Dragons Baseball opening | Photo by Stephen Hopkins | The Wright State Guardian
The Dayton Dragons opened their MiLB Midwest season with a 6-5 win over the Fort Wayne Tincaps on Friday night with over 7,000 fans in attendance.
The Dragons dominated throughout the game, securing a 6-1 lead with two outs in the ninth inning. However, five consecutive walks from Dayton’s pitching gave the Tincaps four runs, scaring the home crowd until Manuel Cachutt ended the game with a strikeout as the bases were loaded.
The game showed a lot of promise for starting pitcher Connor Phillips, who pitched five scoreless innings in his debut, and Jose Torres who had 2 RBI by the third inning.
The ninth-inning scare also pointed to some issues in the bullpen, which could show in the later games of a series when Phillips is spent.
Exciting new faces
With upcoming international prospects and proven performers in the Reds organization, the Dragons have already shown some talented players on the roster this year.
All three of the biggest standouts on opening day were new players in a Dragons jersey, and two were completely new faces in the Reds organization,
Phillips, who was traded from the Miami Marlins about a week and a half before Friday, got into some trouble in the first inning with a runner on third base with only one out. Still, he attacked the zone aggressively, throwing five straight strikes to get two strikeouts and out of the jam.
Torres, who started the momentum early for the Dragons by bringing in two runs, is also a new face in the Reds organization coming out of the NC State Wolfpack in the 2021 MLB draft.
The shortstop from North Carolina was picked up by the Dragons after some successful performances in the College World Series and looked like an excellent recruit on opening day after hitting 2 RBI in his first game.
Finally, Elly De La Cruz was picked up by the Reds back in 2018 from the Dominican Republic and has quickly risen as one of the best minor-league prospects in baseball.
The lead-off hitter on opening day, De La Cruz, batted in two RBI with a double in the eighth inning.
Bullpen issues
While Phillips had a strong outing on opening day, the further pitchers in the Dragons’ bullpen looked weak in comparison.
Phillips and the second pitcher of the day, Jake Gilbert, allowed nothing for the Tincaps all game, each ending the day with an ERA of 0.
The third pitcher, Myles Gayman was solid as well, except for a one-run home run in the eighth inning, which the Dragons quickly earned back with three runs.
However, when the fourth pitcher, Donovan Benoit, stepped onto the mound, Dayton’s pitching fell apart. The Dragons were up by five heading into the ninth inning and just needed three outs to end the game.
However, Benoit could not find the strike zone at all, walking five batters in a row for four runs for an ERA of 54 and giving the Tincaps a chance at a win.
Closer Manuel Cachutt pulled the pitching staff pack together, securing the final out and the game for the Dragons.
The Dragons’ next home series is April 19-24 at Day-Air Ballpark against the West Michigan Whitecaps.
