Sports stats

MWL Dayton Dragons

Fort Wayne Edges Dragons 9-8 Despite Home Runs by Arroyo and Ibarra

August 17, 2023 - Midwest League (MWL)
Dayton Dragons News Release


Fort Wayne, Ind.-The Fort Wayne TinCaps scored four runs in the fifth inning and held off a Dayton comeback effort to defeat the Dragons 9-8 on Thursday night. Fort Wayne has won two straight in the set after Dayton took the series opener on Tuesday.

The Dragons fell to third place with the loss, two and one-half games behind first place West Michigan, a team that has gone 14-2 over their last 16 games. There are 21 games to play in the second half season.

Fort Wayne took advantage of 10 walks issued by Dayton pitchers, including two that came with the bases loaded in the fifth. The Dragons battled back from a three-run deficit to take the lead once in the game but could not do it a second time.

Fort Wayne scored two runs in the first to jump out to an early lead. The Dragons scored one in the top of the second on Mat Nelson's two-out RBI single, but Fort Wayne responded with two in the bottom of the second to pull ahead 4-1.

The Dragons took the lead with four runs in the top of the fifth. The rally started with back-to-back singles by Nelson and Carlos Jorge, and Sal Stewart delivered a two-run single to make it 4-3. Stewart scored on a single by Jack Rogers to tie the game, and Ruben Ibarra added a sacrifice fly later in the inning to bring in Cade Hunter from third and give the Dragons a 5-4 lead.

But Fort Wayne got all four runs back in their half of the fifth, taking advantage of four walks in the inning to jump back ahead 8-5.

In the sixth, Dayton's Edwin Arroyo drilled a solo home run, his 11th homer of the year, to make it 8-6, and Ibarra hit a solo homer in the eighth, his 12th homer, to pull the Dragons to within a run at 8-7. Fort Wayne took advantage of an error by Arroyo that allowed a run to score in the bottom of the eighth to make it 9-7.

In the ninth inning, Hunter led off with a single and went to second when Tyler Callihan was hit by a pitch with one out. Ibarra followed with a single to left to load the bases. Austin Hendrick was retired on a sacrifice fly to right field that brought in Hunter to make it 9-8 as Callihan moved to third on the play, but Nelson struck out swinging to end the game.

The Dragons finished the night with 12 hits. Nelson was 3 for 5 with an RBI and a run scored. Ibarra had two hits including a home run and drove in two. Jorge also had two hits.

Reliever John Murphy (4-2) had a rough night and was charged with the loss. He allowed four runs in one-third of an inning, giving up four walks and two hits.

Up Next: The Dragons (24-21, 57-54) play at Fort Wayne (25-20, 57-54) on Friday night at 7:05 p.m. in the fourth game of the six-game series. Jose Acuña (7-2, 3.47) is scheduled to start for Dayton.

The next home game at Day Air Ballpark in the heart of the Water Street District is Tuesday, August 22 when the Dragons host the Lansing Lugnuts at 7:05 p.m. For ticket information, go to daytondragons.com/tickets or call (937) 228-2287.

On the Air: All Dragons home and road games are broadcast on radio on FOX Sports 980 AM WONE. Games can be heard on smart phones, iPads, and other mobile devices via the free Dragons Mobile App, or on a computer at wone.com. Games are also available on HD Radio on 104.7 WTUI HD 2.

Check out the Dayton Dragons Statistics



Midwest League Stories from August 17, 2023


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.

Other Recent Dayton Dragons Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central