Loons drop series opener to Kings

Great Lakes’ offense got cold on a hot night Monday as the Clinton Lumberkings defeated the Loons 8-3 in the first game of a four game series at Dow Diamond.

Marcus Lemon led the way for Clinton with three hits and an RBI. Lemon is the son of former Detroit Tiger outfielder Chet Lemon. Jose Vallejo and Mauro Gomez also had good nights at the plate with a pair of hits each.

Offensively for the Loons, catcher Juan Apodaca had two hits including a two-run triple and Matt Berezay added two doubles. But from there, the Loons offense went quiet, as 18 of the last 19 Great Lakes’ hitters were retired.

Clayton Kershaw (7-5) started on the mound for the Loons and pitched only one inning as the L.A. Dodgers attempted to give his arm a rest. The opening frame saw Kershaw allow one run, which was enough for the southpaw to pick up the hard-luck loss.

Joe Jones came out of the Loons’ bullpen to pitch 5.2 innings, allowing four runs and striking out three. Miguel Sanfler went 2.1 innings and gave up three runs (two earned) in mop-up duty.

The Loons hit five batters in the ballgame, including three by Sanfler.

Jeremiah Harr pitched six innings for Clinton allowing three runs while picking up his fifth win of the season. Antone Maxwell pitched three perfect innings to pick up his first save of the year.

The series continues Tuesday night when Josh Wall is scheduled to get the start for the Loons. Game time is 7:05 p.m.

A box score of Monday’s game is available at milb.com.