Fort Wayne TinCaps (5-3, 37-39) @ Dayton Dragons (4-4, 43-35)

RHP Ernesto Montas (6-5, 3.65) vs. LHP Junior Morillo (1-2, 6.49)

Friday, July 3, 2015 — Fifth Third Field (Dayton, OH) — First Pitch 7:00 p.m. — Game 77

ABOUT LAST GAME: Fort Wayne rallied in the late innings to down Dayton, 6-2, on Thursday evening. The TinCaps scored four times in the ninth, led by Jose Ruiz’s double that drove in the go-ahead run. Nick Torres also had his second three-hit game of the week.

HOT STRETCH: The TinCaps have won nine of their last 12 games. This is the best 12-game stretch of the season for Fort Wayne. Pitching and defense have been keys. Opponents are scoring less than two runs a game during the span.

PITCHING CREATES BIG CHANCE: Fort Wayne pitchers are responsible for a diminutive 1.71 ERA during the 12-game stretch.

REMEMBER THE NAME: Nick Torres is the Midwest League’s second best hitter, sporting a .333 average through 70 games. After his three-hit night on Thursday, the 22-year-old is hitting .464 in the second half of the season (seven games). During that stretch he’s also scored four runs, ripped three doubles, driven in seven runs and stolen a base. He’s among the league’s best in several categories.

· .333 Batting Average — #2 in the MWL

· 26 Doubles — #1 in the MWL

· 30 Extra-Base Hits — #1 in the MWL

· 88 Hits — #4 in the MWL

· 36 RBIs — #1 on Fort Wayne

THIS DATE IN BASEBALL HISTORY: “The Kid,” Ted Williams, records his first professional hit in 1936 playing for the then-Pacific Coast League San Diego Padres (which would later become the Major League franchise in 1969). C. Arnholt Smith purchased the Minor League Padres in 1957. He then won a bid for an expansion team in the National League in 1967, folded the Minor League Padres after the 1968 PCL season and transferred the name of the club to his new Major League team in 1969.