After trading wins over the first four games of the best-of-five series, Class A West Michigan ultimately edged Cedar Rapids, 3-2, on Monday night to become Midwest League champions for the first time since 2007. It was the third straight game in the series that was decided by one run.
Cedar Rapids left fielder Austin Diemer connected on a solo home run in the bottom of the third to put the Kernels on the board, and third baseman T.J. White extended the lead to 2-0 with an RBI single in the subsequent frame.
However, West Michigan's offense bounced back in the fifth inning, scoring three runs while sending nine batters to the plate.