Tag: Brad Lincoln
Bowker’s Clutch RBI Gives Indians Extra-Inning Win
Indianapolis Indians 4, Toledo Mud Hens 3
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After 5 scoreless innings with a tie score, the Indians pushed across a run in the top of the 12th, then held on for the win over the Mud Hens at Fifth-Third Field in Toledo, Ohio.
With two outs in the top of the 12th, 2B/3B Brian Friday worked a walk. LF John Bowker (photo) lashed a double into the right-center field alley, over the head of Toledo RF Ben Guez, and off the wall. Friday was off and running with the pitch, and he rounded third and headed for the plate as Guez chased down the ball. He crossed the plate well ahead of the throw, scoring the go-ahead run for the Indians.
The Mud Hens jumped right on Tribe starter Justin Wilson in the bottom of the 1st inning. Lead-off batter DH Will Rhymes with a single, and LF Timo Perez doubled, putting runners on the corners. Rhymes scored on an RBI single into right field by rehabbing 2B Carlos Guillen, and Perez came in on an RBI single by 1B Ryan Strieby, for a 2-0 lead. Strieby stole second base and 3B Danny Worth walked. Wilson got out of the inning when he struck out RF Scott Thorman, and C Kris Watts fired down to third base, throwing out Strieby trying to steal third. SS Cale Iorg added a run in the 2nd inning on a solo homer, giving the Mud Hens a 3-0 lead.
Wilson went on to pitch 4 more innings, scattering 3 more singles (by Rhymes, Iorg, and Strieby) and two walks (Guillen and Strieby), but he did not allow another run. He threw 91 pitches, with 52 strikes.
Bowker’s Homer Is A Bright Spot; Presley Up To Pirates
Pawtucket Red Sox 4, Indianapolis Indians 1
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The Indianapolis Indians came away with a series split against Pawtucket, giving them a 5-3 win of the season series with the Red Sox. The Indians out-hit the PawSox 9-4 at Victory Field tonight, but Pawtucket made their runs count and left town with the win.
Equally as big for the Tribe: the flurry of roster moves that affected the Indians today. The Pirates optioned SS Pedro Ciriaco to the Indians, in order to make room for the move that has been eagerly anticipated by Tribe fans -- OF Alex Presley (photo) was promoted to Pittsburgh. The Pirates had a scheduled day off today, but Presley will join the team tomorrow in Toronto. He may make appearances as a pinch-hitter in the intraleague games, or he might also play some outfield since Jose Tabata has been injured.
Tribe C Wyatt Toregas, who left yesterday's game due to injury, was placed on the Indians' Disabled List today, yet another catcher in the Pirates' organization to be sidelined. The Pirates do not feel that catchers Tony Sanchez and Travis Scott are ready for moving up to AAA. They sought help from outside the organizaton : former Indy Indian and Altoona Curve catcher Miguel Perez is once again an Indian. Perez played in the Pirates' organization during the 2008 and 2009 season. He hit .281 for the Curve in 57 games in 2008, with 2 homers and 22 RBI, and in 30 games for the Curve in 2009, Perez hit .262 with another 2 homers and 12 RBI. Perez got into just 7 games for the Indians in 2009, and hit .182.
And, last but not least, pitcher Mike Crotta finished his rehab assignment, and was reinstated of the Pirates' Disabled List. He was immediately optioned to Indianapolis. In order to make space on the roster, pitcher Brad Lincoln was moved to the Altoona roster. This was a paper move only. Lincoln is in a holding pattern, expected to be called up to pitch for the Pirates when they have a double header on Saturday. And, Lincoln was right here tonight, coaching at first base (photo).
OK, on to the game:
Justin Wilson made his 15th start for the Tribe, in search of his 10th win of the season. He was foiled, though by two tough innings. After retiring the first four PawSox he faced, Wilson walked 1B Hector Luna in the 2nd. The next batter, 2B Nate Spears, with his own private cheering section from Anderson, Indiana in the stands, smashed a long fly ball over the right field wall for a 2-run homer.
