Tag: Miles Durham
Tribe And Braves Take Duel To The 9th
Corey Wimberly got back to first base safely this time... but was picked off moments later.
Gwinnett Braves 4, Indianapolis Indians 0
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Another pitching duel erupted at Victory Field tonight, as the Indianapolis Indians and the Gwinnett Braves battled it out over a scoreless tie for 8 innings. The loss dropped the Indians to below the .500 mark as they finish this home stand. The Indians and the Braves split this 4 game series, two games each.
Tribe starter Garrett Olson pitched 5 hitless and scoreless innings but did not figure into the decision. He allowed one base runner over those innings. Braves SS Julio Lugo worked the count full then took a walk in the top of the 1st. After Olson struck out rehabbing Atlanta Brave outfielder Jason Heyward (photo, not looking too pleased), he got 1B Mauro Gomez to ground to short to force out Julio at second base. Olson retired the next 12 batters in order, including 4 more strikeouts. He got some help from his fielders. In the 5th inning, 3B Dan Nelson took a long fly ball into deep right field. Alex Presley, playing right field for the second day in a row, headed back for the wall. He turned one way, then the other, and finally made the over-the-shoulder catch at the warning track for the second out of the inning. That play was followed by a nice play by SS Brian Friday on a sharp grounder off the bat of 2B Ed Lucas. Friday went to his right for a back-hand catch, then fired over to 1B Matt Hague to end the inning.
Olson was relieved by Chris Leroux after 5 innings. Olson was on a 50 pitch count for his last start on June 8th -- due to working in relief in the earlier part of the season, and also having been on the Disabled List. So, even though he was pitching a no-hitter, Olson's outing was cut short after 66 pitches (44 strikes). Leroux continued the no-hitter with a 1-2-3 inning in the 6th.
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.
Marte Goes 3-For-3 As Indians Top .500
Kris Watts' first AAA hit is a triple, as he slides in ahead of the tag.
Indianapolis Indians 4, Gwinnett Braves 3
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The Indianapolis Indians took a step above the .500 level today, with a win over the Gwinnett Braves this afternoon at Victory Field. Starter Justin Wilson made his 13th start of the season and earned his 8th win, but had to work around a lot of base runners to do it. 3B Andy Marte, just back in the line-up after a hamstring injury, went 3-for-3 at the plate, and sparked the Tribe's key rally in the 6th inning.
The Indians jumped out to an early lead with 2 runs in the bottom of the 1st. With two outs, CF Alex Presley (photo), who leads the International League in hits, got hit #83 on a line drive into short center field. He stole second base, then a walk to LF John Bowker gave the Indians runners on first and second bases. 1B Matt Hague grounded to short, where Braves' SS Julio Lugo could not get the ball out of his glove fast enough to throw anyone out. That loaded the bases for Marte, who took a 3-1 pitch into right field for a single. Presley and Bowker scored easily, and as RF Stefan Gartrell made the throw in to the plate, Hague also rounded third and was sent home. Hague slid in to the plate, but by then C Wilkin Castillo had the ball and was planted in front of the plate -- Hague was tagged out at home to end the inning. Indians up, 2-0.
With one out in the 2nd inning, the newest member of the Tribe, C Kris Watts, who made his first AAA start today, also picked up his first AAA hit -- a triple into right field. Gartrell made a dive for the ball, but missed, and the ball bounced all the way to the right field wall, as Watts raced around second and slid into third base (photo above). A walk to SS Chase d'Arnaud gave the Indians runners on the corners, but a ground out at second base ended the inning. The Tribe had only one hit over the next two innings, and that was Marte's second hit of the game, a double to center field to lead off the bottom of the 4th. Braves' CF Jose Constanza ran all the way back to the wall, where he made a leap for a catch. But the catch threw him into the outfield wall, and that jarred the ball out of his glove. The umpires ruled that it was not a catch, and Marte reached second base. He was stranded there, though, as Braves' starter Erik Cordier retired the next three batters on fly outs.
Tribe Reaches .500 With Hague’s Walk-Off Hit
Shortstop Chase d'Arnaud has to leave the second base bag to keep this throw from C Eric Fryer from going into center field, as Braves' Jose Constanza stole second base in the first inning.
