McCarthy solid in start after stint on IL

Shane McCarthy’s return to the Captains starting rotation was encouraging.

As for the rest of what happened when the Captains played the Bowling Green (Ky.) Hot Rods on Aug. 22 at Classic Park, it did not go the home team’s way.

The Hot Rods prevailed, 16-4, storming back from a 4-0 deficit to hand the Captains their fourth loss in the last five games.

No matter the outcome, McCarthy demonstrated he is all the way back from a twomonth stay on the injured list with a strained muscle on his right chest wall. Before he was sidelined, McCarthy was 4-3 with a 4.01 ERA in nine starts.

In 3 1/3 innings against the Hot Rods, the 23-yearold right-hander from New Jersey gave up two runs on three hits. Facing 14 batters before he reached his pitch limit in the top of the fourth inning, McCarthy notched 10 strikeouts and issued no walks.

He threw 66 pitches, 45 for strikes. McCarthy’s first start

When: Where: Records:

7 p.m., Aug. 23 Classic Park

Hot Rods, 36-23; Captains, 29-30

Alan Strong (9-4, 2.97 ERA); Captains, Matt Turner (2-1, 2.93 ERA) WELW-AM 130 and FM 101.5

Pitchers: Radio: Streaming:

captainsbaseball.com; allsportscleveland. net

since May 23 began inauspiciously when Bowling Green’s Ford Proctor stroked a leadoff single top center field. Undeterred, McCarthy fanned the next six batters. Among the strikeout victims was former Lake County teammate Ruben Cardenas, traded to the Rays on July 28 for pitcher Hunter Wood and infielder Christian Arroyo.

The top of the third inning began with McCarthy hitting Seaver Whalen with a pitch. Again, McCarthy righted his ship and fanned the next three batters to preserve the 4-0 lead established in the bottom of the second inning on a solo home run by first baseman Jonathan Engelmann and a three-run home run by catcher Eric Gonzalez.

Things went awry for McCarthy and the Captains in then top of the fourth inning. A leadoff single by Jonathan Aranda and a double by Jordan Qsar put runners at third and second bases. A pass ball charged to Rodriguez brought home the first run for the Hot Rods.

Captains manager Luke Carlin pulled McCarthy after the wild pitch in favor of left-hander Zach Draper. The Hot Rods pushed across five more runs in the frame to take a 6-4 lead. Two of those runs scored a throwing error by third baseman Makesiondon Kelkboom. Bowling Green added three runs in the top of the sixth inning and six more in the top of the eighth, three coming on a home run by Cardenas off Lake County reliever Kyle Marman. The 16 runs were the most allowed by the Captains this season, The previous high was 12 in a loss at Bowling Green on April 15. Draper (7-4, 3.33 ERA) took the loss.