CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Lake County Captains face elimination after dropping Game 1 of the Midwest League East Division Championship Series to the West Michigan Whitecaps on Tuesday night at Classic Auto Group Park in Eastlake.
West Michigan jumped to an early 3-0 lead through the first two innings on RBI singles from Andrew Jenkins and Garrett Pennington in the first, followed by Peyton Graham’s RBI groundout in the second.
Lake County managed to get on the board in the third inning when Nick Mitchell delivered an RBI single to make it 3-1. Though Esteban González followed with a single to bring the potential tying run to the plate, the rally fizzled after Bennett Thompson struck out and Ryan Cesarini popped out.
The Whitecaps extended their lead to 4-1 in the fourth inning on Woody Hadeen’s two-out RBI triple off Captains starter Matt Wilkinson, who took the loss after allowing four runs on seven hits over 4.1 innings. Despite the defeat, Wilkinson recorded a professional postseason career-high six strikeouts.
Juan Benjamin’s RBI single in the sixth inning cut the deficit to 4-2, but West Michigan reliever Colin Fields entered to retire the next two batters and preserve the lead for winning pitcher Joe Miller.
The game slipped away from Lake County in the seventh inning when Whitecaps third baseman Izaac Pacheco, MLB Pipeline’s No. 21 Tigers prospect, launched a three-run homer off Izaak Martinez to make it 7-2.
The Captains threatened in the ninth, loading the bases with no outs on three consecutive singles from Maick Collado, Kyle Dernedde and Mitchell. However, Whitecaps reliever Marco Jimenez escaped the jam with two strikeouts and a flyout to end the game.
Mitchell continued his hot streak, extending his on-base streak to 16 games with three singles and a walk. Jaison Chourio, MLB Pipeline’s No. 6 Guardians prospect, went 2-for-4 with a double and a run scored.
Lake County now needs a win on Thursday at LMCU Ballpark to force a decisive Game 3. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m.
Generative AI was used to organize information for this story, based on data provided by the Lake County Captains. It was reviewed and edited by Cleveland.com.
If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.