Whitecaps Erase Four Different Cub Leads in 10-9, Extra-Inning Win
MWL South Bend Cubs

Whitecaps Erase Four Different Cub Leads in 10-9, Extra-Inning Win

Published on April 19, 2025 under Midwest League (MWL)
South Bend Cubs News Release


Comstock Park, MI - The West Michigan Whitecaps just wouldn't go away on Saturday afternoon. Having already claimed the series with four consecutive defeats against South Bend, the Whitecaps baffled the Cubs in game five, winning 10-9 in 10 innings by overcoming four different deficits. West Michigan center fielder Brett Callahan delivered the walk-off single, propelling the Whitecaps to 10-4 and dropping the Cubs to 4-10.

The Cubs scored first for the fifth consecutive game of the series, doing so in the first inning for the second straight day. Second baseman Cristian Hernandez and shortstop Jefferson Rojas went walk-single to start the contest, with Hernandez coming in to score on right fielder Carter Trice's RBI groundout.

South Bend would add on with two more runs in the top of the second inning. Designated hitter Andy Garriola sent the first pitch of the frame to the wall in right-center field for a double, later crossing the plate on a fielder's choice hit by center fielder Rafael Morel. On that same fielder's choice, third baseman Reginald Preciado caught the Whitecaps asleep at the wheel, hustling to score from second on a ball that never left the infield.

As they have all week, however, the Whitecaps responded. After South Bend starting pitcher Ryan Gallagher worked a 1-2-3 first inning, West Michigan broke out for three runs to tie the game in the second. Callahan led off with a long home run to right field. Gallagher then got to two outs before third baseman Abel Bastidas and right fielder Seth Stephenson went back-to-back with RBI singles to level the score. West Michigan almost captured the lead in the second inning, but Morel made a terrific running catch on the warning track with two runners on base for the third out.

Right-hander Nolan Clenney checked in for Gallagher during the second and pitched a scoreless third, setting the Cubs up to grab the lead in the fourth. They would do that on a leadoff long ball from Garriola, whose third home run of the series and season sailed over the fence in left field. Up 4-3, South Bend would go on to load the bases and chase West Michigan starter Carlos Marcano from the mound, bringing No. 93 Major League prospect Jefferson Rojas to the dish with three runners on. Rojas hit the ball hard, but it hung up in right-center field for a lineout that ended the half-inning and kept the Whitecaps within a single run.

Sure enough, West Michigan tied the game back up in the bottom of the fourth. The Whitecaps put two runners in scoring position right away via catcher's interference and a throwing error. Stephenson would get the equalizing run home with a well-placed single poked to the right side of the infield.

Both bullpens settled in as the game passed its midway point, maintaining the 4-4 tie for an extended stretch. For the Cubs, right-hander Johzan Oquendo lengthened his season-opening scoreless streak to 9.1 innings with two shutout frames. Opposite him, West Michigan right-hander Carlos Lequerica held South Bend scoreless in the fifth and sixth innings before right-hander Trevin Michael did the same in the seventh.

The Cubs would finally break through in the eighth, finding the timely swing they had missed throughout the first four games of the series. Catcher Ariel Armas provided it, getting on base for the fourth time in the game with his first professional home run, a three-run shot to the opposite field in right. After the half-inning, West Michigan manager Tony Cappuccilli was ejected during a heated argument with the umpiring crew.

Playing without their skipper and usual third-base coach, the Whitecaps found a way to come back again, this time taking the lead for the first time all day. Just as it did to shock the Cubs on Friday night, West Michigan plated four runs in the eighth on Saturday afternoon to decide the game. The Whitecaps did their damage against Cub right-handers Yovanny Cabrera and Vince Reilly, as Josue Briceño tied the game with a two-run double and Callahan provided the lead with an RBI single, his third hit of the day.

Trailing for the first time all afternoon at 8-7, the Cubs found an answer in the top of the ninth. Trice led off with a double to left, and Garriola traded places with him on a two-bagger to right-center, his third extra-base hit of the game. Reilly would deal a scoreless bottom of the ninth, pushing the game along to extra innings for the second time in the series.

Both teams stuck with their ninth-inning pitchers for the 10th, with the Cubs attempting to break out of an 0-2 start to the year in extra-inning games. South Bend didn't score in the top of the 10th in either of those two losses, but it did on Saturday. Morel lofted a sacrifice fly to left field, giving the Cubs a 9-8 lead entering the bottom of the 10th. West Michigan, however, would do the Cubs one better to win the game. Stephenson and Callahan each pulled RBI singles, the second of which walked off a wild, 10-9 contest.

With the Cubs now 0-8 on the road and the Whitecaps 8-0 at home, South Bend and West Michigan will finish the series at 2:00 PM on Sunday afternoon. Right-hander Kenten Egbert will take the mound for the Cubs, while the Whitecaps have not yet named their starter.

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