Indianapolis Indians 1, Gwinnett Braves 0
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For the second time in less than a week, the Indians battled through a pitching duel to win by a score of 1-0. On Wednesday in Buffalo, the Tribe scored one run in the top of the 8th to beat the Bison. Today, the Indians won the opening game of a 4-game series with the Gwinnett Braves at Victory Field by the same score. 
Brian Burres (photo, getting a turn at the plate) made the start for the Indians, and again he could not get the win while pitching at Victory Field. It was not through any fault of his own -- he pitched 6.2 scoreless innings, allowing only 3 hits, with 4 walks and 6 strikeouts. But the Tribe batters could not come through with any runs for him in the early innings of the game.
Burres had to work out of a jam in the top of the 1st. Braves' CF Jose Constanza lined the first pitch of the game into right field for a single. Burres struck out SS Julio Lugo, but Constanza stole second base on strike three. The throw from C Eric Fryer was wide of the bag at second, and Constanza slid in easily. Constanza also stole third base, sliding in just a split second ahead of the tag by 3B Matt Hague. Burres walked RF Stefan Gartrell to put Braves on the corners. 1B Mauro Gomez lifted a fly ball to center field, and it looked like it was going to fall in for a single, so Constanza started down the third base line to the plate. But at the last second, CF Gorkys Hernandez charged in to make the running catch at knee-level. Constanza had to scramble back to third, and by then it was too late to tag up and try again to head for home. That was a big break for Burres and the Indians. The next batter, 2B Ed Lucas hit the first pitch into center field, an easier catch for Hernandez, to end the inning.
Burres retired the Braves in order in the next two innings. He began the 4th inning by giving up a single to Gartrell, on a line drive that looped over Hague's head and into left field. After a strikeout by Gomez and another great running catch by Hernandez on a fly ball by Lucas, Burres got LF Wilkin Ramirez to ground to third base. Hague's throw to 2B Brian Friday was wide to the outfield side of the bag, and Friday had to reach and fell to the ground, but still kept the ball in his glove and his toe on the bag, for the inning-ending force out.
Tribe Run Down Bison Again; Hughes’ AAA Debut
Indianapolis Indians 12, Buffalo Bison 6
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The Indians and the Bison held a hit-fest at Coca-Cola Park in Buffalo, NY tonight, with the two teams combining for 30 hits (16 for the Indians and 14 for the Bison). The Tribe made the better use of their hits, though, and with three 3-run innings, the Tribe came out on top. SS Chase d'Arnaud went 4-for-5 with a homer and 5 RBI, and RF Miles Durham went 3-for-4 with an RBI. Rudy Owens (photo) earned his 6th win of the season, with 3 runs on 6 hits and 4 walks.
The Tribe got onto the scoreboard first, with 3 runs in the top of the 2nd innning. With one out, C Eric Fryer walked, then after a second out, Owens also walked. That brought up d'Arnaud, who rocketed a rising line drive over the right-center field wall to give the Indians a 3-0 lead.
Owens got through the first inning allowing only a double by 1B Valentino Pascucci. He gave the Bison back a run in the 2nd inning. A single by 3B Zach Lutz, a walk to LF Jason Botts, and a single by C Mike Nickeas loaded the bases. CF Jesus Feliciano brought in Lutz with a sacrifice fly, to cut the Indians' lead to 3-1. A sacrifice bunt by Buffalo starter Mark Cohoon was fielded by Owens, but the throw to first pulled 2B Brian Friday, who was covering, off the bag. Cohoon was credited with a sacrifice, and Owens was charged with an error. But with the bases loaded again, Owens got 2B Michael Fisher to fly out to left field. LF Alex Presley made the catch, then fired the ball in to the plate, where Fryer made the catch and held on to tag out Botts as he tried to tag up and score. The outfield assist saved at least one run, and possibly more, if the inning had continued. Durham also made an outfield assist in the 3rd inning. SS Luis Hernandez walked, then Pascucci lined into right field. Hernandez tried to go from first to third on the play, but Durham fired in to third base, where 3B Matt Hague mad the tag out.