Wilson struck out the next two batters to finish the inning, then retired the side in order again in the 3rd. The 4th inning began with Wilson hitting DH Lars Anderson with a pitch. Luna grounded to short, where SS Brian Friday made the scoop and the toss to 2B Josh Harrison. But with Anderson barrelling down on him and an off-balance toss, Harrison made the out at second, but dropped the ball as he went to transfer, and they could not get the double play they'd hoped for. Spears flied out to center field, but 3B Brent Dlugach hit a single to behind second base, moving Luna to third. Wilson walked SS Jose Iglesias to load the bases with two outs. LF Matt Sheely took advantage of the loaded bases and lined a single into left field, scoring both Luna and Dlugach, to give the PawSox 4 runs.
PawSox Early And Late Rallies Crush Tribe
Brad Lincoln made the start for the Indians, and was charged with his 7th loss.
Pawtucket Red Sox 12, Indianapolis Indians 3
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Two big innings by the Pawtucket gave the Red Sox plenty of in-game fireworks to warm up the crowd for the post-game fireworks at Victory Field tonight. The PawSox scored 4 runs in the 2nd and 5 runs in the 8th, and their total of 12 runs came on just 10 hits.
Indians' starter Brad Lincoln mowed down the first five batters he faced, striking out three of them. But with two outs in the top of the 2nd, Lincoln suddenly got into trouble. DH Ryan Lavarnway ripped a double into the right-center field gap for a double. RF Nate Spears lined a single into center field, which CF Gorkys Hernandez fired back to the plate, as Lavarnway rounded third and headed for the plate. The throw was on-target and on-time, but C Eric Fryer couldn't keep hold of it as he went to make the tag. The ball dropped to the ground, and Lavarnway slid across the plate safely. Lincoln walked C Luis Expositon on four pitches, then 2B Brent Dlugach rocketed a double over RF Alex Presley's head and off the top of the right field wall. That brought in Spears, but Presley's strong throw in from right made Exposition hold up at third. With both runners in scoring position, CF Che-Hsuan Lin blooped a single into short center field, which dropped in between three Tribe fielders, brining in both Exposito and Dlugach, for a 4-0 lead.
Hernandez (photo) came through with a clutch double to help the Indians cut the PawSox lead in half in the bottom of the inning. With one out, 3B Josh Harrison, just back from Pittsburgh, took a 4-pitch walk from Pawtucket starter Kyle Weiland. Fryer grounded out, then 2B Josh Rodriguez also walked. Hernandez followed with a double off the top of the wall in the right-center field gap, and both Joshes raced around to score. The rally ended when Presley popped out to second, leaving Hernandez stranded, but the Tribe had made progress: 4-2.
Hague’s Homers Power Indians
Indianapolis Indians 5, Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs 3
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A sudden storm drove the Indians and the Iron Pigs from the field with one out and two runners on base in the bottom of the 9th at Coca Cola Park in Allentown, PA tonight. The tarp was pulled as the rain came down harder and harder, and after the game was in a delay, the storm continued to increase in intensity.
RF Alex Presley (photo) continued his hitting dominance with 4 hits in the game, and 1B Matt Hague gave the Indians a big boost with two home runs. The first homer, a high fly over the left field wall, got the game started in the top of the 1st. With one out in the top of the 3rd, Presley and SS Brian Friday hit back-to-back infield singles right back to Iron Pigs' starting pitcher Ryan Feierabend. Hague followed with his second homer, a 3-run shot into the bullpen behind left field, to give the Indians a 4-0 lead.
Tribe starter Brian Burres pitched into the 6th inning. He gave up a 2-out single to CF John Mayberry in the 1st, a 2-out walk to 1B Cody Overbeck in the 2nd, and a 2-out double to 2B Josh Barfield in the 3rd, but each time kept the Iron Pigs scoreless. Barfield's double hit the top of the left field wall and bounced in, but away from Tribe LF Miles Durham. The Pigs cut the Indians lead in half in the 4th. Former Indian LF Brandon Moss led off with a single, then after two outs, Overbeck lifted a rising line drive over the left field wall, well over Durham's desperate leap. Indians ahead, 4-2.
