EASTLAKE, OH – The West Michigan Whitecaps enjoyed breaking a franchise record and a dominant pitching performance as part of a doubleheader split with a 2-0 shutout win and 4-3 loss to the Lake County Captains on Saturday at Classic Park.
Infielder Rey Rivera launched his 26th home run as a member of the Whitecaps to break the all-time franchise home run record – previously held by Jeramy Laster of the ’06 & ’07 West Michigan teams. Newly acquired Detroit Tigers farmhand Reese Olson struck out a career-high ten batters in five scoreless innings as part of a 2-0 shutout victory in the first game of a doubleheader.
In Game 1, Rivera opened the scoring with his historic blast while Olson held the Captains scoreless at the plate. In the seventh, Parker Meadows drilled an RBI-single to give the ‘Caps a vital insurance run and a 2-0 lead to conclude the scoring in the contest.
Daniel Cabrera opened the scoring in the nightcap with an opposite-field two-run homer to give West Michigan a 2-0 advantage. With the ballgame tied in the fourth, Lake County second baseman Raynel Delgado launched a go-ahead home run to help the Captains take a 3-2 lead. The score remained the same until the seventh and final inning when Jose King’s sacrifice fly scored Gage Workman and tied the game at three. Julian Escobado gave the Captains a walk-off win with a run-scoring double to give Lake County a split of Saturday’s doubleheader in the bottom of the frame.
Olson (1-0) picked up his first win as Whitecap in the opener, while Daniel Espino (0-4) suffered a tough-luck loss after giving up just one run in five innings, but with 11 strikeouts. Of the 42 outs recorded by both sides combined, more than half (26) were recorded by strikeout between the two teams. Bryce Tassin pitched two perfect relief innings in the opener to collect his fourth save. In Game 2, Jerson Ramirez (2-0) won his second game of the year out of the bullpen, while Angel Reyes (1-4) suffered his fourth loss. The Whitecaps record moves to 42-47, while Lake County leaves the doubleheader at 47-42. West Michigan needs to win the final game of this series on Sunday to obtain a split of this six-game set.
UP NEXT
The Whitecaps play the final game of this six-game series against the Lake County Captains from Classic Park on Sunday at 1:00 pm. Righty Brendan White gets the start for West Michigan. Broadcast coverage with Dan Hasty starts on the Whitecaps Baseball Network at 12:45 pm. Get your tickets for all 2021 home games now at www.whitecapsbaseball.com.
