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MWL1 Great Lakes Loons

Great Lakes Opens Homestand with Win

June 16, 2015 - Midwest League (MWL1)
Great Lakes Loons News Release


MIDLAND, Mich. - The Midwest League Eastern Division standings are as inflexible as they have been all season, and the Great Lakes Loons remain members of a heated three-team last-ditch fight for first place.

The Loons (36-27) opened what has turned out to be a crucial three-game homestand, their last of the first half of the season,

with a 3-2 walk-off victory over the Lake County Captains on Tuesday night at Dow Diamond.

The two other Eastern Division powerhouses, the Bowling Green Hot Rods and Lansing Lugnuts, play a three-game series in the State Capital this week. The Loons can guarantee a playoff berth with a sweep of Lake County and a Lansing sweep of the Hot Rods. The Lugnuts won Tuesday 13-3.

After second baseman Kelvin Ramos notched a base hit to left field and attempted to advance to second base, Lake County shortstop Ordomar Valdez threw the ball clean over the head of fellow infielder Claudio Bautista and allowed Great Lakes newcomer Cristian Gomez to score the winning run during his Dow Diamond debut.

"We're pretty hot right now. We're playing good baseball," said Loons manager Luis Matos. "If we play defense and we pitch well, we will score the runs we need. I want to make it to the playoffs, but I don't want to put that pressure on them. We are here to develop players but we are also here to develop winners."

The Loons grabbed an early lead thanks to some timely hitting and patience at the plate. During the 2nd inning, designated hitter Jimmy Allen hit a laser down the left field line to earn a one-out double before Gomez worked a walk during the next at bat.

Allen and Gomez each scored when left fielder Federico Celli drove in his first two runs of the season on a base hit past Valdez, putting the Loons up 2-0.

"We're feeling good right now," Ramos said. "We're doing all the things we need to do to win the games. We play like a family and that's big for us."

The Captains (34-29) managed two base runners to open the 5th inning, but the Loons escaped the inning with the lead intact. Catcher Francisco Mejia bunted Lake County's Tyler Murphy and Yonathan Mendoza to third and second base respectively, before right fielder Bobby Ison cut the Loons' lead in half.

Ison drilled a ball directly at Great Lakes first baseman Justin Chigbogu, whose throw to the plate wandered high and resulted in a late tag by catcher Julian Leon and Lake County's first run of the game.

Right-handed starter Brandon Martinez kept the tying run from scoring with back-to-back strikeouts of leadoff man Greg Allen and Valdez. Loons reliever Bubby Rossman (2-0) pitched the 9th inning and earned the win while right-handed Lake County reliever David Speer (2-4) took the loss. Jose Molina was tabbed with his third blown save of the season for Great Lakes.

Two innings later, the Captains pushed the tying run across on a sacrifice RBI by Allen on a fly ball to right field.

Game 2 of the three-game series is Wednesday Night at Dow Diamond. The Loons send ace and Midwest League All-Star Grant Holmes to the mound with a 3-0 record and 3.69 earned run average. Thomas Pannone gets the start for Lake County. He has a record of 3-1 this season and an ERA of 3.58.

Wednesday is Hump Day Happy Hour at Dow Diamond. Come on out to the ballpark and enjoy brews and baseball - Great Lakes style! $2.00 16oz select domestic drafts will be on sale from 6-8pm.

The Great Lakes Loons are a ninth-year Single-A partner of the Los Angeles Dodgers. For tickets and more information about the Loons, visit Loons.com, or call 989-837-BALL.

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Midwest League Stories from June 16, 2015


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