Caps Lose Opener To Rods 1-0 In 10 Inn.

BOWLING GREEN, Kent. - In a game dominated by pitching, it was offense that had the final say on Friday night at Bowling Green Ballpark. Despite holding the Bowling Green Hot Rods to just three hits over the first nine innings of play, the Fort Wayne TinCaps lost 1-0 in ten innings in the opener of a three-game series. Todd Glaesmann’s walk-off triple scored Drew Vettleson from first base, giving the Hot Rods the game’s only run.

Fort Wayne (31-37) starter Matt Wisler turned in one of his strongest outings of his career. He worked six innings, allowed three hits and struck out six. He did not issue a walk. Bowling Green’s Parker Markel matched Wisler nearly blow-for-blow, hurling six scoreless innings of his own. Markel allowed three hits, struck out five and also did not issue a free pass.

The TinCaps’ best offensive chance came in the top of the ninth inning. Bowling Green (36-32) reliever Jason McEachern, in a scoreless ballgame, walked the bases full. Prior to that inning, neither team had drawn a walk on the night. Fort Wayne third baseman Duanel Jones came to the plate with a chance to give his team a lead but he struck out, brining the inning to a close.

James Jones (1-1), appearing in his fourth game for Fort Wayne this season, worked 3 1/3 innings in relief of Wisler. In the 7 ^th, 8 ^th and 9 ^th, Jones did not allow a baserunner. In the tenth, though, he faltered and with one out, allowed a single to Drew Vettleson. One batter later, Glaesmann delivered a frozen-rope triple off of the outfield wall in left-center field, sending Vettleson in to score the winning run.

Fort Wayne is now 2-5 in extra-inning contests this season. The TinCaps were 0-4 with runners in scoring position Friday night. The only TinCaps player to record a multi-hit game was Travis Whitmore, who extended his team-best hitting streak to eleven games. During that span, he has gone .333 (14-42).

Hot Rods reliever Austin Hubbard (1-4) earned the win, working 1 1/3 innings behind McEachern.

Game two of the three-game series is scheduled for Saturday night at 8:05 Eastern. The scheduled starters are Ruben Mejia for Fort Wayne and Ryan Carpenter for Bowling Green.