
Rivera Hits 21st in Record-Setting Win
September 19, 2021 - Midwest League (MWL)
West Michigan Whitecaps News Release
LANSING, MI - The West Michigan Whitecaps closed the 2021 regular season by breaking records and tying others as part of a 19-4 blowout victory over the Lansing Lugnuts in front of 4,025 fans at Jackson Field on Sunday afternoon.
Infielder Rey Rivera launched a two-run home run to tie the Whitecaps franchise record set by Kelly Hunt in 2004. His 21 home runs came in just 95 games and helped him finish the season with 34 home runs in his Whitecaps career. Meanwhile, the 'Caps broke a franchise record with 14 extra-base hits - besting the previous high of 11 from June 16, 2017, during a game at Lansing. The Whitecaps also broke their season record for runs in a game with 19 and tied their franchise record for home runs in a single game with five.
In the first inning, Jake Holton blasted a solo home run measured at 427 feet to take a 1-0 lead for his third of the season. The Whitecaps entered the third inning in a 2-2 tie, but a six-run frame highlighted by a Parker Meadows two-run double and three-run triple by Austin Schultz blew the game open and gave West Michigan an 8-2 lead. An inning later, Rivera blasted his record-tying home run as part of a five-run frame. The blast narrowly carried the right-field wall to give Rivera his historic homer. After a double by Eliezer Alfonzo, Meadows blasted a two-run homer of his own to help extend the lead to a 13-2 advantage. In the eighth, Gage Workman blasted a three-run homer - his ninth of the season - to help West Michigan take an 18-2 lead. In the ninth inning, Alfonzo collected a solo home run - his first with the 'Caps this season, to help West Michigan tie their franchise record for homers in a single contest.
Isrrael De La Cruz (1-0) tossed four spectacular scoreless innings while striking out three in earning his first win of the season, while Osvaldo Berrios (2-1) allowed eight runs in 2.1 frames in suffering his first loss of the year. The Whitecaps record goes down in the archives at 58-62, while the Lugnuts finish with the same mark at 58-62. Meadows led the offensive charge with a homer, two doubles, three runs scored, and his career's first five-RBI performance.
UP NEXT
The Whitecaps have concluded the 2021 season and look forward to another summer of baseball in West Michigan in 2022. Get all the latest Whitecaps offseason news at www.whitecapsbaseball.com.
Midwest League Stories from September 19, 2021
- Snappers Spoil Captains Playoff Bid With 5-3 Win - Beloit Sky Carp
- Season Ends with Sunday Loss at Dow Diamond - Great Lakes Loons
- Quad Cities Drops Regular Season Finale in Extras - Quad Cities River Bandits
- Chiefs Fall in Season Finale - Peoria Chiefs
- Rivera Hits 21st in Record-Setting Win - West Michigan Whitecaps
- South Bend Ends Season with an Extra-Innings Victory - South Bend Cubs
- Lugnuts Fall to Whitecaps, Concluding 2021 Season - Lansing Lugnuts
- Dragons Close out Season with Win, Finish in Tie for First But Miss Playoffs - Dayton Dragons
- TinCaps Conclude 2021 Regular Season in Dayton - Fort Wayne TinCaps
- Captains Come up Short in Regular Season Finale - Lake County Captains
- Wisconsin Closes Out 2021 with 2-0 Win at Great Lakes - Wisconsin Timber Rattlers
- Kernels Advance to the High-A Central Championship Series - Cedar Rapids Kernels
- TinCaps Game Information: September 19 at Dayton - Fort Wayne TinCaps
- Dayton Dragons Game Notes for Sunday - Dayton Dragons
- Wild 9th Ends in River Bandits Walk-Off Win - South Bend Cubs
- Out of the Race: Loons Fall in Ten Innings, 8-6 - Great Lakes Loons
- Bates' Walk-Off Clinches Bandits' Final Regular Season Series - Quad Cities River Bandits
- McClanahan's Tenth-Inning Blast Paces Wisconsin Past the Loons - Wisconsin Timber Rattlers
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.
