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The homesickness for the Great Lakes Loons continued in a sense against the West Michigan Whitecaps last week.
After winning two series in Dayton and Lake County in consecutive weeks, the Loons (43-35) worked the first half of their 12-game home stand with a series split against fifth-placed Whitecaps (36-41). The Loons are still one game ahead of Lake County in the East Division and one and a half games ahead of Dayton, who have lost three games in a row and are 4-6 in their last 10.
GL has hit 117 home runs as a team in just 78 games this season and is well on its way to breaking the franchise record of 127 of the 2010 squad. The Loons have the highest running difference in the East Division of +103. Quad Cities (51-25) has the highest run difference in High-A Central of +123 and leads the West Division with eight games ahead of Cedar Rapids (44-34).
With all the success the Loons have enjoyed, most of it has gotten to the streets. Great Lakes is 26-16 away from home but 17-19 at Dow Diamond.
“We talked about it as employees, we don’t know exactly what it is,” said Loons manager Austin Chubb after the loss to the Whitecaps on Tuesday. “You do a little more preparation work at home. This six-game series requires you to work at home – but that’s no excuse for not playing well. Overall, I think it’s just a coincidence.
“The ball doesn’t travel that far here,” Chubb continued. “We are a team that makes punch marks, so the long ball is very important for our offensive.”
After the Loons scored 20 home runs in Lake County, the Loons hit nine as a team in the six-game set against the Whitecaps – including three from right fielder Andy Pages. The 20-year-old scored two on Friday and has met a total of 21 homers this season. Newcomer Jonny DeLuca hit two last week, while Deacon Liput, Leonel Valera, Ryan Ward and Justin Yurchak each hit one during the series.
Yurchak was part of a group of Loons called to the Tulsa Drillers, a subsidiary of Los Angeles Dodgers AA. Yurchak had led the Loons with a batting average of .356 while serving as the daily first baseman. Pitchers Cam Gibbens – who was part of the historic no-hitter for the Loons in Lake County – Jose Martinez and Landon Knack – another strong candidate for GL – were all called up to Tulsa after Friday’s game.
The series against West Michigan was a shaky series. WM won 6: 3 on Tuesday, then GL responded with a 16: 9 win on Wednesday and scored 11 runs in the second inning – a franchise record. The Whites won 8-2 on Thursday, GL won 5-4 on Friday, WM won a 7-4 win on Saturday, before GL crowned the series with a 5-1 win in the Sunday matinee final.
Coming to town for the first time, Fort Wayne opens a six-game series at 7:05 p.m. on Tuesday at the Dow Diamond. When the TinCaps first hit this season, there will be some loons to watch for all week – and possibly the rest of the season.
DeLuca has only played a handful of games for GL but has made himself an offensive commodity and done well on the outfield by replacing James Outman, who was called up to Tulsa during the Lake County series. Kenneth Betancourt, who plays the second base, is another player to watch out for as he begins to dive into the High-A level after being called up by Low-A Rancho Cucamonga.
Brandon Lewis is another guy to watch out for. The third baseman – who replaced Miguel Vargas, who was called up in June – was also a weapon for the Loons. He didn’t see much action against the Whitecaps last week due to injury after being hit by a pitch. Even so, Lewis managed to race in two.
With the newbies on the way and shaping the Loons season, there are plenty of other players to watch out for as the calendar shifts to August and the run towards the postseason takes shape.
Pages, Ward and Valera have been an integral part of the Loons offensive this season and continue to lead the defensive. Zac Ching continues to step up his role at the second base, while Carson Taylor continues to work as an almost every day catcher – he also plays as the designated hitter when Ryan catches January.
“It doesn’t surprise me, I know what these guys are capable of,” said Chubb. “… Brandon Lewis was passed out, getting (shortstop Leonel) Valera back after his concussion is huge. We like our chances in a six-game series, the most important thing is to be on top.”
On the hill, Clayton Beeter continues to be a star for GL – he didn’t allow a deserved run in two starts and five innings last week. He also hit 10 in the two starts against West Michigan. Andrew Shaps has also been a great help out of the bullpen to the Loons as he didn’t allow a run in 2 1/3 innings in two games last week – he also dropped two. Logan Boyer, Cole Percival, Mike Mokma, Alec Gamboa, and Franklin De La Paz are also names to look out for at Dow Diamond.
After the series with the last-placed TinCaps is over, the Loons will be battling Wisconsin for a week in an interdepartmental battle. Then it’s right back home August 17-22 for the Lansing Lugnuts in another Michigan High-A Central rivalry series.
All games can be heard live on ESPN 100.9FM and streamed on MiLB TV. Tickets can also be purchased at Loons.com, at the box office or at 989.837.BALL (2255).
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