Lincoln’s Start Spoiled By Lack Of Run Support
Corey Wimberly was the only Tribe batter to reach third base tonight.
Gwinnett Braves 2, Indianapolis Indians 0
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Starter Brad Lincoln pitched 6 strong innings in his first time out after missing his last start, but he didn't get any run support, and suffered his 6th loss of the season, as the Indianapolis Indians lost to the Gwinnett Braves at Victory Field tonight. The Tribe batters recorded 6 hits, with two by Corey Wimberly, but could not push any of their base runners across the plate.
The Indians had some unusual situations in their defense and also in their lineup tonight. Clearly the injuries affecting the Pirates have the major league club looking more closely at what players in Indianapolis are doing. With Josh Harrison still out due to an oblique muscle strain, the Pirates are looking for another infielder who can play third base. Tonight, Chase d'Arnaud played third base for the first time this year, and the first time since a few games back at State College in 2008. Wimberly played second base for the first time this season. The Pirates have been talking about bringing up Alex Presley next week, when they begin interleague play again. Tonight Presley played right field for the first time this season. He did play some right field during spring training, and also last season when he had his September call-up to the Pirates. Andrew Lambo moved over to left field tonight.
The other change was that Brad Lincoln batted 8th in the order (photo above), with Wimberly taking the 9th spot. Manager Dean Treanor wanted to give Wimberly the chance of being in a position to bunt, and he felt that the 9th spot in the order would be best for that.
Lincoln had to face Atlanta Braves' rehabbing outfielder Jason Heyward (photo), and it was Heyward who got the Braves' scoring started in the top of the 1st. Lincoln retired the first two batters, LF Jose Constanza and SS Julio Lugo, both of whom had a hit-fest last night. Heyward ripped a line drive into the left field corner for a double. 1B Mauro Gomez followed with a grounder back up the middle, just out of reach of SS Brian Friday's dive, driving in Heyward. A fly out left Gomez on first, but the Braves had a 1-0 lead.
Lincoln worked around one runner on base in three of the next four innings. He walked CF Jeff Fiorentino to begin the 2nd inning. 2B Ed Lucas rocketed a liner right back at Lincoln, whose glove hand came up almost in self defense. The ball almost tore the glove off his hand, but stuck in the web for a line out. Lincoln tossed to first, easily doubling off Fiorentino. He retired the side in the 3rd, then gave up a double to Gomez in the 4th. Gomez hit a rising line drive that missed being a home run by inches. Instead, it caromed off the top of the right field fence at the edge of the grass berm and back toward Presley, who got it back to the infield quickly, holding Gomez to two bases. Two other great defensive plays kept more Braves from reaching base in the 4th. Heyward lifted a high foul pop to the left side of the field, which d'Arnaud chased down and caught with a slide on the grass in front of the Indians' dugout. 3B Wilkin Castillo followed Gomez's double with a grounder to the middle of the infield. Wimberly went to his right and made a diving stop, keeping the ball from going into the outfield. His foot slipped as he was getting up, but Wimberly was still able to fire over to first base in time for the out on Castillo. Gomez went to third on the play, but Wimberly had saved a run.
Indians’ Pitchers First Shut-Out Of The Season
Indianapolis Indians 1, Buffalo Bison 0
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Four Indians pitchers combined to shut out the Bison at Coca Cola Park in Buffalo, NY -- the first time this season the Tribe has shut out their opponents. The four horsemen held the Bison to just 5 hits, and that was one more hit than the Tribe batters managed. After 7 scoreless innings, the Indians scored the only run of the game in the 8th.
The pitching duel began with Garrett Olson (photo) on the mound. Brad Lincoln had been scheduled to make the start today, but muscle strain in his neck, present for a couple of days now, forced him to miss his start. The possibility that today's game might have to be a bullpen game was part of the reason that manager Dean Treanor had Chris Leroux make another long (4 inning) relief appearance yesterday. Olson, just off the Disabled List, was able to step in for the emergency start, though it was stated in advance that he would be on a limit of about 50 pitches. Former Pirate DJ Carrasco made the start for Buffalo.