Things Get Ugly Early In Buffalo
Buffalo Bison 15, Indianapolis Indians 2
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It was getting ugly by the third inning at Coca-Cola Park in Buffalo, NY this morning, and unfortunately for the Indians, things never got better. The Bison scored 5 runs in the 3rd inning and 6 runs in the 8th, as they stomped on the Tribe. The Indians and the Bison each posted 11 hits, but the Bison were handed 9 walks and took advantage of an error as they got some revenge for being shut out yesterday.
Starter Sean Gallagher (photo) retired the Bison in order in the bottom of the 1st, but Buffalo got going in the 2nd. Singles by RF Fernando Martinez and CF Kirk Nieuwenhuis put runners on first and second, then 2B Luis Hernandez bounced a ground-rule double over the center field wall. That scored Martinez. A ground out by former Indy Indian C Raul Chavez brought in Nieuwenhuis from third base, for a 2-0 lead.
Things started getting ugly in the bottom of the 3rd. Another former Indy Indian, SS Luis Figueroa, led off with a walk. 3B Michael Fisher singled and LF Lucas Duda walked, loading the bases. Martinez grounded to first, but when 1B John Bowker tossed to Gallagher, who was covering the bag, Gallagher could not make the catch. The error was charged to Bowker, and it allowed Figueroa and Fisher to score. With runners on the corners, 1B Valentino Pascucci homered over the left field wall, to lift the lead to 7-0.
2B Brian Friday and CF Alex Presley had both singled for the Tribe in the 1st inning, but Friday was caught stealing and Presley was left on base. The Indians loaded the bases in the 3rd. Gallagher started by looping a single into left field. SS Chase d'Arnaud grounded to deep short, where his counterpart Luis Figueroa made a dive, but missed (and broke his belt in the process). A walk to Friday loaded the bases with just one out. But Raul Chavez made a perfect throw to second base to pick off d'Arnaud, and that broke the Indians' rhythm. A ground out ended the inning, without the Tribe scoring a run. The Tribe did get onto the scoreboard in the 4th. Bowker led off with a double into right field. He advanced to third base on a tag-up when 1B Matt Hague flied out, then RF Miles Durham brought in Bowker with a sacrifice fly. Bison still way ahead, 7-1.
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.
Indians Stampede Bison
Indianapolis Indians 13, Buffalo Bison 4
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The Indianapolis Indians exploded for two big innings, as they stampeded the Buffalo Bison at Coca-Cola Park in Buffalo, NY tonight. The Tribe took advantage of 3 physical errors, plus several mental errors by the Bison, and scored their 13 runs on only 10 hits, leaving only 2 runners on base. 
Buffalo starter Josh Stinson faced the Indians on May 17th here in Indianapolis, and he did not have a good outing. He allowed 4 runs in the 1st inning, one in the 3rd, and 3 more in the 5th inning, as the Indians won the game 10-1, posting 16 hits. In that game, Stinson lasted 4.2 innings before being relieved.
Tonight, the Indians were even less kind to Stinson. He got through the 1st inning unscathed, allowing a single up the middle by SS Chase d'Arnaud, then removed d'Arnaud from the bases with a double play. It was in the 2nd inning that the wheels fell off for Stinson. 1B John Bowker began the fun with a double through into right field. 3B Matt Hague reached base safely when 1B Valentino Pascucci could not handle a low throw to first base, and Bowker moved to third base. RF Andrew Lambo bounced to Pascucci, who wanted to throw to the plate, but Pascucci hesitated and got himself set before making the throw. The hesitation was just enough to let Bowker slide into the plate ahead of the throw, for the Indians' first run. That left Hague and Lambo on base, and brought up C Eric Fryer. Fryer (photo) made it a 4-0 game when he took the first pitch he saw over the left field wall on a no-doubt-about-it 3-run homer.
