'Caps Miscues Lead to Walk-Off Defeat
June 11, 2025 - Midwest League (MWL)
West Michigan Whitecaps News Release
LANSING, MI - The West Michigan Whitecaps carried a lead throughout the entire evening on Wednesday night but couldn't finish the job as a bizarre ninth inning led to a 4-3 loss to the Lansing Lugnuts in front of 3.835 fans at Jackson Field.
The Whitecaps - who carried a 3-2 lead into the ninth and were three outs away from trimming their Midwest League Eastern Division title magic number down to one, watched the ninth inning go sideways in a multitude of unexpected ways to give Lansing the victory. The Whitecaps magic number remains at three with the defeat.
The ninth inning was as unusual a finish as you can find - as the Lugnuts scored twice to win the game without the benefit of a base hit. The frame began when 'Caps reliever Micah Ashman struck out Rodney Green Jr. but issued a wild pitch to allow Green to reach first base safely. Catcher CJ Rodriguez attempted a sacrifice bunt to move Green over to second base but was hit by the pitch from Ashman to put runners at first and second base. The next batter, infielder Casey Yamauchi, sent a bunt back to the mound, where Ashman misfired his throw to second base into left-center field, allowing Green to score the tying run. After a strikeout of Josh Kuroda-Grauer, the 'Caps decided to issue an intentional walk to Schofield-Sam and load the bases with one out. Jared Dickey followed with a slow chopper to the right side. First baseman Luke Gold fielded the ball and elected to send his throw to second base rather than to home plate, requiring a double play to send the game to extra innings, but the 'Caps were unable to convert, as no one covered first base and Rodriguez scored the winning run on the fielder's choice, ending the 4-3 Lansing comeback and Whitecaps walk-off defeat.
The Whitecaps scored three runs in the span of two first-inning pitches; John Peck delivered the game's first run with an RBI double to score Kevin McGonigle and give West Michigan a 1-0 lead. One pitch later, the 'Caps jumped out to a 3-0 lead when Ben Malgeri, on a rehab assignment with West Michigan, hit his first home run with the team since 2023 with an opposite-field two-run shot, but the 'Caps wouldn't find the scoreboard for the remainder of the evening. In the fifth, Midwest League hitting leader T.J. Schofield-Sam lined a two-run double to bring Lansing to within a run at 3-2. The score remained the same as the 'Caps worked in and out of trouble in the frames leading up to the ninth before West Michigan suffered its tough loss.
The Whitecaps record falls to 39-20, while Lansing jumps to 34-25. Hector Gomez (2-2) threw one pitch to retire the only batter he faced in the ninth and gets his second win, while Ashman (3-3) gets his third loss. Malgeri went 3-for-3 at the plate with a run scored to go along with his home run before being replaced in the seventh inning as part of an injury return-to-play progression. The Whitecaps, who held the best fielding percentage in the Midwest League entering the contest (.980), committed three errors -- one shy of their season-high of four on May 8 at home, also against the Lugnuts.
UP NEXT
The Whitecaps play the third game of this six-game series from Jackson Field against the Lansing Lugnuts on Thursday at 7:05 pm. Lefty Andrew Sears gets the start for West Michigan against pitcher Steven Echavarria for Lansing. Broadcast coverage with Dan Hasty begins on the Whitecaps Baseball Network at 6:50 pm on 106.1 FM 'The Ticket' and 1340 WJRW-AM in Grand Rapids. Catch all the action on the radio or listen to the game live at whitecapsbaseball.com.
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