TinCaps C Austin Hedges and RP Johnny Barbato celebrate after recording the final out of the game. (Photo by Robert Ivory)

The Fort Wayne TinCaps made the Lake County Captains walk the plank Monday, winning 13-6 on the road to advance to a best-of-five showdown with the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers in this year’s Midwest League Championship Series.

The decisive third game of the Eastern Division Championship Series seemed evenly matched for the first half. The teams were tied 4-4 from the end of the 3rd inning until the TinCaps broke the game wide open in the top of the 6th inning. Fort Wayne sent 12 men to the plate and scored six runs, added another in the 7th inning and two more in the 9th inning, with the Captains responding with only two more runs of their own, in the bottom of the 8th inning.

TinCaps RF Yeison Asencio clubs a 2-run homer in the 9th inning. (Photo by Robert Ivory)

The TinCaps offense was led by Yeison Asencio, who went 3-for-5 with a home run and 4 RBI. But he wasn’t the only Fort Wayne player to perform well in Game 3. Kyle Gaedele went 3-for-4 with three doubles, 3 RBI and a walk. Lee Orr and Travis Whitmore homered, and Jace Peterson drove in a pair of runs.

Fort Wayne’s Lee Orr swings at a pitch in Lansing during the first round of the playoffs. (Photo by Craig Wieczorkiewicz)

Lake County’s Jake Lowery went 2-for-5 with a double, a solo homer and 3 RBI.

Lake County’s Bryson Myles (23) greets teammate Jake Lowery at the plate after Lowery homered in the 8th inning. (Photo by Robert Ivory)

The championship series begins Wednesday night at Fox Cities Stadium in Appleton. I plan to be there and at every other game of the series, live-tweeting updates via Twitter and writing game stories for this blog.