Flying Tigers win eighth straight while Max Clark homers in a Whitecaps loss

Scores, news, and notes from around the Detroit Tigers’ farm system for Tuesday, July 2, 2025.

Toledo Mud Hens 4, Columbus Clippers 1 (box )

Keider Montero held the Clippers to just one run in his start and Andy Ibáñez homered to lead the Mud Hens to victory on Tuesday.

For the most part, Montero was in control of this one throughout his 5 ²⁄₃ innings of work. He got into a jam in the first and punched out Jhonkensy Noel and Will Wilson to escape. From there he cruised, striking out seven in total until giving up a solo shot to Petey Halpin to open the fifth inning. Montero finally got into some real trouble in the sixth and PJ Poulin came on to get the final out on a pretty nasty slider down and away to Halpin. Still pretty standard stuff from Montero. Stretches of looking very good with a few bursts of wildness.

Andy Ibáñez launched a solo shot in the bottom of the first to tie the game 1-1. Akil Baddoo and Ryan Kreidler doubled to produce a run in the third. A two-run single in the bottom of the sixth from Andrew Navigato made it 4-1.

Alex Lange threw the ball well in a scoreless eighth with a strikeout. Drew Sommers collected the save in the ninth.

Baddoo: 2-4, R, 2 2B, K

Ibanez: 1-3, R, RBI, HR, BB

Montero (W, 2-3): 5.2 IP, ER, 3 H, 4 BB, 7 K

Coming Up Next: It’s a 7:05 p.m. ET start at Fifth Third on Wednesday.

Akron RubberDucks 6, Erie SeaWolves 2 (box )

Carlos Pena threw a good game but the offense left too many runners on base in this one. The lefty tossed five innings of two run ball, with six strikeouts against two walks.

A two run homer for the RubberDucks in the second was Pena’s one blemish, and the SeaWolves finally broke through to tie the game in the fifth. Eduardo Valencia drew a leadoff walk and Roberto Campos hammered a deep drive to center field for a two-run shot and a 2-2 game.

The SeaWolves bullpen finally stumbled in this one. Tim Naughton gave up two runs in the seventh, and Tyler Mattison two more in the eighth. The SeaWolves had some baserunners the rest of the way, but couldn’t get a big hit to change the momentum of the game.

Campos: 1-4, R, 2 RBI, HR

Holton: 2-5, K

Pena: 5.0 IP, 2 ER, 2 H, 2 BB, 6 K

Coming Up Next: It’s a 6:35 p.m. ET start on Wednesday night.

Great Lakes Loons 14, West Michigan Whitecaps 9 (box )

The Whitecaps were cruising until a debacle of a sixth inning in which the Loons scored nine runs sank them on Tuesday.

Lefty Andrew Sears did his thing for five innings, and he and his teammates were in control for a while. Some wildness from the Loons put runners on in the second and Patrick Lee singled in John Peck. Max Clark launched a solo shot to open the bottom of the third. That was his seventh of the season, and third in eight games. Josue Briceño followed him by reaching out on a pitch down and away and drilling a double off the right field wall. A pair of balls in play scored him for a 3-0 lead.

Singles from Kevin McGonigle, Briceño, and John Peck made it 4-1 in the fifth. Unfortunately Andrew Sears night was over despite a very efficient 58 pitch outing. Joe Adametz, Haden Erbe combined to give up nine runs in the sixth. A couple of errors helped things along to complete disaster but it was a rough showing from the bullpen. Freddy Pacheco came on to get the final out of the inning, but then went on to give up three runs of his own in the seventh.

The ‘Caps did fight back, scratching out some runs, with a McGonigle single leading to a run on Briceño RBI knock in the eighth. In the bottom of the ninth, Peyton Graham and Seth Stephenson doubled en route to a three run inning that made the score a little closer.

Briceno: 3-4, R, RBI, 2B, 2 BB, K

McGonigle: 3-5, 3 R, BB

Clark: 1-5, R, RBI, HR, BB, 2 K

Patrick Lee: 2-4, R, RBI, BB, 2 K

Sears: 5.0 IP, 0 R, H, BB, 2 K

Coming Up Next: It’s a 6:35 p.m. ET start on Wednesday.

Lakeland Flying Tigers 10, Dunedin Blue Jays 3 (box )

A pretty good start from Zack Lee and a strong night at the plate powered the Flying Tigers to their eighth straight victory.

The top of the order got right to work in the top of the first. Woody Hadeen led off with a double and Jack Penney walked on a wild pitch that got Hadeen to third. A Franyerber Montilla ground out scored Hadeen for a 1-0 lead.

In the second, the Flying Tigers loaded the bases on two walks and a Ricardo Hurtado single loaded the bases. Zach MacDonald was hit by a pitch to force in a run, and Hadeen singled in Carson Rucker. They went on to score five for a 6-0 lead.

Lee tossed five innings of two hit ball without a run. He struck out three and walked three, and then turned it over to Ronny Chalas, who gave up three runs in the sixth. Thomas Szapucki settled things down in the seventh, and Blair Calvo handled the last two innings without much trouble.

Szapucki has been an interesting project. The former Mets and Giants prospect had top 100 prospect consideration for a time, and is working his way back from injury. The lefty has a good riding fastball a sharp, tilting curveball. His injury history is extensive, with Tommy John and thoracic outlet syndrome surgery in the last five years, so I wouldn’t get too excited, but as he gets built up it will be interesting to see where the Tigers assign him.

In the top of the eighth, Jackson Strong led off with a single and scored on a Garrett Pennington double. Stephen Hrustrich walk and the runners advanced on a wild pitch. At that point, Carson Rucker got off the schneid with a three-run blast for his first home run of the season.

Rucker: 1-3, 2 R, 3 RBI, HR, BB

Hadeen: 2-5, 2 R, RBI, 2B

Zack Lee (W, 4-3): 5.0 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 3 BB, 3 K

Coming Up Next: The Flying Tigers try to run the streak to nine games at 6:30 p.m. ET on Wednesday.