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IL Indianapolis Indians

9.22.23 Game Information: Rochester Red Wings (65-78, 31-39) vs. Indianapolis Indians (68-77, 35-36)

September 22, 2023 - International League (IL)
Indianapolis Indians News Release


LOCATION: Victory Field

FIRST PITCH: 7:05 PM ET

GAME #146 / HOME #72: Rochester Red Wings (65-78, 31-39) vs. Indianapolis Indians (68-77, 35-36)

PROBABLES: RHP Alemao Hernandez (3-1, 3.64) vs. RHP Wil Crowe (1-1, 5.57)

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

TV: Bally Live app / MiLB TV

ABOUT LAST NIGHT: Canaan Smith-Njigba extended his hitting streak to nine games, but a pair of homers for the Rochester Red Wings topped the Indianapolis Indians on Thursday night at Victory Field, 3-1. Home runs in back-to-back offensive frames for Rochester proved to be enough. First baseman Frankie Tostado broke a scoreless tie in the fourth with a solo home run off Indians starter Jared Jones (L, 4-5), and a fifth-inning, two-run blast by designated hitter Matt Adams opened a 3-0 lead. The Indians showed signs of life with a run in the sixth. Mason Martin smacked a lead-off single and Chris Owings walked before Smith-Njigba sprayed a choppy ground ball to the right side that deflected off Tostado's glove and into right field to plate Martin. Red Wings starter Roddery Muñoz pitched 5.1 one-run innings, allowing just two hits and two walks with six strikeouts. Junior Fernandez (S, 3) stranded the tying run at first after forcing Marting to pop out to end the game.

CSN'S STREAK CONTINUES: Canaan Smith-Njigba extended his hitting streak to nine games with a run-scoring single last night. His active nine-game hitting streak is his longest of the season. Dating back to Aug. 20, he is hitting .373 (38-for-102) with 12 runs, seven doubles, four home runs, 28 RBI, seven stolen bases and .988 OPS in 26 games. He's improved his season batting average from .246 to .280 during this span.

PEREZ PROVIDES POP: Joe Perez grooved a pair of singles on Thursday night, he was the lone Indian hitter with multiple hits. Perez is 5-for-13 this week, hitting safely in all three games. On Wednesday, he belted his first home run with Indianapolis and drove in a season-high four RBI. Perez was signed by Pittsburgh as a minor league free agent on Aug. 11, he was outrighted by Houston on Aug. 4, before being assigned to Double-A Altoona. The 24-year-old hit .341 (29-for-85) with 18 runs, three doubles, seven home runs, 18 RBI, 20 walks and a 1.101 OPS in 25 games played with Altoona. Perez was tied for the fifth-most home runs in the Eastern League from Aug. 12-Sept. 10.

TRIO OF RELIEF: Dauri Moreta, Chase De Jong and Cody Bolton combined for 4.1 scoreless relief innings last night, allowing just one hit. Dauri Moreta entered in relief of Indians starter Jared Jones with two outs in the fifth. Moreta tossed 1.1 innings with a walk and three strikeouts. De Jong followed with 2.0 scoreless frames, allowing the lone hit from an Indians reliever before Bolton posted a perfect ninth.

EXTRA-BASES FOR NICK: Nick Gonzales is 7-for-14 with seven runs, a double, two triples, a home run and seven RBI this week. Gonzales followed his first career cycle on Tuesday with a three-hit performance. His cycle was the seventh for Indy since 1996 - six coming at Victory Field - and first by an Indian since Kevin Newman and Jacob Stallings both accomplished the feat on Aug. 7, 2018, vs. Lehigh Valley. The 24-year-old has been stellar at the plate this month, hitting .348 (23-for-66) with 22 runs, five doubles, three triples, five home runs, 13 RBI and 1.147 OPS. Gonzales leads the International League in triples, extra-base hits (13), total bases (49) and runs in September. The 24-year-old ranks sixth in the league in average since being optioned by Pittsburgh on Aug. 3.

CSN NAMED INDIANS PLAYER OF THE MONTH: The Indianapolis Indians today named corner outfielder Canaan Smith-Njigba as their September Player of the Month. He currently leads the International League in batting average, RBI and hits in September. Smith-Njigba, 24, has hit safely in 13 of his last 14 games and an active nine-game hitting streak. Through 17 games, the lefty is hitting .431 (28-for-65) with seven doubles, two home runs, 23 RBI, a .471 on-base percentage, six stolen bases and a 1.102 OPS. Along with leading the league in batting average, RBI and hits, he ranks among league qualifiers in doubles (T-2nd), stolen bases (T-4th), total bases (T-6th, 41), OBP (9th) and OPS (10th). His 23 RBI ties a single-month career best (also: April 2019 with Single-A Charleston).

TONIGHT: The Indians and Red Wings continue their six-game set on Friday night at Victory Field at 7:05 PM ET. This week's six-game set will cap the 2023 season, and is the lone meeting between the two teams. The Indians head into the fourth game of the series with a 2-1 series lead. Since 1988, the Indians own the advantage in the Circle City, 56-48. Tonight, RHP Wil Crowe (1-1, 5.57) will take the hill for Indianapolis against Rochester's RHP Alemao Hernandez (3-1, 3.64). Hernandez, 23, will make his seventh Triple-A start and first appearance vs. Indianapolis.

CROWE TAKES THE HILL: Wil Crowe is set to make his 14th appearance and second start of the season with Indianapolis tonight vs. the Rochester Red Wings. Crowe surrendered six runs (five earned) on eight hits, a walk and two strikeouts in 3.1 innings in his last start on Sept. 16 at Omaha. The 29-year-old began the season in Pittsburgh, going 0-1 with a 4.66 ERA (5er/9.2ip) before being placed on the 15-day injured list on April 26 (retro to April 23) due to right shoulder discomfort. He made two rehab appearances with Indianapolis before he was outrighted by Pittsburgh on Aug. 19. Pittsburgh acquired him with RHP Eddy Yean from Washington in exchange for first baseman Josh Bell on Dec. 24, 2020. He was originally selected by the Nationals in the second round (65th overall) of the 2017 First-Year Player Draft out of the University of South Carolina (Columbia).

THIS DATE IN 1943: Thanks to second baseman Charlie Glock's 2-for-4, three-RBI performance, the Indians leveled their American Association semifinal series at one game apiece with a 6-3 win over Toledo. Indy entered the playoffs as the No. 2 seed with an 85-67 record and eliminated the fourth-seeded Mud Hens, who were affiliated with the American League's St. Louis Browns, in five games, 3-2.

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