The Lake County Captains came from behind for the third straight game to sweep the Lansing Lugnuts, winning by a final score of 6-5.
Captains starter Matt Esparza was riding high after being named Midwest League Pitcher of the Week last week, but the Lugnuts got to him early and hit the ball hard all night against him. He went six innings, giving up 5 runs, 4 earned, striking out five and walking one.
In the first, the Lugnuts got 2 off Esparza thanks to a Max Pentecost RBI double and a Juan Kelly sacrifice fly. They added another in the second off of a Carl Wise RBI double to put Lansing up 3-0. A pair of leadoff homeruns from Lane Thomas and Kelly in the 4th and 6th innings put Lansing up 5-0.
Lugnuts All Star pitcher Angel Perdomo kept Lake County in check for the first five innings, striking out six while giving up just three hits. The Captains chased him with three straight hits to lead off the sixth inning. Francisco Mejia was the last batter Perdomo faced, hitting an RBI double to put the Captains on the board 1-0. Against reliever Starlyn Suriel, Lake County scored two more on a Connor Marabell groundout and a Martin Cervenka double, making the score 5-3 after six innings.
For the second time in the series, the Captains took the lead against the best closer in the Midwest League, Dusty Isaacs. Lake County loaded the bases with no outs on two singles and an error by Isaacs, setting the table for Cervenka. The backup catcher and designated hitter came through for the second-straight at-bat with a 3-RBI double that put the Captains up 6-5 in the bottom of the eighth.
Captains manager Tony Mansolino said he wasn’t surprised by Cervenka’s showing.
“He’s just never gotten much of a chance,” Mansolino said. “I think it’s important to find ways to get him in the lineup. The kid deserves his shot.”
Dominic DeMasi was solid in relief for Lake County, not allowing a hit in three innings to earn the win. He worked out of a 1st and 2nd, nobody out jam in the ninth to seal the 6-5 victory for the Captains.
“We hung in there, we battled all three games,” Mansolino said. “We shouldn’t have won all three but they found a way and that’s exciting for them.”
The Captains improve to 36-24, good for second in the Midwest League Eastern Division. The top 2 teams in each division clinch bids to the playoffs when the first half of the season ends on June 19.
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