Lugnuts Outlast Rain for 6-4 Win
June 26, 2019 - Midwest League (MWL1)
Lansing Lugnuts News Release
LANSING, Mich. - D.J. Neal sizzled a two-out go-ahead two-run single in the bottom of the sixth inning, Reggie Pruitt followed with a two-run triple, and the Lansing Lugnuts (3-2, 35-39) handed the Lake County Captains (4-1, 44-30) their first loss of the second half, 6-4, on Tuesday night at Cooley Law School Stadium.
The game featured two separate rain delays due to two pop-up showers: a 36-minute delay before first pitch and a 51-minute delay in the middle of the fourth inning.
Lake County built two one-run leads, first grabbing 2-1 advantage in the third inning on a Ruben Cardenas two-run double - erased by a run-scoring throwing error by third baseman Henry Pujols in the fifth - and then taking a 3-2 lead in the sixth on a Jonathan Engelmann RBI double.
But in the bottom of the sixth inning, Gabriel Moreno led off with a triple against Captains reliever Luis Araujo (Blown Save, 1; Loss, 1-2). After Ryan Gold grounded out and Jake Brodt popped out, LJ Talley coaxed a five-pitch walk and Johnny Aiello was hit by a pitch to load the bases. That brought up Neal who stung a grounder past first baseman Engelmann, bringing in Moreno and Talley for a 4-3 Lugnuts lead. Pruitt followed with a drive to deep right-center, picking up his league-leading eighth triple of the year while plating both Aiello and Neal for a 6-3 cushion.
The insurance runs proved valuable when Bo Naylor's fifth home run of the season brought the Captains within two in the ninth - but the visitors could get no closer.
Lansing starter Sean Wymer allowed two runs on six hits in four innings, striking out four, departing after the rain delay. Marcus Reyes (Win, 3-1) followed with three innings, allowing three hits, one walk and one run, and striking out two.
Mike Pascoe recorded the first two outs of the eighth inning, walking two and hitting a batter to load the bases. Cre Finfrock (Save, 7) recorded the final five outs, escaping the eighth-inning jam unscathed before allowing Naylor's homer in the ninth.
The Nuts finished the game with 11 hits, with two apiece supplied by Neal, Brodt (who hit his ninth home run of the season in the second inning), Gold and Otto Lopez, who went 2-for-4 with a walk and a steal to extend his team-high on-base streak to 26 games.
The Lugnuts and Captains play the second game of their four-game series at 12:05 p.m. Wednesday, a Summer Fun Day and Dog Days of Summer. Lugnuts right-hander Troy Watson (5.14 ERA) faces Captains right-hander Thomas Ponticelli (5.58). To live the Lug Life and purchase tickets, visit lansinglugnuts.com, call (517) 485-4500 or come to the Cooley Law School Stadium box office at 505 E. Michigan Ave. in downtown Lansing.
• Discuss this story on the Midwest League message board...
Midwest League Stories from June 26, 2019
- LumberKings Walk-off Chiefs in 10 - Clinton LumberKings
- Quad Cities Gets to Yan in Bees' Loss - Burlington Bees
- Bandits Take Advantage of Late Miscues to Beat Bees - Quad Cities River Bandits
- Chiefs Fall 5-4 in 10 Wednesday - Peoria Chiefs
- Rattlers Toss a Shutout at Cedar Rapids - Wisconsin Timber Rattlers
- Dragons Fall to Whitecaps in West Michigan - Dayton Dragons
- Hot Rods and Loons Suspended on Wednesday Night - Bowling Green Hot Rods
- Jarvis, Wisconsin Win 4-0 Shutout - Cedar Rapids Kernels
- Parkview Cancer Institute, TinCaps Team up to Honor Cancer Survivors - Fort Wayne TinCaps
- Petru Balan placed on Temporary Inactive List - Cedar Rapids Kernels
- Hot Rods Game Notes - Bowling Green Hot Rods
- Cantillo Dazzles as TinCaps Dominate Cubs - Fort Wayne TinCaps
- Nelson Powers Captains Past Lugnuts - Lake County Captains
- Lingos, Captains Stymie Lugnuts, 6-3 - Lansing Lugnuts
- Offense Goes Quiet as Cubs Fall to TinCaps 9-1 - South Bend Cubs
- Dragons Notes for Wednesday - Dayton Dragons
- TinCaps Game Notes: June 26 vs. South Bend (Game 74) - Fort Wayne TinCaps
- South Bend Cubs Announce Upcoming Game/Promotion Schedule - South Bend Cubs
- Cardenas Shines in Return, Captains Suffer Rain-Soaked Loss - Lake County Captains
- Whitecaps Get Rainbow, Win - West Michigan Whitecaps
- Lugnuts Outlast Rain for 6-4 Win - Lansing Lugnuts
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 Lansing Lugnuts Stories
- Tree-Planting Ceremony Highlights Lugnuts/MACD Celebration of Arbor Day
- Ángeles Stays Hot in 5-2 Win at Lake County
- Buelvas Homers in 3rd Straight Game, But Captains Hold off Lugs
- Thirsty Thursday Postponed, Thirsty Saturday Doubleheader Scheduled
- Wright Placed on Injured List