COMSTOCK PARK, MI — August 14, 2026 — The first two Beer City Bung Hammers batters stepped to the plate Thursday night and promptly sent the baseball over the fence.

Jackson Strong #13 and Bryce Rainer #2 opened the bottom of the first inning with back-to-back home runs, giving the West Michigan home team a lead it would never surrender in a 5-3 victory over the Lansing Lugnuts at LMCU Ballpark.

The early fireworks were only the beginning.

Beau Ankeney #33 added two home runs of his own, including a two-run shot in the third inning, as the Bung Hammers finished with four home runs among their 10 hits.

The victory continued a dramatic week for West Michigan against Lansing. The home team entered Thursday having already recorded walk-off victories over the Lugnuts on Tuesday and Thursday during the series. This time, however, the Bung Hammers didn’t need a walk-off.

Back-to-Back Homers Set the Tone

Lansing starter Samuel Dutton #17 had barely settled onto the mound when West Michigan struck.

Strong led off the bottom of the first with his 12th home run of the season. Rainer immediately followed with his 11th, putting the Bung Hammers ahead 2-0 before an out was recorded.

Lansing responded with a run in the top of the second to make it 2-1.

West Michigan answered again in the third.

Rainer singled and Ankeney followed with a two-run homer off Dutton, his seventh of the season, extending the lead to 4-1.

Lansing again cut into the deficit with a run in the fourth, but the Bung Hammers pitching staff kept the Lugnuts from putting together a big inning.

Bung Hammers Pitching Holds Lansing in Check

West Michigan starter JoJo Ingrassia #21 allowed one run on three hits over three innings while striking out four and issuing no walks.

Preston Howey #15 followed with two innings, allowing one run on two hits while striking out two. Howey earned the victory and improved to 2-3.

Juanmi Vasquez #17 then delivered two scoreless innings, allowing just one hit and striking out three to help protect West Michigan’s 4-2 advantage.

The Bung Hammers pitching staff combined for 10 strikeouts while allowing nine Lansing hits.

Ankeney Goes Deep Again

West Michigan carried its 4-2 lead into the bottom of the eighth when Ankeney struck again.

Facing Riley Huge #18, Ankeney launched his second home run of the game, a solo shot that gave the Bung Hammers an important insurance run and a 5-2 advantage.

Ankeney finished 2-for-4 with two home runs, three RBI and two runs scored. His two homers accounted for three of West Michigan’s five runs.

Strong went 1-for-4 with his solo home run, while Rainer finished 2-for-4 with a homer, two runs scored and an RBI.

Lansing made one final push in the eighth against Luke Hoskins #20, scoring once to pull within 5-3.

But that was as close as the Lugnuts would get.

Luke Stofel #40 took over in the ninth and allowed one hit before closing the door on Lansing to earn his second save.

Lugnuts Produce Hits but Strand Eight

Lansing wasn’t without opportunities.

Jake Reinisch #37 led the Lugnuts with three hits, finishing 3-for-4 with a double and an RBI. Lansing collected nine hits overall but went 2-for-9 with runners in scoring position and stranded eight runners.

The Lugnuts scored once in the second, once in the fourth and once in the eighth but never produced a multi-run inning.

Dutton took the loss and fell to 1-8. He worked six innings, allowing four runs on nine hits with five strikeouts and one walk.

Three of the nine hits allowed by Dutton were home runs.

Huge allowed Ankeney’s second homer before Lansing turned to its bullpen to finish the game.

Home-Run Power Makes the Difference

The final numbers told the story.

Lansing finished with three runs on nine hits and committed no errors. West Michigan scored five runs on 10 hits with one error.

All five Bung Hammers runs were driven in by their three home-run hitters: Ankeney drove in three, while Strong and Rainer each drove in one.

West Michigan’s four home runs ultimately proved too much for Lansing to overcome.

The game was played before 7,543 fans at LMCU Ballpark, with first pitch coming at 6:36 p.m. under partly cloudy skies and an 82-degree temperature. The game lasted two hours and 22 minutes.

For a series that has already featured two walk-off victories by West Michigan, Thursday night’s game followed a different script.

This time, the Bung Hammers grabbed the lead with the first two swings of the bottom of the first inning — and never looked back.