Lee Orr paid close attention to how Bowling Green closer Austin Hubbard pitched Fort Wayne teammate Mike Gallic.The TinCaps trailed the Hot Rods by a run in the ninth May 20 at Parkview Field.Fort Wayne had to dig itself out of a huge hole just to make the playoffs.
Facing elimination in the Eastern Division championship series, the TinCaps nearly duplicated the feat Monday at Lansing.
But this time, the rally fell short. And as a result, the season came to an end.
Michael Crouse drew a bases-loaded walk in the bottom of the ninth inning, and Oliver Dominguez scored as Lansing won the Eastern Division championship series with an 8-7 victory against the TinCaps in Game 2 on Monday at Thomas M. Cooley Law School Stadium in Lansing, Mich.
The TinCaps staged rallies in the eighth and ninth to tie the game.
Dominguez led off the ninth inning with a double off Fort Wayne closer Kevin Quackenbush.
Jonathan Jones moved him to third with a bunt.
Peter Mooney and Jake Marisnick walked, Marisnick intentionally, to load the bases for Crouse.
Quackenbush walked Crouse, and Dominguez scored to end the game.
The Lugnuts won the series 2-0 and will play Quad Cities for the championship.
Fort Wayne began the second half with a 2-7 record. The team finished 39-31 and qualified for the playoffs by winning the regular season finale. The TinCaps won the opening round series 2-0 against Bowling Green, jumping out to early leads in both games.
Fort Wayne took an early lead again Monday, scoring one run in the second and another in the third inning.
Lansing came back with five runs in the fourth inning. Dominguez hit a three-run homer to give the Lugnuts a 5-2 lead.
Lansing tacked on a run in the sixth inning.
Fort Wayne scored three runs in the seventh inning. Bisson knocked in Rocky Gale. B.J. Guinn scored on a sacrifice fly by Rico Noel to cut the deficit to 6-4. Liriano singled to left, scoring Bisson to make it 6-5.
The TinCaps tied the game with a run in the eighth. Connor Powers and Gale singled. Miller moved the two runners up with a bunt. Guinn then hit a grounder to short.
The Lugnuts cut Gale down at third base, but Powers scored to tie the game at 6.
The tie didn’t last long. Carlos Perez hit a triple in the bottom of the eighth and scored on a sacrifice fly to give Lansing the 7-6 lead.
But Fort Wayne answered in the top of the ninth. Noel led off the ninth with a triple. Cory Spangenberg singled to tie the game at 7.
Lansing showed patience at the plate in the bottom of the inning, denying Fort Wayne a chance at its second Midwest League title in three seasons.
