MWL1 Great Lakes Loons

Loons Steal One from Snappers

Published on May 1, 2013 under Midwest League (MWL1)
Great Lakes Loons News Release


MIDLAND, Mich. - The Great Lakes Loons (12-13) scored a run in the eighth inning to tie the game and then another in the tenth to win a tight, low-scoring game over the Beloit Snappers (11-12) on Wednesday night at Dow Diamond. The win came on the heels of a nine-game road trip that ended when the Loons bus pulled into the Dow Diamond parking lot at 8 a.m. on Wednesday morning.

The Loons got on the board early in the contest, scoring in the bottom of the first inning. Two-hitter Eric Smith reached on a walk, advanced to second base on a single and to third on a wild pitch before scoring on a sacrifice fly from cleanup hitter Paul Hoenecke.

Beloit tied the game in the second. Six-hitter John Wooten drew a walk and eventually scored on a single from nine-hitter Ryan Mathews.

Leadoff man Brett Vertigan scored for the Snappers in the road half of the fifth inning on a single from Bruce Maxwell, who was 4-for-4 in the game, with two doubles, and reached every time he came to the plate. Maxwell is the Oakland Athletics No. 23 prospect, according to Baseball America.

Seth Streich, the Oakland Athletics No. 21 prospect, pitched six great innings for Beloit, allowing only one run on just one hit, while striking out seven and only issuing one walk.

"Both teams pitched really well tonight, especially their club," Loons manager Razor Shines said. "Nothing against our club, we pitched well, but [Streich] was as good of a starter as I've seen in the league all year. He was outstanding."

The Loons tied the game in the bottom of the eighth inning when leadoff hitter James Baldwin, who had struck out in his previous three at-bats, singled to right-center field, scoring Jesus Valdez.

"Today was a long day," Baldwin said. "It was just a grind. When I got that hit in the bottom of the eighth, I was trying to hit the ball on the ground and just try to put the ball in play. After my first three at-bats, I'm glad I was able to do that."

After a tense ninth inning, both teams threatened in the tenth. In the road half, Beloit had runners on first and second with one out and their cleanup hitter, Renato Nunez, at the plate. Nunez hit a hard ground ball to second baseman Jesmuel Valentin, who tagged a runner and threw to first base for a double play. Valentin, the son of Fort Wayne TinCaps manager and former Major Leaguer Jose Valentin, is the No. 14 prospect in the Los Angeles Dodgers system and made his Dow Diamond debut on Wednesday night.

"It was a great debut," Valentin said. "I wish it was a little better, going 0-for-3 is frustrating, but that doesn't matter if the team wins. I'm trying to do everything I can to help the team win, especially those little things."

Valentin made an even bigger impact in the bottom of the tenth, scoring the game-winning run. He reached base after striking out due to a wild pitch by Snapper pitcher Drew Tyson. Valentin advanced to second base on a Malcolm Holland single and to third on Baldwin walk that loaded the bases. With Smith at the plate, Tyson threw another wild pitch that allowed Valentin to score from third and gave the Loons the victory.

"[Valentin] is a heady player," Shines said. "This kid knows how to play. He comes from a baseball family. His dad played for a long time in the Major Leagues. We've got a kid that knows the game of baseball and I'm glad to have him on my club."

Miguel Sulbaran started for the Loons and went five innings, allowing two runs on seven hits. The 19-year-old Venezuelan native struck out two and walked two. The Great Lakes bullpen was phenomenal, allowing no runs and just one hit over five innings of work. Zachary Bird, the Dodgers No. 19 prospect, pitched the sixth inning and Jonathan Martinez threw from the seventh to the ninth, striking out four. Luis Meza worked a scoreless 10th inning and got credit for the win.

"Our starter kept us right there," Shines said. "Sulbaran did a good job. Bird gave us a clean inning. Martinez was spectacular; located his fastball on both sides of the plate. He was really good. Then Meza came out and finished it off. When we get that kind of pitching, we're going to win a lot of baseball games."

Tyler Vail pitched the seventh and eighth innings for Beloit, allowing the game-tying run in the eighth, before Chris Lamb pitched a scoreless ninth inning. Tyson pitched the 10th inning and took the loss for Beloit.

The Loons are back in action on Thursday night, as they play the second game of their three-game series against Beloit. Game time is 7:05 p.m. Ralston Cash (2-0, 2.45) is the expected starter for Great Lakes and Vince Voiro (0-1, 6.94) is projected to start for the Snappers.

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.

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Midwest League Stories from May 1, 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.

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