Fort Wayne TinCaps (3-7) vs. West Michigan Whitecaps (5-5)
LHP Will Headean vs. LHP Austin Sodders
Monday, April 17, 2017— Parkview Field — First Pitch 7:05 p.m. — Game 11
LAST GAME: Before having Easter off, the TinCaps beat the Bowling Green Hot Rods, 12-7, on Saturday in Kentucky. Fort Wayne built an 11-0 lead with a 5-run first and 6 more in the third. Hudson Potts, Marcus Greene Jr., and Brad Zunica each homered in the third. Jerry Keel yielded 2 runs in 5 innings on the mound for the win.
OFFENSIVE ERUPTION: The TinCaps had scored a total of 11 runs over their previous 6 games before Saturday’s 12-run barrage. The 12 runs were a season high as were their 12 hits and 3 homers. It was the first time Fort Wayne had hit 3 home runs in an inning since July 29, 2015 vs. Dayton (Franmil Reyes, Luis Tejada, and Trae Santos). Everyone in the lineup reached base, while 8 had at least 1 hit, and 8 reached base multiple times. Greene Jr. had a career-high 5 RBIs.
PATIENT AT THE PLATE: The TinCaps lead the MWL in walks (44), averaging 4.4 per game. Outfielder Jack Suwinski leads the club with 8 walks — tied for 3rd most in the MWL. Rod Boykin and Brad Zunica have each drawn 7 walks — tied for 9th in the league.
AGGRESSIVE ON BASES: The TinCaps are 4th in the MWL in stolen bases (11). Infielder Reinaldo Ilarraza leads the team with 3 stolen bases — tied for 6th most in the MWL.
PITCHING PROWESS: TinCaps pitchers rank 3rd in the MWL in strikeouts (107), averaging 10.7 per game. With 17 Ks, Jesse Scholtens has the 2nd most in the league. Meanwhile, Fort Wayne has issued the 2nd fewest walks (26) in the MWL.
MARATHON DAY: While today marks the running of the Boston Marathon, yesterday was the 3-year anniversary of the longest game in franchise history. On April 16, 2014, the TinCaps and Burlington Bees played an 18-inning game that went 5 hours and 45 minutes (Burlington won, 7-5; the losing pitcher was OF Ronnie Richardson).
WHO’S HERE: Padres Infield Coordinator Kevin Hooper and Hitting Instructor Oscar Bernard.
RECORD START AT PARKVIEW FIELD: The TinCaps have drawn more fans than ever before at Parkview Field for the first 5 games of the season. Fort Wayne has hosted 24,223 fans so far, including a crowd of 6,401 last time here on Wednesday.
ON THE OTHER SIDE: The Whitecaps have the following Top 30 Tigers prospects, per MLB.com… RHP Joe Jimenez, (No. 5), RHP Kyle Funkhouser (No. 6), SS Danny Pinero (No. 27), and RHP Bryan Garcia (No. 30)… In February, Baseball America ranked Detroit’s system 25th out of 30… West Michigan’s first-year hitting coach Mike Hessman is Minor League Baseball’s all-time home run leader with 433 homers from 1996-2015.