CF Gorkys Hernandez followed the homer with a smash off the wall in the right-center gap, and raced all the way to third base, credited with a triple, when the Bison CF Fernando Martinez had trouble hitting his cut-off man on the throw in. Tribe starter Justin Wilson hit his second RBI double of the season into left field, scoring Hernandez easily. A wild pitch put Wilson on third base, and a walk to d'Arnaud gave the Indians runners on the corners. D'Arnaud stole second base on strike three when 2B Brian Friday struck out. LF Alex Presley walked to load the bases. That brought up Bowker again, and Bowker's second double of the inning, going into the left-center field gap, cleared the bases to give the Indians an 8-0 lead. That sent Stinson to the showers. Reliever Brian Sweeney got Hague to pop out, then former Indy Indian C Raul Chavez picked Bowker off second base to end the inning.
Presley’s Pinch-Hit Triple Sparks 7th Inning Rally
"With the first pick in the 2011 draft, the Pirates take UCLA's RHP Gerrit Cole"
Indianapolis Indians 6, Syracuse Chiefs 4
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A 7th-inning rally featuring a pinch-hit triple by Alex Presley gave the Indians the win over the Syracuse Chiefs at Victory Field tonight. Reliever Justin Thomas earned his 4th win, and closer Tim Wood earned his lucky 13th Save. 2B Brian Friday went 3-for-4 and all three hits were doubles, while SS Chase d'Arnaud and C Eric Fryer had 2 hits each. 
In three of the past four games, the Indians had surrendered at least one run in the top of the 1st inning. Tonight, starter Brian Burres (photo) broke that tradition, even though the Chiefs threatened in the top of the 1st. 2B Matt Antonelli opened the game with a double over the head of Tribe 1B Miles Durham and down the right field line into the corner. Antonelli had to stay at second while Burres struck out CF Corey Brown and got RF Jesus Valdez to bounce into a ground out at second. Burres walked 1B Chris Marrero, then C Jesus Flores ripped a line drive into right field. It looked like both runners were going to have plenty of time to come around to score, but RF Andrew Lambo had other thoughts. He raced toward the line and made a diving catch as the line drive sank, to end the inning for Burres and the Tribe.
Tom Milone made the start for Syracuse and before he could get himself settled in on the mound, d'Arnaud rifled Milone's first pitch into the right center gap, all the way to the wall, and raced around to third base as the Chiefs' outfielders chased it down. Brian Friday quickly followed the lead-off triple with a double down the left field line, ending up the Indians' bullpen bench. That drove in d'Arnaud for a 1-0 lead.
Grand Slam Gives Chiefs The Restart; Homers For Fryer And Durham In 2nd Game
The Indians lost the suspended game, but won the regularly scheduled game.
Syracuse Chiefs 6, Indianapolis Indians 4 (completion of suspended game)
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When we last left our heroes, trying to escape the pouring rain....
The Indians/Chiefs game was suspended after a 1 hour 44 minute wait last night. Tribe starter Sean Gallagher had given up a run in the top of the 1st, then the Indians took the lead in the 3rd on a single by CF Gorkys Hernandez, a triple by SS Chase d'Arnaud, and an error by the Syracuse 2B Tug Hulett. Syracuse tied the score in the top of the 6th on a solo homer by Hulett of reliever Chris Leroux. The top of the 7th began with Leroux still on the mound. He gave up a single and a sacrifice bunt, then was relieved by Justin Thomas. With the rain pouring down and the ball wet and slippery, Thomas hit both LF Gregor Blanco and CF Corey Brown with pitches to load the bases. Play was halted ...
The game restarted this afternoon at Victory Field, under overcast skies, with sprinkling rain that did not last long. Cesar Valdez (photo) took the mound for the Indians, with two outs and the bases loaded. 1B Chris Marrero stepped to the plate, and rocketed a grand slam over the left field wall, to give Syracuse a 6-2 lead.
The Tribe got two of the runs back in the bottom of the frame. Andrew Lambo, who had entered the game as a pinch-hitter for Gallagher and remained in the game in right field, opened the inning with a double into right field. After d'Arnaud struck out, 2B Brian Friday hit another double, just inside the first base bag and down the right field line, scoring Lambo. John Bowker, who had taken over left field at the restart, flied out. 3B Andy Marte blooped an RBI single into left field, bringing Friday around from second base to score. 1B Matt Hague also singled, and pinch-hitter Shelby Ford walked on four pitches to load the bases, but C Eric Fryer struck out on a checked swing, to end the rally.
