Hot Rods down Lugnuts in 10, 5-4

LANSING, Mich. – Mark Thomas plated pinch-runner Diogenes Luis with a one-out RBI single in the tenth inning, lifting the Bowling Green Hot Rods (29-37) over the Lansing Lugnuts (36-30), 5-4, on Thursday night on Jackson Field.
The wild affair saw five different lead changes in addition to a balk, two wild pitches, two passed balls, and three hit batsmen.
Facing reliever Aaron Loup (3-1) with one out in the tenth, Ryan Wiegand sliced a triple past Lansing left fielder Eric Eiland. The Lugnuts summoned Casey Beck from the bullpen and brought the infield in, but Thomas came through with a clean line drive into center field for the lead.
The Lugnuts went down quietly in the bottom of the tenth against victor Alex Koronis (5-2), who completed his second scoreless inning in relief.
Lansing starter Chad Jenkins allowed nine hits and three runs in five innings in a no-decision, while Bowling Green starter Jason McEachern struck out seven batters in six innings but also tossed a pair of run-scoring wild pitches.
Hot Rods right fielder Brett Nommensen delivered an RBI single and a two-run double to aid the winning effort, with All-Star left fielder Chris Murrill chipping in with three hits and a pair of runs scored.
In the loss for Lansing, designated hitter Kevin Ahrens provided a two-run first inning double and Kenny Wilson and Ryan Goins each scored a pair of runs.
On Friday night at 7:00, the Lugnuts open a three-game series at Lake County. Lansing right-hander Ryan Tepera (6-2, 3.34) will head to the mound against Captains right-hander Brett Brach (0-3, 4.45).

Lansing Lugnuts Roster Transaction

LANSING, Mich. – The Lansing Lugnuts, in conjunction with the Toronto Blue Jays, announced Thursday that outfielder Kenny Wilson has been placed on the 7-day Disabled List retroactive to May 3.  In a corresponding move, third baseman Mark Sobolewski has been activated from the Disabled List.

A native of Tampa, Florida, Wilson, 20, was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 2^nd round of the 2008 Amateur Draft.  In his second year in Lansing, he was batting .278 with 12 stolen bases and a .412 on-base percentage in 21 games.

The 23-year-old Sobolewski had been placed on the DL on April 29.  At the time, he was batting .333 with two home runs and nine RBIs in 14 games.  Similar to Wilson, this is Sobolewski second season with the Lugnuts.

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DEACTIVATE:  OF Kenny Wilson, placed on the 7-day Disabled List retroactive to May 3

ACTIVATE:  3B Mark Sobolewski, activated from the 7-day Disabled List

Dominguez’s double does in Dragons, 9-8

Lugnuts win wild walk-off affair in 10 innings
 

LANSING, Mich. – In a wild affair that saw six lead changes, three blown saves, and four brilliant relievers get battered, Oliver Dominguez lined a walk-off double in the bottom of the tenth to lift the Lansing Lugnuts (10-7) to a 9-8 win over the Dayton Dragons (9-8) on Saturday night at Cooley Law School Stadium.
The decisive blow came off of Dayton closer Donnie Joseph (2-1), who entered the game having given up only one hit and no runs in seven previous outings but served up three hits in the span of six batters to a Lugnuts team missing Brad Glenn and Mark Sobolewski due to injury.
With one out in the tenth, Kenny Wilson lined a single into the left field. Dominguez followed by drilling the first pitch he saw from Joseph into the right-center gap, scoring Wilson and touching off a celebration on the middle of the diamond.
It was the second big double of the game for the Lugnuts designated hitter a day after his 21st birthday. With Lansing trailing 6-5 in the eighth inning, Oliver Dominguez cracked a two-run double off Nick Christiani.
A sacrifice fly from A.J. Jimenez scored Dominguez to give the Lugnuts an 8-6 lead going to the ninth, but Dayton tallied twice against Brian Slover -- keyed by Chris Richburg's game-tying triple -- to send the game into extras.
Slover (2-0) recovered to pitch a perfect tenth, picking up the win.
The game saw 30 combined base hits, 18 by the Lugnuts. Dominguez, Sean Ochinko, and Ryan Goins each had three hits, with Ochinko slugging his first home run of the season.
For the Dragons, Richburg notched four RBIs to give himself 18 for the young season.

Our boy Jesse caught up with Oliver and an interpreter a few weeks after this big game on his birthday.  Check it: 


  

And as for the Lugs...

These are my boys.

The Good:
1. Right fielder Brad Glenn
2. Leadoff man/center fielder Kenny Wilson
3. Third baseman Mark Sobolewski
4. The back end of the bullpen, featuring Steve Turnbull, Brian Slover, Aaron Loup, and Dustin Antolin

Impressive, all.

The Bad:
1. First baseman Balbino Fuenmayor
2. Catcher Sean Ochinko
3. Shortstop Ryan Goins
4. Second baseman Ryan Schimpf

Slumping, all.

The Awesome
1. Manager Sal Fasano
2. Sal Fasano's Fu Manchu