Wild Fourth Helps 'Caps Win on Fourth

July 5, 2016 - Midwest League (MWL1)
West Michigan Whitecaps News Release

COMSTOCK PARK, MI - A five-run fourth inning helped the West Michigan Whitecaps defeat the Great Lakes Loons 8-5 to celebrate the Fourth of July in front of 6,527 fans at Fifth Third Ballpark on Monday night.

The fourth was a big one for both teams, as the Loons took a 3-1 lead highlighted by Matt Jones' two-run triple to the right-center field gap, sending Derek Hill and Jose Azocar colliding into each other. Thankfully both Hill and Azocar remained in the game after the play. In the bottom of the frame, Cam Gibson laced a triple of his own to score two runs to tie the game. A trio of RBI-singles by Hill, Arvicent Perez and Will Maddox capped the big inning to give West Michigan a 6-3 advantage. Great Lakes cut the deficit with a pair of runs in the seventh featuring an RBI-single by Noah Perio to bring the score to 6-5. The 'Caps responded with single runs in the seventh and eighth innings with run-scoring singles by Will Allen and David Gonzalez to end the scoring in the contest and give the Whitecaps their third straight victory.

Whitecaps starter Sandy Baez (4-7) picked up his fourth win after lasting five innings and giving up the three fourth-inning runs with six strikeouts, while Imani Abdullah (1-3) took his third loss after allowing six runs on 10 hits in 3.1 frames. Drew Smith tossed a scoreless ninth to earn his third save of the year. The Whitecaps improve to 44-34, and 5-6 in the second half. Great Lakes falls to 5-7 in the second portion of 2016, and 34-48 on the season. Maddox led the way with four hits in the contest while Hill tallied a pair of singles, scored a run and stole a base to help the cause. Every Whitecaps hitter recorded at least one base hit in the contest.

Midwest League Stories from July 5, 2016

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• 'Caps Score Nine in Second, Rally for 15-10 Win - West Michigan Whitecaps
• Bases Loaded Walks Helps Bandits to Victory - Quad Cities River Bandits
• Defense Falters as Cougars Drop Contest in Peoria - Kane County Cougars
• Shutout Loss Ends Captains' Streak - Lake County Captains
• Loons Lose Offensive Outbreak in West Michigan - Great Lakes Loons
• Taylor Does It Again As LumberKings One Hit Bees - Clinton LumberKings
• Mujica, Maris Lead Hot Rods to Payback Win - Bowling Green Hot Rods
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• Rattlers win 6-2 over Kernel Diplan tosses five scoreless innings - Wisconsin Timber Rattlers
• Lugs Win Eighth Straight Home Game, 7-3 - Lansing Lugnuts
• Timber Rattlers Top Kernels Tuesday - Cedar Rapids Kernels
• Peña Powers TinCaps to 3-1 Win Over Cubs - Fort Wayne TinCaps
• Lugnuts Score Early, Hold off Dragons 7-3 - Dayton Dragons
• Bees One Hit by LumberKings - Burlington Bees
• Albert Abreu Named Midwest League Pitcher of the Week - Quad Cities River Bandits
• Cougars Ballpark Backdrop Generously Provided by Forest Preserve - Kane County Cougars
• Conner Hale Named Midwest League Player of the Week - Clinton LumberKings
• Hot Rods Lose to Captains on Hidden Ball Trick - Bowling Green Hot Rods
• Chiefs Win 7-6 Monday - Peoria Chiefs
• Clinton Records 14th One Run Victory Of The Year - Clinton LumberKings
• 10,639 Watch Lugs Provide Fireworks in 12-5 Rout - Lansing Lugnuts
• TinCaps ReCap: Fort Wayne 6, South Bend 3 (July 4) - Fort Wayne TinCaps
• Lugnuts Win Slugfest over Dragons on 4th of July - Dayton Dragons
• Wild Fourth Helps 'Caps Win on Fourth - West Michigan Whitecaps
• Cougars Stunned by Chiefs Comeback - Kane County Cougars
• Bees Suffer Independence Day Defeat - Burlington Bees
• Elieser Hernandez Shines on Independence Day - Quad Cities River Bandits

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