Captains win fourth straight with eleventh in walk off 10-9
BY TIM SHIRER
CAPTAINS BEAT WRITER
(EASTLAKE, OH) - The Lake County Captains and Cedar Rapids Kernel’s played game two of their six game series on Wednesday night at Classic Park. The Captains took game one on Tuesday 7-5. Once again, the Captains rallied late scoring nine of their 10 runs from the sixth inning on winning on a walk off in the eleventh inning 10-9 and sending the crowd of 1,254 home happy.
Captains’ starter Jack Leftwich got off to a rough start allowing two singles, a double, a base on balls and a three-run home run by Wander Javier, it was his 11th of the season. When the dust settled in the inning Cedar Rapids led 5-0.
The Captains got on the board in the fourth inning when Joe Naranjo doubled off 400 feet of the centerfield wall. He moved to third base when Alexfri Planez singled to centerfield. Planez was thrown out trying to stretch the hit into a double. He went into second base standing up if he had slide, he may have been safe. After Petey Halpin flew out to shallow centerfield with Gabriel Rodriguez at the plate Kernels reliever Orlando Rodriguez balked sending Naranjo home cutting the Cedar Rapids lead to 5-1.
The Captains closed the gap to two runs in the bottom of the sixth with one out in the inning Naranjo singled to sharply to rightfield. He then moved to second a wild pitch by Orlando Rodriguez. After Orlando retired Planez on a fly ball Kernel’s manager Brian Dinkelman replaced him with Miguel Rodriguez who then gave up a home run to Halpin that just cleared the left field wall pulling them to within two runs at 5-3.
The Captains came all the way back to tie the game in the seventh inning when Aaron Bracho led off the inning by drawing a base on balls. Micael Ramirez then doubled to the rightfield gap moving Bracho to third base. With Holland at the plate Miguel Rodriguez uncorked a wild pitch sending Bracho across the plate with Lake county’s fourth run and moving Ramirez to third base. After Holland struck out Christian Cairo singled left field sending Ramirez home tying the game 5-5.
The Kernel’s said enough and in the eighth inning retook the lead on a two-run home run down the left field line by Charles Mack. with Willy Joe Gary, Jr. on base. Gary had been hit by a Trey Benton pitch earlier in the inning. The home run was Mack’s third and gave the Kernel’s a 7-5 lead.
The Kernel’s added another run in the ninth inning when Mikey Perez belted his second home run of the season over the left field wall.
The Captains never quit battling. As they tied the game back up at 8-8 in the bottom of the ninth inning when Bracho and Ramirez had back-to-back singles to open the inning. The big blow of the inning came next when Kory Holland deposited his ninth homer run of the season over the right field fence tying the game.
Each team’s Rob Manfred runner scored in the tenth inning, so the game was tied through 10 innings 9-9.
The Captains won the game in the bottom of the eleventh inning with one out and Rob Manfred runner Mike Amditis who entered the game as an injury replacement for Ramirez when he was hit on the hand by a foul tip in the top of the inning on second base. Cairo then hit a bloop double just inside fair territory on the right field line and Amditis motored all the way home to give the Captains a 10-9 walk off win.
The keep Lake County two games ahead of West Michigan in first place in the Midwest League Eastern Division.
Zach Hart picked up the win in relief for Lake County. Hart pitched the final two innings for Lake County allowing one run, it was unearned giving up one hit and using one base on balls while striking out four Kernels hitters. With the win Hart improves to 5-3 with a 4.12 ERA. Ryan Shreve took the loss for the Kernels falling to 1-3 with a 2.90 ERA. It was also his second blown save. He pitched one and one third innings allowing two runs, both unearned on two hits while striking out one Captains batter.
The two teams will play game three on Thursday night when Luis Rijo will take the hill for the Kernels. Rijo, a righthander is 0-2 with an 8.03 ERA. Tommy Mace be on the mound for Lake County. Mace, also a righty is 0-5 4.85.
POSTED 08/24/2022 22:26