IL1 Indianapolis Indians

Game Information: Indianapolis Indians (0-0) at Columbus Clippers (0-0)

Published on April 4, 2019 under International League (IL1)
Indianapolis Indians News Release


The Indians open their 2019 season today in Columbus.

Location: Huntington Park

First Pitch: 6:05 p.m. EDT

Game #1 / Road #1: Indianapolis Indians (0-0) @ Columbus Clippers (0-0)

Probables: RHP JT Brubaker (0-0, 0.00) @ RHP Chih-Wei Hu (0-0, 0.00)

Radio: Fox Sports 97.5 / AM 1260 / iHeart app

TV: MiLB TV

2018 SEASON: The Indians finished last season with a 73-67 record, just a half-game back of first-place Toledo in the International League West Division and a half-game behind Scranton/WB in the IL wild card race. Despite missing out of the playoffs, the above-.500 season was Indy's 12th in 18 total seasons as Pittsburgh's Triple-A affiliate (1948-51, 2005-present).

WELCOME BACK, SKIP: Brian Esposito enters his second season as manager with Indianapolis and his sixth season overall as a manager within the Pirates organization. He owns an all-time managerial record of 306-262 (.539) through his first five seasons and has skippered one playoff appearance, doing so with Single-A West Virginia in 2015.

HISTORY VS. COLUMBUS: Dating back to 1988, the Indians trail the all-time series against Columbus with a 203-219 (.481 record). The Tribe lost nine of 13 games at Huntington Park and went 12-13 overall against the Clippers last year, giving Columbus the season-series edge for a fourth consecutive season.

OPENING DAY: Dating back to 1997, the Indians are 10-12 on Opening Day, going 6-6 at Victory Field and 4-6 on the road. The Tribe and Clippers have met in 10 of those 22 Opening Day matchups, and the Indians are just 3-7 in those games. The Indians are 1-5 at home and 2-2 on the road vs. Columbus. Indy has lost six of its last seven Opening Day meetings with Columbus, including the last three (2015-16, 2018). Indy's most recent Opening Day win over the Clippers was a 2-1 triumph at Huntington Park in 2014.

YOU'VE DONE THIS BEFORE: Righty JT Brubaker, named Pittsburgh's 2018 Minor League Pitcher of the Year, will be making his third career Opening Day start in five professional seasons overall. His first Opening Day nod came with Single-A West Virginia on 4/7/16 at Greensboro (ND, 5.0ip, 2h, 1r, 1er, 3bb, 6k -- WV Power lost 3-2). He was also Double-A Altoona's Opening Day starter last year, starting on 4/5/18 vs. Akron (ND, 5.0ip, 4h, 3r, 1er, 2hb, 2bb, 8k -- Curve won 6-5). He was on the hook for the loss against Akron, but the Curve scored six runs in the bottom of the eighth to stun the Rubberducks.

YOU'VE BEEN HERE BEFORE: Brubaker returns to his native Ohio, where he was a 2012 graduate of Tecumseh (New Carlisle) High School and later attended the University of Akron (2013-15). Brubaker made a trio of starts at Huntington Park last year and took no-decisions against the Clippers in all three. He managed a 2.30 ERA (4er/15.2ip) and scattered 16 hits and four walks with 18 strikeouts in those outings combined.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MITCH: Pittsburgh's No. 1 overall prospect according to both MLB.com and Baseball America, right-handed starting pitcher Mitch Keller, turns 23 today. Keller made the jump from Double-A to Triple-A midway through the 2018 season and went 3-2 with a 4.82 ERA (28er/52.1ip) in 10 starts for the Tribe. He finished among Pirates organizational leaders in strikeouts (1st, 135), wins (T-3rd, 12) and ERA (4th, 3.48) between both levels. Prior to this season, Baseball America tabbed him with the "Best Fastball" and "Best Curveball" among all Pirates prospects.

PROSPECTS GALORE: Indy's Opening Day roster features eight of Pittsburgh's top-30 prospects, according to both Baseball America and MLB.com. Pitchers Mitch Keller (No. 1 BA/No. 1 MLB.com), Clay Holmes (No. 17 BA/No. 23 MLB.com) and JT Brubaker (No. 27 BA/No. 21 MLB.com) are joined by five position players with top-prospect status: 3B Ke'Bryan Hayes (No. 2 BA/No. 2 MLB.com), 2B Kevin Kramer (No. 5 BA/No. 6 MLB.com), SS Cole Tucker (No. 6 BA/No. 5 MLB.com), OF Bryan Reynolds (No. 9 BA/No. 8 MLB.com) and 1B Will Craig (No. 16 BA/No. 15 MLB.com).

VETERAN PRESENCE: Complementing Indy's prospect wave are outfielders Patrick Kivlehan (29), Trayvon Robinson (31) and Eric Wood (26), infielders Jake Elmore (31) and Erich Weiss (27), and catchers Christian Kelley (25) and Steven Baron (28).

BULLPEN BITS: The Indians have a handful of new faces in their bullpen. To transition through the back-half of games, Indy has a familliar long reliever in Clay Holmes, set-up men Jesus Liranzo, Michael Feliz and Brandon Maurer, and one middle-inning righty, Montana DuRapau. Maurer is the only newcomer in that group. Lefties Tyler Lyons and Sean Keselica are both new to Indianapolis, with the latter getting his first taste of Triple-A action. Southpaw Brandon Waddell, who bounced between the rotation and 'pen last year for Indy, will open the 2019 campaign in relief. As for the closing role, Geoff Hartlieb is expected to anchor the bullpen in late innings. He has 20 career saves under his belt, including a career-high 10 last year with Altoona.

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