The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Dragons shut out Captains
On a positive note, the Captains are headed to the postseason.
They secured a spot in the Midwest League playoffs by finishing second in the Eastern Division in the first half.
On a less-than-positive note, the Captains are leaking oil in the closing weeks of the second half.
On Aug. 24 at Classic Park, the Captains were blanked by the Dayton Dragons, 3-0, in the opener of a four-game series.
It was the fourth straight loss for the Captains and seventh in the last 10 games.
In front of 7,191 fans, the second largest crowd of the year at Classic Park, the Captains managed just one hit, a thirdinning infield single by Ulysses Cantu.
The Lake County bats are in a deep freeze. They’ve come up empty in the last 14 innings and in 25 of the last 27 innings.
This is not the place for the Captains’ offense to be with only nine games
remaining in the regular season and the Sept. 4 playoff series opener against the Great Lakes (Mich.) Loons on the near horizon. Pitching wasn’t the issue for the Captains in this latest setback. Starter and eventual loser Ethan Hankins (0-3, 5.19 ERA) gave up three runs on seven hits in 4 2/3 innings. Of his 81 pitches, 61 were strikes. He struck out six and walked no one.
The Dragons did all their damage in the top of the fourth inning on a two-run home run by Matt Lloyd and a solo shot by Ernesto Liberatore. Relievers Nick Gallagher and Kevin Rholl put up zeroes the rest of the way.
Most games, you pitch that well and give yourself a chance to win. Put one scratch hit on the board in 28 at-bats, one over the minimum, and you’re beating no one. Dayton got top-notch pitching from starter and eventual winner Adrian Rodriguez (6-3, 3.03 ERA). He went seven innings, giving up only the infield single. The Captains also were throttled by Dayton relievers Eddy Dimurias and Matt Pidich.