Fort Wayne TinCaps (24-38 – Tied 7th, 60-72) vs. West Michigan Whitecaps (27-33 – 5th, 66-61)
RHP Emmanuel Ramirez vs. LHP Eudis Idrogo
Sunday, Aug. 28 — Parkview Field — First Pitch 3:05 p.m. — Game 133
LISTEN: ESPN Radio 1380 & 100.9 FM / TinCapsRadio.com / TuneIn Radio App
WATCH: Comcast Network 81
LAST NIGHT: The TinCaps cranked out a season-high 20 hits and scored a season-best 15 runs in a 15-4 steamrolling of the Whitecaps. Seven players had multi-hit nights.
THERE’S THE OFFENSE: In their previous 14 games entering Saturday, the TinCaps had scored a combined 19 runs (1.3 runs per game) — and never more than 3 in a game during the stretch. So of course Fort Wayne had its best offensive output of the season Saturday. The team’s previous season high in runs was 14, a mark reached twice in April in the first 10 games of the season. It was the most runs for the TinCaps since Sept. 7, 2015 (a 17-0 demolition of Bowling Green) and the most hits since June 14, 2015 (a 21-hit effort in a 16-1 win over Clinton).
SAN DIEGO BRASS IN TOWN: Padres General Manager A.J. Preller was at Parkview Field on Friday and Saturday for his first visit to Fort Wayne since joining San Diego’s front office on Aug. 5, 2014. On Parkview Field, Preller said, “It’s been everything everyone’s talked about. … I can’t imagine a minor-league facility in the country that you would take over this one.”
PACKED PARKVIEW FIELD: After the 20th sell-out crowd of the season (7,781) inundated the ballpark Saturday, the TinCaps have averaged 6,091 fans per game this season, which is on track to set a franchise record. Fort Wayne’s attendance ranks 2nd out of 100 Single-A/Rookie clubs and is higher than 27 of 30 Double-A franchises and 12 of 30 Triple-A organizations.
BAKER’S BIG SU2C NIGHT: SS Chris Baker (3-for-5, 3 R, 3 RBI, BB) fell a double shy of the cycle Saturday. On Stand Up To Cancer Night at Parkview Field, Baker had his best performance in a TinCaps uniform. Baker’s father, Greg, has spent the past few years fighting chronic lymphocytic leukemia. Elsewhere, TinCaps pitchers raised $3,180, donated by Fifth Third Bank, for Stand Up To Cancer with their 6 strikeouts.
RAMIREZ’S RETURN: Today’s TinCaps starter, Emmanuel Ramirez, was on Fort Wayne’s Opening Day roster as a reliever. In 9 relief appearances, he posted a 5.09 ERA and walked 10 in 17.2 innings. After a trip back to Arizona and a stint at Short-Season Tri-City, Ramirez returned to Fort Wayne as a starter and has notched a 3.77 ERA for the TinCaps in five starts with 29 strikeouts against just 6 walks in 28.2 innings.
MILLER’S MASTERY: In his TinCaps debut, reliever Evan Miller tossed two hitless innings out of the bullpen Saturday with two strikeouts. Miller, who starred for two seasons as a Fort Wayne Mastodon (with the program formerly known as IPFW), is a LaPorte, Indiana, native and joined the squad Thursday.
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