Dayton Dragons GameDay Notes for Thursday (7:05 PM vs. West Michigan)
MWL Dayton Dragons

Dayton Dragons GameDay Notes for Thursday (7:05 PM vs. West Michigan)

Published on June 25, 2026 under Midwest League (MWL)
Dayton Dragons News Release


Thursday, June 25, 2026 l Game # 71 (5)

Day Air Ballpark l Dayton, Ohio l 7:05 pm

TV: MLB.TV, MLB+, Bally Sports Live Ohio

Radio: Fox Sports 980 WONE

West Michigan Whitecaps (3-2, 27-42) at Dayton Dragons (3-1, 42-28)

RH Lucas Elissalt (1-4, 4.74) vs. RH Ovis Portes (1-3, 9.64)

Today's Game: The Dayton Dragons (affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds) host the West Michigan Whitecaps (affiliate of the Detroit Tigers) in the third game of a six-game series at Day Air Ballpark in the heart of the Water Street District. Season Series: Dayton 10, West Michigan 4.

Dragons First Half Summary: Record: 39-27, East Division champs. By winning 8 of their last 9 games in the half including 2 elimination games on the final night, the Dragons overtook Great Lakes and Lake County to win the division by 1 game. The Dragons outscored their opponents 90-26 in those nine games. The Dragons previously won First Half division titles in 2001 and '07. The Dragons First Half winning percentage of .591 tied for second best in franchise history (44-26, .629 in 2007; 39-27, .591 in 2022)

Last Game: Wednesday: Dayton 12, West Michigan 6. Carlos Sanchez hit a grand slam home run and Carter Graham collected four hits including as home run as the Dragons won their second straight game in the series. The Dragons scored 10 runs over the first four innings to build a 10-3 lead.

Current Series: vs. West Michigan (June 23-28): Dayton 2, West Michigan 0. The Dragons have outscored the Whitecaps 20-11. Dayton team stats in the series: .369 batting avg. (.346 with runners in scoring position); 3 HR, 3 SB, 5.50 ERA, 1 E.

Dragons Team and Player Trending Notes:

The Dragons are 11-2 over their last 13 games, outscoring their opponents 117-46 in those 13 G. Over those 13 G, the 46 runs allowed by the Dragons is the fewest of any team in Minor League Baseball (120 teams), and the 117 runs scored by the Dragons is the second most in the minors.

The Dragons are 29-14 since May 5. In June, the Dragons lead the MWL in winning pct (.684 with 13-6 record), home runs (45), and runs scored.

The Dragons have hit 35 over their last 13 games, most of any team in the minor leagues. They have hit 23 home runs over their last eight games, also the most in the minors.

The Dragons have hit 93 HR in 70 G, on pace to finish the year with 174 (club record: 152 in 2022).

The Dragons have scored 431 runs, on pace to finish the year with 806 (club record is 730 in 2000).

-- Starting with a bang: Mason Neville played in his first game with the Dragons last night and hit a home run on his very first swing. Neville tied for the lead among all NCAA D1 players in home runs (26) in 2025.

-- Carter Graham broke the Dragons club record for highest batting average in a First Half season at .330. Graham has also broken the club record for most grand slam home runs in a season with three. For the year, Graham has three 2-homer games and five games with at least 5 RBI. He tied the club record on May 28 for most RBI in a game with 8 (a record that was also tied on June 18 (Game 2) by Jacob Friend. Graham has five 4-hit games in 2026.

-- Since May 1, Carter Graham in 46 G leads the MWL in RBI (52-14 more than any other player), extra base hits (29), and hits (59). Since 5/1, he is batting .347 (3rd in MWL), with 15 HR (tied for 1 st), 1.168 OPS (2nd).

MWL Leading Dragons (full season): Carlos Sanchez leads the MWL in hits and is second in runs...Carter Graham leads in RBI and is second in home runs. Reds Organization Leading Dragons: Graham leads the Reds farm system in RBI, OPS, SLG pct. and On-Base pct...Carlos Sanchez leads in runs.

Dragons Hottest Hitters:

Alfredo Alcantara over his last 12 G is batting .333, 5 HR, 3 2B, 13 RBI.

Yerlin Confidan in his last 14 G is batting .300, 3 HR, after going 2 for his previous 45. Prior to that, he hit .350 (35 for 100) over the previous 26 G.

Alfredo Duno in his last 39 games is batting .296, 13 HR, 9 2B, 34 RBI.

Jacob Friend in his last 9 G is batting .321, 3 HR, 3 2B, 14 RBI, 10 BB. Between Dayton and Daytona, Friend has 14 HR (5 th in Reds org), 51 RBI (3 rd in org.).

Carter Graham in his last 23 G is batting .360 with 11 HR and 34 RBI. He has 7 HR in his last 13 G.

Mason Neville hit a home run on his first swing as a member of the Dragons last night. He drew walks in each of his other three plate appearances.

Peyton Stovall in his last 18 G is batting .322 with 5 HR, 5 2B, 2 3B, and 16 RBI.

Carlos Sanchez is 6 for 9 with a grand slam home run, 2 2B, 1 3B, and 8 RBI in his last 2 G to snap a 5 for 36 (.139) skid.

Kien Vu in his last 25 G is batting .315 with 6 HR, 6 2B, 4 3B, 17 BB, and 7 HBP.

Upcoming Probable Pitchers (Game times are Dayton time) (All games on WONE 980 AM)

Friday, June 26 (7:05 pm): West Michigan LH Jake Miller (0-0, 2.25) at Dayton RH Reynardo Cruz (3-2, 5.28) TV: Dayton's CW (26)

Saturday, June 27 (7:05 pm): West Michigan RH Charlie Christensen (2-1, 2.55 w/Lakeland) at Dayton RH Jose Montero (3-1, 3.16)

Sunday, June 28 (7:05 pm): West Michigan RH Rayner Castillo (1-5, 5.98) at Dayton RH J.P. Ortiz (4-1, 5.16) TV: Dayton's CW (26)

How to Watch/Listen: Dragons radio broadcasts of all home and road games are also available on FOX Sports 980 WONE (980 AM), at daytondragons.com, and via the Dragons Mobile App. Additionally, the Dragons will televise 15 games locally over-the-air on Dayton's CW (Channel 26; Spectrum Cable channels 13 and 1013). All 2026 home and road Dragons can be viewed free of charge on the Bally Sports Live app (look for Bally Live Ohio) or on the internet at Ballysportslive.com (click on Bally Sports Live Ohio or the MiLB Zone). All games are also available by subscription on the MLB App and the MiLB App. Games in Dayton will be Dragons productions; games on the road will be produced by the opposing team.

Dragons Ticket Information: daytondragons.com/tickets Dragons 2026 Schedule: milb.com/dayton/schedule

Check out the Dayton Dragons Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



Midwest League Stories from June 25, 2026


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central