Olson gave up just two hits, both doubles to Bison 1B Lucas Duda. One double came in the 1st, with the line drive off the right field wall. The second double, in the 4th, slipped past the diving 1B John Bowker. The throw back in from RF Andrew Lambo nearly got Duda out at second, but it came in a little too far to the infield side of the second base bag. Both times Duda was left standing on second. Olson also walked 3B Michael Fisher in the 2nd inning, but erased him with a 6-4-3 (SS Chase d'Arnaud to 2B Shelby Ford to 1B Bowker) double play. He struck out 3 Buffalo batters, and threw 45 pitches (29 strikes).
The Indians also had three base runners in the early part of the game -- one in each of the first three innings -- but no hits. LF Alex Presley was hit on the right foot by a pitch in the 1st inning. C Eric Fryer walked with two outs in the 2nd and stole second base. Ford reached on a fielding error by Buffalo 2B Luis Hernandez in the 3rd inning. They too were all left on base.
Lincoln Leads The Tribe With His Arm And His Bat
Ready to cheer for the Tribe
Indianapolis Indians 3, Syracuse Chiefs 1
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Indians starter Brad Lincoln (photo) earned his 5th win tonight, beating the Chiefs with both his pitching and his bat at Victory Field tonight. He allowed just one run in his 7 innings of work on 6 hits, with 2 strikeouts.
The game began with both Lincoln and Syracuse starter JD Martin zipping right along on the mound. Lincoln retired the first 9 batters he faced. Seven of those outs were ground balls, and only one ball got out of the infield. Martin retired the first 8 batters he faced -- and before we knew it, the game was already in the bottom of the 3rd.
The Indians' first hit of the game came in the bottom of the 3rd with two outs -- a triple by Lincoln. The ball shot down the right field line and bounced around in the bullpen, and by the time the Chiefs' RF Jesus Valdez got to the ball, Lincoln was cruising into third base. He didn't slide, despite manager Dean Treanor's motioning down, down.
2B Shelby Ford followed Lincoln's triple with a long blast over the right field wall at the 362' sign, landing on the sidewalk behind the grass berm, for a 2-run home run. It was Ford's second homer in four games with the Tribe this season.
3B Andy Marte (photo, being congratulated by manager Dean Treanor) made it a 3-0 lead in the next inning, when he also homered. Marte's bomb out-blasted Ford's -- this one went past the left field berm, past the side walk, and over the grass behind the sidewalk, landing just inside the fence at the edge of Maryland Street.
Lincoln came to the plate again in the bottom of the 5th, and again with two outs. He hit his second extra-base hit of the game, a double off the left field wall. Lincoln sailed into second base easily as the Syracuse outfielders scrambled after the ball. That time, though, he was left stranded.
Lincoln returned to the mound after racing around the bases in the bottom of the 3rd. He gave up a single to 2B Matt Antonelli to lead off the 4th inning. The next batter, Valdez lined softly right to 1B Matt Hague, who was standing just a few feet from first base to hold Antonelli on. With the count full on Valdez, Antonelli took off for second base with the pitch. It was not hard for Hague to turn and tag Valdez on the chest as he tried to return to the bag, for an unassisted double play. A fly out ended that inning.
PawSox Pitching Shuts Down Tribe
Pawtucket Red Sox 9, Indianapolis Indians 2
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The Pawtucket Red Sox had enough of losing to the Indians, and enough of losing at home. They had lost 8 of their last 9 home games, including the last 3 games to the Tribe. So maybe it isn't so surprising that their frustration erupted into a 12-hit game, as they scored in all but two of their at-bats to beat the Indians 9-2 at McCoy Stadium in Pawtucket, Rhode Island.
