IL Indianapolis Indians

9.1.23 Game Information: Indianapolis Indians (59-68, 26-27) at Buffalo Bisons (64-63, 30-22)

Published on September 1, 2023 under International League (IL)
Indianapolis Indians News Release


LOCATION: Sahlen Field

FIRST PITCH: 7:05 PM ET

GAME #128 / ROAD #66: Indianapolis Indians (59-67, 26-26) at Buffalo Bisons (64-63, 30-22)

PROBABLES: RHP John O'Reilly (3-5, 4.58) vs. RHP Zach Thompson (6-5, 4.70)

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

TV: Bally Live app / MiLB TV

ABOUT LAST NIGHT: Despite multi-hit efforts from second baseman Nick Gonzales and third baseman Domingo Leyba, the Indianapolis Indians went 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position on Thursday night in a loss to the Buffalo Bisons at Sahlen Field, 4-1. Tied 1-1 in the bottom of the sixth, Indians starter Quinn Priester walked two of the first three hitters but got Buffalo shortstop Leo Jiminez to line out to right fielder Miguel Andújar for the second out of the inning. Then, former Indianapolis Indian Tyler Heineman gave the Bisons the lead by lining an RBI single through the left side of the infield. After a pitching change, Buffalo first baseman Luis De Los Santos ripped a triple down the right field line to plate two more and propel the Bisons to a three-run lead. The Bisons initially jumped in front thanks to a third inning single from left fielder Nathan Lukes, but the Indians retaliated and tied the game in the top of the fourth after first baseman Aaron Shackelford tripled off the wall in right-center to lead the inning off. Left fielder Canaan Smith-Njigba plated him with an RBI groundout against Buffalo starter Andrew Bash.

SHACK TRIPLES: Aaron Shackelford belted his career-high third triple of the season on Thursday night. Shackelford joins Jared Triolo and Ryan Vilade with the second-most triples on the team, trailing Nick Gonzales with five triples. It was the Indians 37th triple of the season, which leads the International League. Indy's offense is on pace to lead the league in triples for the second consecutive season, collecting a league-leading 44 triples last season.

GONZO HITS: Nick Gonzales finished the month of August with his seventh multi-hit game of the month. Last month, Gonzales led the Indians offense in batting average (.291), on-base percentage (.398), slugging percentage (.456), OPS (.854), doubles (7), extra-base hits (9) and runs (11). Gonzales has hits in eight of his last 10 games.

TRIOLO'S STREAKING: Jared Triolo went 1-for-3 with a double and walk to extend his on-base streak to 22 games, two games shy of the Ryan Vilade's team-leading 24-game on-base streak from June 4-July 4. Triolo has been a dependable force in Indy's lineup, he earned a new career-high on-base streak on Wednesday after reaching base safely, surpassing his previous best on-base streak of 20 games with High-A Greensboro from July 24-Aug. 18 in 2021 - he hit safely in all 20 contests. During his current streak, Triolo is hitting .347 (26-for-75) with 15 runs scored, seven doubles, two triples, a home run, nine RBI, 16 walks and .467 on-base percentage. The 25-year-old has hit safely in 10 of 12 games since being optioned by Pittsburgh on Aug. 18.

KYLE IS DIALED: Kyle Nicolas capped his month of August with his seventh consecutive scoreless relief outing on Thursday night. The 8.1-inning scoreless streak highlights his excellent month of August. Nicolas is 1-0 with a 1.76 ERA (3er/15.1ip), six hits allowed, 19 strikeouts, 0.78 WHIP and .118 batting average against in 10 relief outings this month. After starting in five of his first eight outings with Indy, he has shined in a transition to the bullpen. See below for his splits between his starts and relief outings

Starter (5G): 0-2, 10.59 ERA, 17.0 IP, 24 H, 20 R, 20 ER, 16 BB, 21 K, 2.35 WHIP, .333 AVG

Reliever (13G): 1-0, 3.80 ERA, 21.1 IP, 14 H, 9 R, 9 ER, 9 BB, 31 K, 1.08 WHIP, .182 AVG

BACK TO THE 412: Miguel Andújar had his contract selected by Pittsburgh today and will join the team for the first time since being outrighted on May 22. After his outright to Indianapolis, he played in 80 games and led the International League in RBI (71) and hits (115) since May 24. Playing in 103 total games this season, Andújar is the fifth different Indians player to collect 140-plus hits in a season dating back to 2005, following Andrew McCutchen (2008), Matt Hague (2011 & 2013), Christian Bostick (2017) and Kevin Kramer (2018).

SLUMPING AT SAHLEN: The Indians offense has plated just three runs during their three-game skid against Buffalo, despite outhitting the Bisons in each game and 21-16 in the series. Prior to this week, the Indians were 48-10 in games where they have outhit their opponent before doing so in three straight contests. Indy has just one hit with runners in scoring position in 16 chances. Indy's pitching staff has kept each contest within reach, posting a 3.38 ERA (9er/24.0ip) with a .188 batting average against. The Indians bullpen has allowed just one run in 12.0 innings with four walks compared to 11 strikeouts.

TONIGHT: The Indians and Bisons continue their six-game set on Friday at 7:05 PM ET at Sahlen Field. Indy will look to snap their three-game losing streak after Buffalo took the first three contests at the halfway point of the series. The last meeting between the two teams came from June 18-20, 2019, Buffalo won the series, 2-1. Tonight, RHP John 0'Reilly (3-5, 4.58) will open for Indianapolis against Buffalo's RHP Zach Thompson (6-5, 4.70). The former Pirate makes his first appearance against Indy since April 11, 2019, with Charlotte.

THIS DATE IN 2001: Designated hitter Micah Franklin hit for the only three-homer game to date in the Victory Field era in a 5-3 win against Toledo. It was the first three-homer performance for an Indianapolis player since Willie Greene on Aug. 22, 1995 at Omaha. Franklin converted all of his at-bats on the day into long balls and drove in four runs in the process. The home runs were his 19th, 20th and 21st of a team-leading 23 for the 2001 campaign.

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International League Stories from September 1, 2023


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