MWL1 Great Lakes Loons

Loons Continue Winning Streak in Walk-Off Fashion

Published on June 12, 2013 under Midwest League (MWL1)
Great Lakes Loons News Release


MIDLAND, Mich. - The Great Lakes Loons (25-40) won their seventh consecutive game in style on Wednesday night when Malcolm Holland drove in Robbie Garvey in the bottom of the 11th inning to defeat the West Michigan Whitecaps (30-35) by a score of 3-2.

"Malcolm (Holland) hasn't gotten the opportunity to play on a daily basis," Loons manager Razor Shines said. "So for him to come up in that situation and put that kind of swing on the ball makes us all feel good for him. Obviously, we didn't get off to the start that we wanted to and a lot of people beat us up. A lot of people jumped off our bandwagon. But we still believe inside this locker-room that it's a pretty good club."

On a night when the Dodgers legend Steve Garvey (no relation to Robbie Garvey) visited Dow Diamond as a part of the Michigan Legends Series, things remained quiet as hits were hard to come by against Loons starter Angel Sanchez and Whitecaps starter Jake Thompson in the first two innings.

The Whitecaps were the first to break the deadlock in the top of the third inning when Devon Travis roped a double past Loons third baseman Kevin Taylor, scoring Jared Reaves.

West Michigan added another run against Sanchez in the fifth when Danry Vasquez hit a 381-foot home run to right-center field that had Loons right fielder Jeremy Rathjen tracking it all the way to the wall.

Great Lakes responded in the bottom half of the fifth, doing their damage with two outs. James Baldwin broke up Thompson's no-hit bid with a base hit to left field. He then stole second base standing up and took third base on a play that was ruled a passed ball, but was more Baldwin making a play on the basepaths. Leo Rodriguez did the rest as he knocked in Baldwin with an RBI single that went past Reaves, the Whitecaps shortstop.

Jake Thompson, the No. 4 prospect in the Tigers farm system, certainly pitched like a top prospect. In five innings of work, he allowed one run on two hits, while issuing two walks and recording seven strikeouts.

In the top of the sixth inning with a man on first for West Michigan, designated hitter Lance Durham drove a ball to dead center field and James Baldwin made a spectacular jumping catch at the wall to potentially save a run. Whitecaps catcher Bennett Pickar continued to apply the pressure with a double that put runners on second and third, but Sanchez was able to get Jake Stewart to pop out to end the threat.

Sanchez had a solid outing for Great Lakes, going seven innings, surrendering eight hits and allowing two runs. He also walked two and struck out six in the no-decision.

Baldwin, who was 2-for-5 on the night, followed up his spectacular defense in the sixth with a double in the bottom of the seventh that scored the speedy Garvey from first to tie the game at 2-2.

"We've been on a winning streak the last few days and we're giving everything we've got and just trying to get better as a group," Baldwin said after the win. "I've just tried to do the same things that I've been trying to do over the last week or two; just trying to see the baseball and trying to put the ball in play, so I can help my team win."

West Michigan threatened to take the lead in the top of the ninth inning when they loaded the bases on a Zach Kirksey single and two walks. Reliever Craig Stem, who pitched two innings of scoreless relief, got Durham to line out to third base to end the inning.

The Loons attempted to end things in the bottom of the tenth when they put men on second and third with two outs, but Aaron Miller grounded out to the pitcher to extend the extra innings affair.

After a 1-2-3 top half of the 11th, the Loons finally got the win when Garvey, who scored two of the three Loons runs in the game, hit a two-out single and put himself into scoring position with a stolen base. Malcolm Holland then singled to shallow left field and Shines waved Garvey home to score the winning run.

"I've really been swinging the bat well the last few games," Holland said. "I was really confident going into this game, even if the results didn't show it. But that hit will definitely help my confidence."

Loons reliever Arismendy Ozoria (1-3) pitched a scoreless 11th inning to pick up his first win of the season. Chad Smith (0-3) took the loss for the Whitecaps.

The Loons are back in action on Thursday night with the final game of a three-game series against West Michigan. Zachary Bird (1-1, 5.58 ERA) is expected to start for the Loons, while Endrys Briceno (2-4, 4.43 ERA) is slated to go for the Whitecaps. It is a $1 Family Feast Night at Dow Diamond. Fans can get hot dogs, soft drinks and ice cream sandwiches for $1 each.

The Great Lakes Loons are a seventh-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.

Check out the Great Lakes Loons Statistics

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



Midwest League Stories from June 12, 2013


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