WEST MICHIGAN WHITECAPS BASEBALL

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Press Photo/Delbridge Langdon Jr.Whitecaps catcher Alex Avila hangs onto the ball for an out after South Bend's Ollie Linton crashes into him.

COMSTOCK PARK -- The playoff fate of the West Michigan Whitecaps was placed in the hands of 19-year-old pitcher Mauricio Robles, who carved up the South Bend Silver Hawks like an seasoned veteran -- for five innings.

But bullpen trouble in the sixth and seventh innings was enough to enable the Silver Hawks to end the Whitecaps' quest for a Midwest League threepeat Saturday night at Fifth Third Ballpark.

In a decisive Game 3 showdown, South Bend beat West Michigan 3-2 in front of 1,862 fans.

COMSTOCK PARK -- Empty cardboard boxes prepared to be filled were scattered around the clubhouse, uniforms were tossed together in a giant pile and lockers were being emptied out.

It's a common scene once a season ends, but not one that the West Michigan Whitecaps had hoped for just yet.

The Whitecaps were hoping to extend their postseason, but instead saw it come to a close with a 3-2 loss to South Bend on Saturday night in Game 3 of their first-round Midwest League playoff series.

Press Photo/Adam BirdWest Michigan's Kyle Peter is congratulated by his teammates after hitting a home run against South Bend on Friday.

COMSTOCK PARK -- Facing elimination from the Midwest League playoffs, the West Michigan Whitecaps came out swinging.

And swinging.

And swinging.

The Whitecaps hit and pitched their way to force a decisive Game 3 tonight against the South Bend Silver Hawks after a convincing 11-0 victory Friday night in front of 4,052 fans at Fifth Third Ballpark.

COMSTOCK PARK -- Day one of spring training for the Detroit Tigers, West Michigan Whitecaps manager Joe DePastino was told Kyle Peter would be his starting center fielder this season.

After three miss-played balls in the first spring game, DePastino had his doubts.

He has had none since.

COMSTOCK PARK -- The last time the Midwest League welcomed two new minor-league teams to its low Class A league was 1988.

Those two teams were the Rockford (Ill.) Expos and the South Bend (Ind.) White Sox.

In 2010, the MWL will expand to a league-record 16 teams with the addition of the Lake County (Eastlake, Ohio) Captains and a franchise from Bowling Green, Ky., that has yet to be named.

COMSTOCK PARK -- The Midwest League playoff game scheduled for Thursday between the West Michigan Whitecaps and the South Bend Silver Hawks at Fifth Third Ballpark has been postpone due to rain.

Game 2 of the best-of-three series has been rescheduled for 7 p.m. Friday at 7 p.m. at Fifth Third Ballpark. If a Game 3 is needed, it will be played at 7 p.m. Saturday.

Thad Weber

COMSTOCK PARK -- Pitcher Thad Weber has pitched in the NCAA Regionals for the University of Nebraska and in front 20,000 fans at Rosenblatt Stadium, home of the College World Series in Omaha, Neb.

The big-game experience he gained in those situations will be what Weber will rely on tonight in Game 2 of the Midwest League Eastern Division playoffs at Fifth Third Ballpark between the West Michigan Whitecaps and the South Bend Silver Hawks.

West Michigan lost Game 1, 5-3, on Wednesday night and now faces elimination.

South Bend Tribune/Santiago FloresWest Michigan's Alex Avila is safe at third after sliding under South Bend's Eli Rumler. The Whitecaps lost Game 1 against the Silver Hawks, 5-3.

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- The grade for the West Michigan Whitecaps in Game 1 of their Midwest League best-of-three playoff series against the South Bend Silver Hawks was an "E."

The "E" didn't stand for excellence.

It stood for errors, of which the Whitecaps committed five on Wednesday night at Coveleski Regional Stadium. South Bend was even worse with six errors, but the Silver Hawks also received the most important letter of the night -- a "W."

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- West Michigan Whitecaps infielder Ronnie Bourquin was suspended by the Detroit Tigers for violating team rules Wednesday and didn't make the trip to South Bend for Game 1 of the Midwest League Playoffs against the Silver Hawks.

The switch-hitting Bourquin, who played in 118 games and batted .235, played mainly at first and third base this season. He was a second-round draft pick of the Tigers in 2006 out of Ohio State, where he was the Big Ten Player of the Year.

This is Bourquin's first season in West Michigan after playing in Oneonta in '06 and splitting time in Oneonta and Lakeland in '07.

COMSTOCK PARK -- It's a match made in minor league baseball heaven.

The Detroit Tigers know it. And so do the West Michigan Whitecaps, the Tigers' low Class A affiliate in the Midwest League since 1997.

Their player development contract was set to expire in 2010, but the Tigers decided to extend the relationship for another four seasons Tuesday, through the 2014 season.

Press Photo/T.J. HamiltonWhitecaps catcher Alex Avila tags out South Bend's Jo Jo Batten at home plate during their game Aug. 12.

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- The West Michigan Whitecaps find themselves in familiar territory -- the Midwest League playoffs -- but in the unfamiliar role of underdogs as they seek their third consecutive league championship beginning tonight.

In 2006 and '07, the Whitecaps won titles as the favored team. But this year, they barely made it into the postseason with a second-place finish in the Eastern Division during the first half.

That makes their opening-round opponent, South Bend, the favorite by virtue of its better overall record and Eastern Division title in the second half.

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- The South Bend Silver Hawks club the West Michigan Whitecaps will face in Game 1 of their Midwest League best-of-three first-round playoff series tonight isn't the same team they swept in a four-game series to open the 2008 MWL season.

Not even close.

After losing their first nine games and dropping to 2-14, South Bend got its act together.