winning pitcher, spinning a 1-2-3 top of the eighth and striking out one. Sky Carp RHP Xavier Meachem (1-3) garnered the loss, allowing the unearned winning run and striking out three.

First pitch for the third game of this week's scheduled six-game series between the Captains and Sky Carp is scheduled for Thursday night at 7 p.m. It will be Dawg Day at the ballpark, where the team will pay special tribute to Labrador Retrievers. The game will be broadcast on the Bally Live app and MiLB.TV, with social media coverage courtesy of @LCCaptains on X and Instagram.

Notes To Know

- Lake County has scored 17-plus runs in a game twice this season. It marks the third time since at least 2005 where a Captains team has scored 17-plus runs in multiple games in a season. The 2022 team and 2005 teams also reached that feat twice.

- In Game 1, OF Jonah Advincula extended his on-base streak to a team-high 14 games, and C Cooper Ingle, MLB Pipeline's No. 28 Cleveland prospect, upped his on-base streak to 13 games.

- RHP Matt Jachec pitched 3.1 scoreless innings for the third time in his Minor League career and for the first time as a Captain, striking out a High-A best six batters.

- OF Jorge Burgos has hit his ninth homer in his last 30 games. His nine home runs since June 14 are the most in the Midwest League.

The Lake County Captains are the High-A Affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians, and have been a Class A Affiliate of Cleveland since the team was founded in 2003. To find out more information about the Captains or purchase tickets, visit CaptainsBaseball.com, or call (440) 975-8085.

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