MWL Fort Wayne TinCaps

TinCaps Game Information: June 24 at South Bend

Published on June 24, 2021 under Midwest League (MWL)
Fort Wayne TinCaps News Release


Fort Wayne TinCaps (20-23) @ South Bend Cubs (18-25)

Thursday, June 24 (7:05 p.m.) | Four Winds Field | South Bend, Ind. | Games 3 of 6 in Series | Road Game 21 of 60 | Game 44 of 120

RHP Moises Lugo (3.12 ERA) vs. RHP Derek Casey (3.57 ERA)

TV: MiLB.TV | Radio: 1380 The Fan & 100.9 FM / TinCapsRadio.com (John Nolan & Jack McMullen)

LAST GAME: The TinCaps beat the Cubs, 8-0. Fort Wayne scored all of its runs in the top of the seventh inning. Gabe Mosser threw 7 innings of 1-hit, 1-walk ball, while Felix Minjarez struck out 5 over the final 2 frames for the third 'Caps shutout win of the season.

HOT CAPS: Fort Wayne has won 3 in a row and 4 of its last 5. The TinCaps have won 3 straight a couple other times this season but have yet to win 4 consecutive games.

LIGHTS OUT LUGO: In the High-A Central, Moises Lugo has the 2nd lowest AVG against (.182), 9th lowest ERA (3.12), and 9th lowest WHIP (1.07). He's also top 10 in K% (28%) and top 5 in Whiff Rate as batters have swung and missed at 16% of his pitches... 55% of balls put in play against him have been fly balls. That's the highest fly-ball rate in the league.

HOMZA HITS: Catcher Jonny Homza has been one of the best hitters in the HAC this season. He ranks 5th in doubles (11), 6th in extra-base hits (18), 6th in runs (32), 7th in OBP (.396), and 10th in OPS (.889). Weighted Runs Created Plus (wRC+) is a stat that estimates a player's offensive contributions in terms of total runs, combining a player's ability to get on base with their ability to hit for extra bases, adjusted for important external factors like ballpark. A wRC+ of 100 is league average. Homza has a wRC+ of 146 - 3rd highest in the league. (For reference, the current top 3 in wRC+ in MLB is Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Fernando Tatis Jr., and Jesse Winker.)

POWER BAT: Outfielder Agustin Ruiz ranks 3rd in the HAC in RBIs (32) and 5th in home runs (9).

DOUBLE MACHINE: As a team, the 'Caps lead the HAC with 88 doubles. Individually, outfielder Tirso Ornelas leads the league with 17, which is also top 5 in all of MiLB. Of the 91 players in MiLB with 11 or more doubles, Ornelas is the only one without at least 1 homer.

TAKE A WALK: The TinCaps tied a season high by drawing 11 walks Tuesday and walked 8 more times Wednesday. For the season, the 'Caps have averaged 4 walks drawn per game, the 3rd most in the 12-team HAC (behind WIS & CR). The TinCaps also have the 3rd youngest lineup in the league with an average age of 22.1 years old (league average: 22.5)... Jawuan Harris has a 16% walk rate -- 8th highest in the HAC.

SPEED WEAPONS: Rey Ilarraza ranks 9th in the HAC in stolen bases (14). Jawuan Harris is 10th (13), and the only player in the league with at least 7 stolen bases who hasn't been caught.

NO PLACE LIKE HOME: The TinCaps are slashing .253 / .360 / .396 (.756 OPS) in 23 games at Parkview Field. That's the best home OBP in the HAC. But on the road, Fort Wayne is slashing .200 / .309 / .310 (.619 OPS). That's the lowest away AVG and SLG. The 'Caps are 12-11 at home, but 8-12 on the road.

CLOSER: Righty reliever Carter Loewen leads the HAC with 6 saves.

ELITE ELLIOTT: High-A Central's Pitcher of the Month in May, Ethan Elliott, has been the best pitcher in the league this season, continuing into June. He ranks 2nd in ERA (2.17), WHIP (0.88), and strikeouts (62).

RALLY CAPS: The TinCaps overcame a 6-0 deficit on Tuesday to win, 7-6. The last time Fort Wayne faced a 6-run road deficit and won was June 1, 2018, at Great Lakes. Fort Wayne trailed 6-0 after 2 innings in that game before rallying. That comeback was sparked in part by a 3-run homer by Tirso Ornelas. More recently, the 'Caps rallied from 11-3 down at home against the Peoria Chiefs on July 18, 2019.

260 TO THE SHOW: 2017-18 TinCaps pitcher Mason Thompson made his MLB debut with the Padres on Tuesday night in relief against the Dodgers. Thompson is the 196th player in Fort Wayne's franchise history to reach the big leagues, and the 50th to appear this season.

Check out the Fort Wayne TinCaps Statistics

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