Dan Meyer pitched the last two innings for the Indians. He struck out the first two batters in the 8th, then gve up a single to SS Matt Antonelli, then retired the next 4 Chiefs in order.
The Indians managed only one base runner over the last two innings -- Hernandez led off the bottom of the 8th with a double to the center field wall. The remaining 6 Tribe batters went down in order, and the Chiefs had the win.
Two Bombs By Presley Lead Tribe Explosion
Alex Presley is congratulated after one of his two home runs.
Indianapolis Indians 13, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees 2
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The Indianapolis Indians exploded for 13 runs on 15 hits to defeat the Yankees at Victory Field tonight, earning a split of both the 4-game series and the 8-game season series with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. LF Alex Presley blasted a pair of 3-run home runs to lead the offense, as each member of the line-up collected at least one hit, and all but one scored at least one run. 
Both starting pitchers began their evening with struggles in the first inning. For Tribe starter Justin Wilson (photo), the game started with a triple off the bat of Yankees' 2B Kevin Russo. Russo's lined into right field, where RF Miles Durham raced in and made a feet-first slide, but missed the ball. By the time, Durham got up and chased the ball down, Russo was gliding into third base. SS Ramiro Pena dropped down a safety squeeze bunt, with Wilson scrambling off the mound to make the scoop and throw right back to C Eric Fryer as Russo came from third. Fryer blocked the plate, but he dropped the ball, and Russo was safe. It was first ruled a sacrifice bunt and a fielders' choice -- but then the ruling was changed to a missed catch error on Fryer, with no RBI for Pena.
With a runner still on first base, Wilson got C Jesus Montero to fly out and struck out 3B Jorge Vazquez. A wild pitch moved Pena to second base, then he scored on 1B Brandon Laird's single, lined over SS Chase d'Arnaud's head and into left field. Both runs were unearned, but the Yankees had a 2-0 lead.
But Yankees' starter Andrew Brackman was having his own troubles. His pitches were going everywhere, with no apparent control on his part. He walked lead-off batter d'Arnaud, with d'Arnaud ducking out of the way as one pitch came in a little too close to his head, and ball four going crazy wild all the way to the backstop. Another crazy wild pitch to 2B Brian Friday let d'Arnaud advance to second base. Brackman settled down enough to get Friday to fly out, then retired Presley on a high bouncer back to the mound, and struck out 1B John Bowker. When Brackman came out for the second inning, his command was even worse -- reminiscent of the "Wild Thing" character in the movie "Major League". Brackman walked both 3B Andy Marte and DH Matt Hague, with pitches going everywhere. After three more balls for a 3-1 count on Fryer, Brackman threw another wild one that hit Fryer on his helmet, then bounced off the helmet and into the stands behind the visitors' dugout. That was the last pitch for Brackman, who was quickly yanked.
Reliever Ryan Pope came on for the Yankees, with the bases full and no outs. RF Miles Durham cleared the bases on Pope's first pitch, with a ringing double to the base of the wall in right-center field, and the Indians took a 3-2 lead as Marte, Hague, and Fryer all scored (photo). Pope also gave up a single to CF Gorkys Hernandez and walked Friday before ending the inning on two fly outs.
Wilson was able to relax after that first inning. He gave up a two-out single to CF Austin Krum in the 2nd inning, but struck out Russo to end the inning. He loaded the bases in the 3rd inning with singles by Montero and RF Jordan Parraz and a walk to Vazquez. But with two outs and the bases loaded, Wilson reached deep, and fired two pitches at 92-93 mph to strike out LF Dan Brewer and end the inning. Wilson went on to pitch 3 more innings, without allowing another hit. He walked two batters in the 5th, but erased one base runner with an around-the-horn double play (Marte to Friday to Bowker, 5-4-3). Alex Presley made the final out of the inning with a spectacular leaping catch of Laird's fly ball to deep left field, snatching the ball at the top of the left field scoreboard.
