Fort Wayne broke out of an offensive power slump in a big way on Tuesday at Parkview Field.
The TinCaps blasted a trio of home runs en route to pounding Lansing 10-3.
Fort Wayne snapped a 10-game streak in which the team had been without a homer.
After falling into a 3-0 hole, Fort Wayne scored 10 unanswered runs against the Lansing (3-2 second half, 50-24) bullpen. Lugnuts starter Aaron Sanchez provided five scoreless innings, holding Fort Wayne (3-2, 34-41) to two hits and leaving in line for his seventh victory.
Kramer Champlin entered to work the sixth, and the first TinCaps run scored on his watch, as Kyle Gaedele touched the plate on a throwing error by catcher Carlos Perez. Tyler Stubblefield then launched a two-run home run, tying the game at three. Fort Wayne broke the game open in the seventh, scoring six times. Duanel Jones' solo home run broke the 3-3 tie, and Kyle Gaedele scored on a throwing error by pitcher Brian Longpre (0-2). Yesion Asencio followed with a three-run blast, making the Fort Wayne advantage 8-3. Travis Whitmore scampered home on Mike Gallic RBI single later in the inning, and Gaedele scored on a ninth-inning wild pitch, completing the Fort Wayne offensive rampage.
James Needy (3-1) earned the win in relief for Fort Wayne, working three scoreless innings behind Cody Hebner. The Fort Wayne starter, in five innings of work, allowed three earned runs, walked three and fanned five. Matt Stites pitched for the first time since June 4, hurling a clean ninth inning.
The home runs for the TinCaps were the first long balls since a June 11 four-homer outburst at Parkview Field. By scoring 10 times, Fort Wayne tallied its first double-digit run total since May 24, a 14-8 win at South Bend.