The Indians started the game on the right foot. With two outs in the top of the 1st and rehabbing Bobby Jenks on the mound for Pawtucket, LF Alex Presley worked a walk, then stole second base. He came around to score from second on a single up the middle by 3B Andy Marte (photo), who also stole second base. That gave the Tribe a 1-0 lead.... and that was all the scoring they would do until the 9th inning.
Brad Lincoln had the start for the Indians. He began the bottom of the 1st by giving up a single to CF Che-Hsuan Lin, and he too stole second base. A ground out moved Lin to third and 3B Hector Luna plated Lin with a line drive single into center field, tying the score at 1-1. As seemed to be the trend, Luna stole second base too.
Unfortunately, the PawSox had their hitting shoes on. They took the lead in the bottom of the 2nd, after Lincoln struck out the first two batters. SS Brent Dlugach was hit by a pitch, and RF Ronald Bermudez doubled into right field. Dlugach raced around from first base to score ahead of the errant relay throw from the cut-off man 2B Josh Harrison. That gave the PawSox a 2-1 lead. Lincoln gave up a single in the 3rd, but did not allow a run to score in that inning. A double by 2B Tony Thomas and an RBI single by Bermudez added a run in the 4th. Lincoln was attacked again in the 5th, with a double by Lin, an RBI single by LF Daniel Nava, bringing in Lin. A fielding error by CF Gorkys Hernandez moved Nava to second, and he tagged up and advanced to third on a fly out. Nava scored on a wild pitch by Lincoln, increasing the PawSox lead to 5-1.
Presley’s Inside-The-Park Homer Not Enough
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees 2, Indianapolis Indians 1
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LF Alex Presley made the most exciting hit of the game, an inside-the-park home run, but that was the only run the Indians would score, as they lost to the Yankees at PNC Field in Moosic, PA this evening. 1B Matt Hague punched 3 hits for the Tribe, and starter Brad Lincoln struck out 7 batters in 6 innings, but even those were not enough.
The game got off to a late start, due to a nearly two-hour rain delay. Lincoln (photo) got off to a bit of a shaky start in the bottom of the 1st, when he walked the first batter he faced, LF Austin Krum, then gave up a single to SS Ramiro Pena. Then Lincoln got C Jesus Montero to bound to the newest Tribe player, SS Greg Picart, who started a 6-4-3 double play (Picart to 2B Josh Harrison to Hague). A strikeout ended the inning without a run scoring.
Lincoln was not so lucky in the 2nd inning. CF Justin Maxwell led off with an "oops" swing bunt along the third base line, which 3B Andy Marte was able to get to, but he did not have a play at first, and Maxwell was safe with a single. Maxwell stole second base, then moved to third on 3B Brandon Laird's ground out. 2B Kevin Russo grounded a slow roller to second, where Harrison made the scoop and fired back to the plate, but the ball reached the plate after Maxwell did, for the Yankees' first run. RF Dan Brewer walked, pushing Russo to second base. DH Gustavo Molina grounded to second for what should have been an inning-ending double play. Harrison got the ball to second base, for the force out on Brewer, but Picart was disrupted by Brewer's slide, and his throw to first base was wide on the outfield side of the bag. That allowed Russo to round third and score on the error, giving the Yankees a 2-0 lead.
Seven Scoreless Innings For Lincoln, With Plenty Of Run Support
Chase d'Arnaud (19) is congratulated after his 2-run homer.
Indianapolis Indians 6, Buffalo Bisons 1
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Brad Lincoln (photo) won his fourth game in a row with his best performance of the season, pitching 7 scoreless innings to lead the Indians over the Buffalo Bison at Victory Field this afternoon. This was Lincoln's 8th start overall for the Indians, and the only scoreless start so far. He went 7 innings for the second time in a row, and struck out 7 batters for the third time this season. Lincoln allowed only 4 hits, which was the fewest he's allowed since his first start -- and that start lasted only 4.2 innings.
