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Photo:� Alex Presley
Jeremy Powell also pitched 6 innings on his way to his 10th win.�� He allowed 5 hits and a walk, and struck out 7 batters, including striking out the side in the 4th.� One of the hits was a solo home run to lead off the 2nd inning by Juan Francisco, and that was the only run Powell surrendered.� Powell allowed a single to 1B Yonder Alonso in the 1st inning, but left him on base.� After the home run in the 2nd inning, Powell gave up singles to C Devin Mesoraco and 2B Wilkin Castillo.� Tribe C Jason Jaramillo surprised Mesoraco with a pick-off move, and when Mesoraco tried for third base instead, he was easily tagged out by the relay from Doug Bernier.� Castillo did not move from third base during that play, but moments later he stole second base.� But the pitcher was up, and Klinker struck out to end the inning without a run scoring.
Powell also worked around two runners in the 3rd, when SS Zack Cozart singled and Yonder Alonso walked.� He got out of that small jam by striking out RF Wladimire Balentien and getting Juan Francisco to fly out.� In fact, after that walk to Alonso, Powell retired the next 11 batters he faced, to take him through the end of the 6th inning.� He threw a total of 104 pitches (72 strikes) in tonight’s outing.
After Klinker left the game, his reliever colleagues did not allow the Indians another run.� Philippe Valiquette replaced Klinker to begin the 7th.� He walked Aki Iwamura in the 7th but left him stranded.� Brandon Moss led off the 8th inning by reaching base on a throwing error by 2B Wilkin Castillo.� Castillo cut in front of SS Zack Cozart to make the pick-up, but it put him off-balance, and so his throw to first base pulled Yonder Alonso off the bag, and Moss was safe.� Mitch Jones walked, giving the Indians runners on first and second base.� Moss tried to steal third base, but in an unusual situation, the umpires sent him back to second base, because home plate umpire Chad Whitson had interfered with C Mesoraco as he tried to throw to third base.� Moss did get to third base a minute later, on Brian Myrow’s ground out play.� Myrow bounced to second base, and 2B Castillo threw to first to get the out on Myrow.� But in the second weird play of the inning, Jones stopped running on the base path between first and second — maybe thinking that the Bats would throw to third to try to get Moss??� He did continue on to second, but the hesitation was long enough for 1B Alonso to fire back to second base, where SS Cozart had plenty of time to tag him out for the reverse double play.
The Indians scored one more time, and it was an unearned run in the top of the 9th, coming without the benefit of a hit.� Jerry Gil took over for Valiquette, and he began by walking Doug Bernier.� Pinch-hitter Brian Friday grounded out to short, but Bernier had been off and running, and he advanced to second base.� Kevin Melillo also grounded out, which sent Friday to third base.� Aki Iwamura tapped another grounder back to the mound, but Gil was in too much of a hurry to make the third out, and his flip to Alonso at first went high and off Alonso’s outstretched glove.� That gave Bernier all the time he needed to score from third base.
Anthony Claggett relieved Jeremy Powell to begin the 7th inning for the Indians.� He gave up a lead-off single to LF Todd Frazier to open the inning, but after a strikeout, he erased Frazier when Castillo grounded to short for a double play.� Doug Bernier made the scoop and stepped on second base himself, then fired over to Brian Myrow at first to end the inning.� Claggett also struck out RF Michael Griffin, who had entered the game in a double-switch, to begin the 8th inning, but strike three was a wild pitch that got away from Jason Jaramillo, and Griffin was safe at first.� Three fly outs later, Griffin was still at first base, and the inning was over.
The Bats also scored one more run, in the bottom of the 9th off reliever Corey Hamman. Hamman came into the game in a double-switch, with Brian Friday remaining in the game at second base in place of Aki Iwamura.� Hamman struck out pinch-hitter Eric Eymann for the first out.� The second out of the inning was an amazing leaping catch by Brian Myrow, robbing Juan Francisco of a line drive hit.� With two outs, Todd Frazier took Hamman’s 1-1 pitch over the right field wall for a solo home run — too little, too late for the Bats, though.� The game ended with another leaping catch, as Brian Friday caught Devin Mesoraco’s line drive at second base.
The Columbus Clippers lost to the Toledo Mud Hens, 5-4 in 12 innings, so the Louisville Bats maintain their 1.5 lead in the International League Western Division.� The Indians are in third place, 8.5 games behind the Bats.� The Clippers still lead the wild card race, by 2 games over the Buffalo Bison and 5 games over the Syracuse Chiefs.� The Indians are in fourth place in that race,� 7 games back, with the Gwinnett Braves next at 7.5 games back.
Indians’ Hitting Gems of the Game:� Two big blasts.� Alex Presley’s homer was his 6th of the season with the Indians.� Brian Myrow (photo) hit his 7th of the season.� “Since I had been on the DL for nearly six weeks, it’s difficult to come in and get right on the timing of things,” Myrow said after the game.� “It was nice to get a pitch I could handle and hopefully I’ll get a few more tomorrow.” � Myrow was particularly happy to have hit it with his kids in attendance.
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Indians’ Defensive Gems of the Game:� Two leaping catches.� In the bottom of the 9th with one out, Juan Francisco hit a hard line drive that looked like it was destined for right field — until Brian Myrow made a leaping catch.� “I’m every bit of 5′ 11″, but I play a lot bigger than that,” Myrow laughed after the game.� Two batters later, Brian Friday made another leaping catch, to rob Devin Mesoraco of a hit, for the third out of the inning.
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NOTES:
With the Pirates moving starter Ross Ohlendorf to the Disabled List, they needed another arm.� Brian Burres, who is already on the Pirates’ 40-man roster, was called up to Pittsburgh.� The Pirates have hinted that there might be more pitching shuffles later in the week.
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Go Tribe!
(photos by Nancy)
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