IL Indianapolis Indians

Doubleheader Information: Indianapolis Indians (0-4) at Louisville Bats (2-2)

Published on April 6, 2023 under International League (IL)
Indianapolis Indians News Release


ABOUT TUESDAY NIGHT: A four-run third inning erased back-to-back home runs by Tucupita Marcano and Chris Owings and propelled the Louisville Bats to a 7-2 win over the Indianapolis Indians in the series opener at Louisville Slugger Field on Tuesday night. The Indians jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the third inning thanks to the team's two middle infielders. Prior to the eight-hole hitter Tucupita Marcano stepping to the plate, Louisville starter Ben Lively had set down the first seven Indians hitters he saw. The lead didn't last for long, as the Bats jumped on Indy starter Quinn Priester for four runs in the bottom half of the frame with a home run from left fielder Michael Siani, an RBI double from shortstop Matt McLain and a two-run single for second basemen Matt Reynolds. McLain notched another run-producing double to chase Priester from the game an inning later. Indianapolis' lineup went quiet after the third inning, mustering just one more hit off the bat of Marcano to mark his second multi-hit performance in consecutive games.

BACK-TO-BACK: Infielders Tucupita Marcano and Chris Owings hit back-to-back home runs in the third inning of Tuesday night's game. The last time the Indians hit back-to-back jacks was on June 8, 2022 when Jared Oliva and Ji Hwan Bae both went yard vs. Columbus. Marcano was also part of the last time the team went back-to-back on the road, when him and Cole Tucker did so on Aug. 7, 2021 at Iowa.

MARCANO RAKES: Tucupita Marcano hit his first home run of the season and his second multi-hit performance in three games on Tuesday night. The 23-year-old is off to a hot start to his 2023 campaign, hitting .500 (6-for-12) with a double, home run, three RBI and 1.417 OPS. Marcano spent most of last season with Pittsburgh, playing in 49 games with a .206 batting average (33-for-160), six doubles, two triples, two home runs and 13 RBI. In two stints with Indianapolis, he hit .287 (29-for-101) with five doubles, three home runs and nine RBI.

SLOW START: The Indians dropped all three games of their opening series with the Omaha Storm Chasers this past weekend and the series opener at Louisville on Tuesday night. It was the first time the Indians have been swept to start the season since 2011, when they were swept in a four-game series vs. Columbus from April 7-10. It was also the last time they began a season 0-4, which is the longest losing streak to begin a season in Victory Field history. En route to the losses, the Indians have committed a Victory Field-high tying eight errors through their first four games (also: 2003).

TONIGHT'S TWINBILL: The Indians will play their first doubleheader of the 2023 season on Thursday night, with Game 1 slated for 5:05 PM ET and Game 2 to follow 30 minutes after. Last season, the Indians split an Aug. 3 doubleheader vs. Louisville at Victory Field (G1: W, 4-3, G2: L, 9-6). In 2022, the Indians played six doubleheaders and split each of them. In those games, they were outscored by their opponents, 66-62.

INDY VS. LOUISVILLE: The Indians took the season series against Louisville in '22, going 11-7 with a 5-1 record at Louisville Slugger Field. In Game 1, right-hander Luis Ortiz (0-0, 0.00) will take the mound for the Indians and the Bats will counter with right-hander Levi Stoudt (0-0, 0.00), who has never pitched against Indianapolis. For Game 2, right-hander Osvaldo Bido (0-0, -.--) will be on the bump versus Louisville's right-hander Randy Wynne (0-0, 0.00). Today will be Bido's season debut and his fourth appearance (third start) against the Bats. Wynne made two starts against Indy last season, going 0-1 with an 8.78 ERA (8er/8.2ip).

FLAME THROWER: Luis Ortiz will take the mound for Game 1 of tonight's doubleheader in his second start of the season. The 23-year-old got the nod on Opening Night and tossed 3.2 scoreless innings on one hit, three walks and four strikeouts. Ortiz has ascended from Pittsburgh's No. 22 prospect in 2022 to its No. 4 going into the 2023 season - Pittsburgh's highest rated pitching prospect - according to Baseball America. Ortiz was promoted to Indianapolis on Sept. 1 and made two starts, allowing eight runs (four earned) in 10.0 innings with 12 strikeouts. Pittsburgh selected his contract on Sept. 13, and he debuted with 5.2 scoreless frames at Cincinnati later that day.

BIDO ON THE BUMP: Right-hander Osvaldo Bido will make his season debut in Game 2 of tonight's doubleheader in Louisville. He was a mainstay in the Indians '22 rotation, making a team-leading 25 starts. He went 3-8 with a 4.76 ERA (63er/119.0ip) and a team-high 129 strikeouts. Bido found success vs. the Bats last season and went 1-0 with a 2.45 ERA (3er/11.0ip) and 17 strikeouts compared to only three walks in three appearances (two starts). His best performance against Louisville came on Sept. 3 when he took a no-hitter into the sixth inning and exited the game with seven strikeouts in 6.0 shutout frames. The 27-year-old was excellent in the last two months of the season, going 2-2 with a 3.09 ERA (15er/43.2ip) and 54 strikeouts ñ which was the second-most in the International League after Aug. 4 ñ in 10 appearances (nine starts).

THIS DATE IN 1963: In Game 3 of the International League's first-place playoff series, Joe Shipley allowed two hits and seven walks but just one run in a 5-1 Indians win over Syracuse, Triple-A affiliate of Detroit, that gave Indy a 3-0 series lead. Ken Berry homered and Lou Vassie had three hits for Indianapolis.

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International League Stories from April 6, 2023


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