Tigers prospect Kyle Funkhouser dominates in his 2017 debut

Indianapolis Indians 5, Toledo Mud Hens 4 (box)

Buck Farmer opened his 2017 season with a nice outing, punching out eight against two earned runs in his five innings of work. John Hicks powered the offense with three hits and three RBI. However, Edward Mujica stumbled through a three run seventh inning and the Mud Hens couldn’t mount a late rally. Joe Jimenez and Daniel Stumpf each spun a scoreless inning, with Jimenez picking up a pair of strikeouts.

Farmer: 5 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, BB, 8 SO
Hicks: 3-3, 3 RBI
Mujica: (BS, 0-1) 0.2 IP, 3 ER, 2 H, HR, BB, SO
Jimenez: 1.0 IP, H, 2 SO

Coming Up Next: The Mud Hens will send Chad Bell to take on the Indians on Saturday night. Tyler Eppler will oppose him, with first pitch scheduled for 7:05 pm ET.

Lakeland Flying Tigers 5, Tampa Yankees 0 (box)

The Flying Tigers’ pitching was outstanding Friday night. Led by starter, A.J. Ladwig, a trio including Jairo Labourt and Drew Smith dominated Yankees hitters, racking up eleven strikeouts to just two hits on the night. The heart of the Flying Tigers’ batting order did the damage as first baseman Wade Hinkle, and left fielder Quincy Latimore, each homered. Center fielder Jose Azocar added a pair of hits and an RBI as the Flying Tigers move to 2-0.

Ladwig: (W, 1-0) 6.0 IP, H 6 SO
Labourt: 2.0 IP, 4 SO
Hinkle: 1-4, HR, 2 RBI, R, BB, SO
Latimore: 2-5, HR, 2 RBI, 2 R, SO

Coming Up Next: Spencer Turnbull will start for the Flying Tigers on Saturday. The Flying Tigers’ offense should have its hands full with Yankees’ starter Domingo Acevedo. First pitch is at 6:00 pm ET at Joker Marchant Stadium.

West Michigan Whitecaps 2, South Bend Cubs 0 -Game One (box)

The Detroit Tigers fourth round pick in 2016, right-hander Kyle Funkhouser, was electric in his debut for the Whitecaps. He struck out nine Cubs over five innings while allowing just one hit. As a four-year college pitcher, Funkhouser should handle A-ball well, but the way he dominated with his fastball left observers extremely impressed. Reports had him topping out at 97-98 miles per hour on the radar gun as he shredded the Cubs’ lineup. If Funkhouser is beyond the minor health concerns that dropped his draft stock out of the first round, the Tigers may have a real steal on their hands.

The game was limited to seven innings in order to fit in a double-header nightcap. Third baseman Anthony Pereira had a triple and a pair of RBI, while Bryan Garcia locked down his first save of the season.

Funkhouser: (W, 1-0) 5.0 IP, H, 9 SO
Garcia: (S, 1) 1.0 IP, 2 SO
Pereira: 2-2, 2 RBI, 3B

West Michigan Whitecaps 1, South Bend Cubs 0 -Game Two (box)

Whitecaps pitching continued to stymie Cubs’ bats in game two of Friday’s double-header. They had to work, as this one went 16 innings, stretching late into the night before first baseman Blaise Salter finally sent everyone home with an RBI single. Left fielder Jacob Robson cruised home at the Whitecaps opened their season 2-0. Whitecaps pitching threw 23 combined scoreless innings across the two contests. Left-hander Eudis Idrogo gave the Whitecaps five innings of scoreless ball to kick things off, allowing just three hits to five strikeouts. The Whitecaps would ultimately use six relievers, with Trent Szkutnik picking up the late win.

Idrogo: 5.0 IP, 3 H, 5 SO
Houston: 2.0 IP, H, BB, 5 SO
Szkutnik: (W, 1-0) BB, SO

Coming Up Next: Spenser Watkins will get the call Saturday night as the Whitecaps and Cubs shift to South Bend for a weekend pair of games. The Cubs will Dylan Cease to oppose him. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 pm ET.

Poor weather condition continued to plague the Erie SeaWolves on Friday. After back-to-back postponements, the SeaWolves and the Trenton Thunder will hope to play Saturday at 1:35 pm ET. Sunday’s game is now a double-header. The weather appears to be favorable.