Lincoln scattered those 4 hits, plus one walk, so that the Bison had only one inning in which two runners reached base. He retired the first 7 Bison in order, including 3 strikeouts in the first two innings. Former Indy Indian (2008) C Raul Chavez had the first hit for Buffalo, with a grounder up the middle in the 3rd inning. The next batter, Buffalo starter Casey Fossum tried to drop down a sacrifice bunt, but the bunt went up instead of down, and 3B Josh Harrison was able to charge in and catch the tiny pop. Harrison then fired over to first base, where a temporarily confused Chavez had frozen in his tracks several feet away from the bag. Chavez was easily doubled off the bag for the inning- ending double play.
Lincoln allowed a single to lead-off batter LF Jesus Feliciano in the 4th, then struck out the next two batters and ended the inning with a ground out. He worked around an infield hits by 3B Michael Fisher in the 5th and by 1B Valentino Pascucci in the 7th. The 6th was the only inning that Lincoln allowed two Bison hitters to reach base. With one out, he walked Feliciano. SS Luis Hernandez grounded to 2B Chase d'Arnaud for what could have been a double play. D'Arnaud's flip to SS Pedro Ciriaco erased Feliciano at second, but Feliciano's slide made Ciriaco jump out of the way to avoid being taken down, and Ciriaco could not make the throw to first. That didn't seem to bother Lincoln, though, as he got CF Kirk Nieuwenhuis to tap back to the mound and tagged Nieuwenhuis out himself to end the inning.
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Indians Score 9 Second Day In A Row
Chase d'Arnaud makes the play at shortstop
Indianapolis Indians 9, Columbus Clippers 5
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It took 8 games, but the Indians finally got their first win of the season against the Columbus Clippers tonight at Victory Field. Brad Lincoln made a solid start, going 7 innings to earn his 3rd win. It was the second game in a row that the Tribe scored 9 runs, but also the second in a row when they allowed the opposition to rally in the late innings. The Indians posted 16 hits (two more than last night), with 1B Matt Hague and SS Chase d'Arnaud each contributing 3 hits and 3 RBI. Each member of the starting line up had at least one hit.
Lincoln (photo) allowed 2 runs on 6 hits and 2 walks, with 4 strikeouts in his 7 innings. He had only one inning in which he retired the Clippers in order, but left 8 runners on base. The righty got through the first inning with only one runner reaching base, when he hit Columbus' DH Lonnie Chisenhall with a pitch. The two runs scored in the 2nd inning. RF Travis Buck led off the inning with a single into right center field. A fly out and a pop out followed, and it looked like Lincoln might get out of the inning unscathed. Then former Indy Indian C Luke Carlin ran the count full and took a walk. That brought up 3B Luis Valbuena, who ripped a grounder into right field so hard that it travelled all the way to the right field wall. He drove in both Buck and Carlin, and by the time the ball got to the infield, Valbuena was on second base. A spectacular catch by CF Alex Presley on a long fly ball off the bat of CF Ezequiel Carrera ended the inning.
Lincoln went on to give up a single to Chisenhall in the 3rd inning, and also struck out 2 in the 3rd. 1B Chad Huffman singled and stole second base in the 5th. That inning ended with a grounder toward second base. 2B Pedro Ciriaco charged in, made the scoop on the run, then threw across his body and a little behind him to first base, where Matt Hague had to pick the ball out of the dirt, but did it in time for the out. Chisenhall doubled in the 7th inning, but was again left stranded.
After scoring in the 2nd inning, the biggest threat the Clippers made against Lincoln came in the 4th. With one out, LF Jerad Head slipped a grounder past the diving d'Arnaud and into left field. Carlin again worked a full count and took a walk. Valbuena flied out to short left field for the second out. Carrera grounded to third for what should have been the final out, but the ball skipped off 3B Josh Harrison's glove and over his shoulder. D'Arnaud was in the perfect position to back up Harrison, and made the catch behind him, but by then Carrera had reached first base safely, loading the bases. D'Arnaud's back-up kept a run from scoring, though, and Lincoln got another grounder to Harrison, this one fielded cleanly, to end the inning and leave the bases full. It took Lincoln 97 pitches (62 strikes) to get through his 7 innings.
