[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he West Michigan Whitecaps had a chance to sweep a three-game series against the Dayton Dragons over the weekend, but a rally by Dayton allowed them to win the series finale on Saturday night.
Friday’s victory for the Whitecaps featuring another solid performance from their bullpen, as they helped West Michigan defeat the Dragons by a final score of 4-3.
Despite not getting a base hit for the first five innings of the game, they had plenty of scoring chances due to Dragons starter Wyatt Strahan walking six batters. Trailing 3-1 in the top of the sixth inning, the Whitecaps were finally able to take advantage when catcher Shane Zeile’s two-run double to left-center tied the game at 3-3. Second baseman Joey Pankake followed with an RBI-single to left, putting the Whitecaps ahead for good.
West Michigan’s Trent Szkutnik went 5.2 innings while allowing three runs before Gabe Hemmer came in relief, shutting out the Dragons for 2.1 innings, allowing just one walk while striking out five. Joe Jimenez struck out the side in the ninth for his second save of the season.
Dayton struggled defensively in the game -committing three errors in the game- making for a total of eight in the last two games. With the loss, Dayton falls to 15-14 on the year, while the Whitecaps improved to 13-16.
Even after taking a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning, the Whitecaps were not able to pull off the series sweep, as they lost to the Dragons by a final score of 2-1 on Saturday night.
Mike Gerber’s RBI-single gave the Whitecaps an early lead, but the lead wouldn’t last for long when Dayton’s Brian O’Grady doubled in a run in the bottom of the first to tie the score at 1-1. The Dragons would score what would end up being the winning run in the bottom of the third when Paul Kronefeld’s fielder’s choice gave Dayton a 2-1 lead.
That would be all the offense Dayton’s starter Tejay Antone needed, as he struck out seven batters in six innings without allowing a walk. Antone (3-2) earned the victory allowing just one run in six innings, and he has only allowed two runs in the last 20 innings he’s pitched. Oakland University alum Jake Paulson pitched the final three innings to earn the save.
Whitecaps started Fernando Perez pitched four innings, allowing two runs while having trouble commanding the strike zone. Perez walked four batters and hit two others as he took his fourth loss of the season. In games that Perez has started this year, West Michigan is now 0-5.
West Michigan’s bullpen has continued to be dominant as of late, allowing no runs in 11.1 innings over the last four games.
With the loss, the Whitecaps fall to 13-17 for the year, and the Dragons improve to 16-14.
West Michigan will host the first-place Bowling Green Hot Rods for a four-game series starting on Monday. Ross Seaton is scheduled to start for Whitecaps and Brent Honeywell is expected to start for the Hot Rods.
