MWL Fort Wayne TinCaps

TinCaps Game Information: September 1 at Great Lakes

Published on September 1, 2021 under Midwest League (MWL)
Fort Wayne TinCaps News Release


Fort Wayne TinCaps (49-54) @ Great Lakes Loons (56-47)

Wednesday, Sept. 1 (7:05 p.m.) | Dow Diamond | Midland, Mich. | Game 2 of 6 in Series | Road Game 50 of 60 | Game 104 of 120

RHP Connor Lehmann (5.01 ERA) vs. RHP Hyun-il Choi (2.78 ERA)

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

LAST NIGHT: The TinCaps lost to the Loons, 4-3. Danny Denz threw 4 scoreless innings as the starter. After Great Lakes broke a 2-2 tie in the bottom of the eighth inning with four walks and a hit batter, Zack Mathis golfed a solo home run in the ninth, though the comeback fell short after that.

HOT CAPS SUMMER: Fort Wayne went 14-12 in August, making it the team's best month of the season.

PROSPECTS PROMOTED: On Saturday, the Padres added the following top prospects to Fort Wayne's roster from the Low-A Lake Elsinore Storm - 20-year-old outfielder Robert Hassell (MLB.com's No. 3 Padres prospect and No. 46 in all of baseball), 19-year-old infielder Euribiel Angeles (No. 13), and 20-year-old catcher Brandon Valenzuela (No. 19).

PITCHING PROGRESS: Over their last 49 games since July 7, TinCaps pitchers have the lowest ERA out of all 30 teams in High-A at 3.59, as the team has gone 26-23. In this stretch, 'Caps pitchers also have allowed the fewest homers in High-A: 21. Over their first 54 games, they ranked 9th/12 in High-A Central at 5.25, and had a 23-31 record.

PLAYOFF PICTURE: Less than 3 weeks remain in the regular season, which ends on Sept. 19. The clubs with the 2 best records in the 12-team HAC will meet in a best-of-5 championship. Entering today, the Quad Cities River Bandits are in first place at 67-34. The Cedar Rapids Kernels have the second-best record at 57-46. The TinCaps are 8 back of the Kernels with 17 games remaining. In the East Division, for bragging rights, Fort Wayne is 7 back of Great Lakes.

DOUBLES LEADER: As a team, the TinCaps lead the HAC in doubles with 191. Individually, outfielder Tirso Ornelas leads the league in 2B with 30, while infielder Justin Lopez ranks 9th with 21. (Ornelas also has the 5th highest contact rate in the league at about 92%.)

PATIENT APPROACH: The TinCaps lead the HAC in free passes (walks and hit by pitches), averaging about 5 per game. Fort Wayne is walking in approximately 12% of its plate appearances. The rest of the league has walked at a 10% rate. For context, the Yankees lead MLB in BB% (10.7%). The Padres rank 2nd (10%).

LOPEZ LOCKS IN: Infielder Justin Lopez got off to a slow start in August, but over his last 14 games since the 13th, he's hit .365 with a .912 OPS. Lopez has 5 doubles (1 should've been a HR), 1 HR, and 16 RBIs in the stretch... For the season, his 59 RBIs rank 6th in the HAC.

REY RUNS: Reinaldo Ilarraza ranks 5th in the HAC in stolen bases (33).

CLOSE CALLS: The TinCaps are 13-9 in games decided by 1 run, and 9-13 in 2-run games... The 'Caps are 3-2 in extra-innings.

260 TO THE SHOW: 53 former Fort Wayne players have appeared in the big leagues so far this season, including All-Stars Fernando Tatis Jr. and Trea Turner. Since the franchise was founded in 1993, a total of 197 past players have ascended to The Show.

Check out the Fort Wayne TinCaps Statistics

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