IL Indianapolis Indians

8.12.23 Game Information: Nashville Sounds (60-50, 20-16) vs. Indianapolis Indians (50-60, 17-19)

Published on August 12, 2023 under International League (IL)
Indianapolis Indians News Release


LOCATION: Victory Field

FIRST PITCH: 7:05 PM ET

GAME #111 / HOME #55: Nashville Sounds (60-50, 20-16) vs. Indianapolis Indians (50-60, 17-19)

PROBABLES: RHP Janson Junk (6-6, 4.44) vs. RHP Luis Ortiz (3-4, 4.40)

RADIO: FoxSportsIndy.com / Fox Sports 1260 / iHeart app

TV: Bally Live app / MiLB TV

ABOUT LAST NIGHT: Malcom Nuñez and Domingo Leyba each went yard as the Indianapolis Indians lost their sixth straight game and fourth to the Nashville Sounds on Friday night at Victory Field, 7-5. Leyba led the Indians offense with the first multi-hit performance for the home team since Tuesday. With one out and down 2-0 in the second inning, he roped his first three-bagger of the season to the deepest part of the ballpark and came in to score on a Vinny Capra sacrifice fly. After Nashville scored two more runs in the third inning, the Indians used one of two long balls to narrow the deficit back to one run. Following a one-out single by Ryan Vilade, Nuñez sent a towering fly ball out onto the left-field concourse. Down by three runs following another two-spot by the Sounds in the sixth, Leyba launched his own solo home run in the bottom of the seventh to tighten the gap again. The two teams then traded runs in the ninth inning, with Indy's half inning highlighted by Leyba's third hit of the game. Ethan Small induced a long fly ball by Chris Owings to strand the game-tying run at the plate.

DOMINGONE: Designated hitter Domingo Leyba had a game high three hits on Friday night. He went 3-for-4 with a triple and his third home run of the season with Indianapolis. The switch-hitter has flourished since being assigned to Indianapolis on July 25 from Double-A Altoona. He has hits in eight of 11 games - including five multi-hit games. Leyba spent the majority of the season with Altoona where he hit .343 (35-for-102) with six doubles and three home runs in 30 games played. Pittsburgh signed him as a minor league free agent on March 8, 2023.

NUÑEY LEAVES THE YARD: Malcom Nuñez made his presence known in a big way on Friday night, playing in his first series with Indianapolis since being placed on the 7-day injured list on May 27. He launched a 416-foot blast in the fourth inning and later doubled to spark a ninth-inning rally. The long ball was his sixth of the season and first with Indianapolis since May 21 vs. Iowa. In 41 total games, Nuñez is hitting .255 (39-for-153) with 10 extra-base hits and 27 RBI.

THREE-BAGGERS: Domingo Leyba became the 20th different Indians hitter to tally a triple this season. Leyba's three-base knock was the team's 33rd triple of the season which leads the International League. The Indians offense has now tripled in two of their last three games and have hit for extra bases in 25 consecutive games. Nick Gonzales leads the team with five triples and Endy RodrÌguez, Jared Triolo and Ryan Vilade each have three apiece. Indy led the IL in triples last season with 44, led by Travis Swaggerty (8), Ji Hwan Bae (6) and Mason Martin (5).

STRATTON IN AUGUST: Right-handed reliever Hunter Stratton added another 2.0 scoreless innings on Thursday night to his August campaign. Stratton did not surrender a hit in his 2.0 innings of relief in Game 2 while punching out three. In four outings (6.0ip) this month, he's allowed just one hit with 10 punchouts. On Aug. 3 at Gwinnett, he fanned a season-high tying five batters in order to earn his third save of the season. The 26-year-old is 3-4 with a 4.59 ERA (25er/49.0ip), 65 strikeouts and a 11.49 K/9 in a team-leading 39 games.

MIGGY GOES BACK-TO-BACK: The Indianapolis Indians today named utilityman Miguel Andújar as their July Player of the Month after logging an International League-leading 38 hits. He Is the first Indian in Victory Field history to earn Indians Player of the Month Awards in consecutive months and the second to be given the honor twice in a season, following Roberto Petagine in 1998. Andújar, 28, hit his way to one of the best months by an Indians position player dating back to 2005, tying for the fifth-most RBI (26) and sixth-highest batting average in a single month (.380). The slugger led the International League in hits and ranked among qualifiers in RBI (T-2nd), total bases (T-2nd, 58) and batting average (5th). He currently is tied for the IL lead with 124 hits in 86 games and ranks among full-season qualifiers in batting average (2nd, .356), RBI (2nd, 79), OPS (5th, .991), slugging percentage (6th, .572), on-base percentage (7th, .419), total bases (7th, 199) and doubles (T-10th, 26).The slugger consistently raked in July with hits in 21 of 24 games played - including 12 multi-hit performances. His month was highlighted by a pair of five-RBI performances on July 4 vs. Memphis and July 14 at Omaha, the latter of which made him and Endy Rodríguez (five RBI) the first Indians teammates with five RBI in the same game since Game 1 of a doubleheader on Aug. 6, 1998.

TONIGHT: The Indians and Sounds continue their six-game series with Saturday night's penultimate matchup at 7:05 PM ET at Victory Field. With last night's win, the Sounds secured the series win after winning four straight. Tonight, Luis Ortiz (3-4, 4.40) will take the hill for Indianapolis against Nashville's Janson Junk (6-6, 4.44). Junk will make his first career appearance against Indy.

ORTIZ TAKES THE HILL: Right-hander Luis Ortiz will look to build off his last outing as he takes on the Nashville Sounds tonight. He earned his third win of the season in his last time out on July 29 at Louisville when he tossed 5.0 one-run innings with a season-high eight punchouts. Ortiz has never faced Nashville. In 11 total outings, the right-hander is 3-4 with a 4.40 ERA (23er/47.0ip) and 45 strikeouts.

THIS DATE IN 1997: Trailing 6-1 following a two-run burst by Nashville in the top of the seventh, the Indians erupted for five runs in the eighth and one in the ninth to walk off the Sounds at Victory Field, 7-6. Indians leadoff hitter Pat Watkins finished 3-for-4 with two home runs, his second of which came in game-winning fashion to lead off the bottom of the ninth inning. Keith Mitchell ripped two doubles and drove in two in the comeback win.

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