The TinCaps suffered their first four-game home series sweep since 2006, and the team now has its longest losing streak of the year after a 7-3 loss to South Bend on Friday at Parkview Field.FORT WAYNE – The TinCaps had gone 10 consecutive games without hitting a home run.
Fort Wayne snapped that streak Tuesday, and in the process ended a two-game slide, by hitting three homers in a 10-3 victory over Lansing in front of 3,951 fans at Parkview Field.
“Right when we needed it,” Fort Wayne manager Jose Valentin said.
“We started getting good at-bats late in the game and working the count. We got some better pitches to hit, and when we saw those pitches, we put good swings on them and drove in some runs.”
Tyler Stubblefield hit a two-run home run in the sixth inning to tie the game at 3.
Duanel Jones hit a solo homer in the seventh to give the TinCaps a 4-3 lead. Yeison Asencio added a three-run homer during the six-run inning.
James Needy pitched three scoreless innings in relief for the win.
The TinCaps (3-2, 34-41) struggled against Aaron Sanchez of Lansing (3-2, 50-44) .
The right-handed pitcher gave up two hits and stuck out three in five scoreless innings. Sanchez lowered his ERA to 0.69 and threw just 49 pitches.
Sanchez left with a 3-0 lead, but Fort Wayne tied the game in the sixth inning.
Kyle Gaedele doubled and eventually scored on a throwing error for Fort Wayne’s first run. Gaedele finished with two hits and three runs scored.
Stubblefield then hit a two-run homer to left field later in the inning. It was Fort Wayne’s first home run since Stubblefield hit a two-run home run in the eighth inning on June 11 against South Bend.
“I got up 2-0, and at that point I was looking for something up in the zone to either be able to drive the ball to the outfield for the sacrifice fly or something hard on the ground up the middle,” Stubblefield said.
“I was trying to stay to the big part of the field. He left a fastball up and over the plate.
“I stuck to my approach and fortunately the ball got up and got out.”
Fort Wayne added six runs in the seventh.
Jones hit a solo home run with one out in the seventh to give the TinCaps a 4-3 lead.
“He’s getting a better swing,” Valentin said.
“He’s not swinging and missing too much. … He swung at the pitch off-balanced, but he was able to make contact with it.
“You don’t need to swing the bat hard to hit a home run.”
Asencio made it 8-3 with his three-run homer to left.
“We had a lot of confidence today,” he said through interpreter and teammate Adys Portillo.
“When I saw the Stubblefield home run and the Jones home run, it made me feel good.”
Fort Wayne added another run in the seventh and one more in the eighth on the way to the win.
“We got to their bullpen, got a few guys on and were able to capitalize and tie the game and then the floodgates opened,” Stubblefield said.
“It seemed like the team had a surge of confidence and energy.”
