IL Indianapolis Indians

Game Information: Indianapolis Indians (49-53) vs. Iowa Cubs (42-61)

Published on September 1, 2021 under International League (IL)
Indianapolis Indians News Release


LOCATION: Victory Field

FIRST PITCH: 7:05 PM ET

GAME #103 / Home #50: Indianapolis Indians (49-53) vs. Iowa Cubs (42-61)

PROBABLES: RHP Tanner Anderson (2-1, 3.86) vs. LHP Luis Lugo (0-1, 7.00)

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

TV: MiLB TV / MyINDY-TV 23

LAST NIGHT: The Indians won their fourth consecutive game of the homestand and fifth straight against Iowa dating back to Aug. 5 last night, 4-3. Both teams traded runs in the first inning before Iowa took a 2-1 lead on a solo homer by MLB rehabber and two-time National League All-Star Willson Contreras. Bligh Madris matched Contreras' homer with one of his own to tie the game in the fifth inning, his second extra-base hit of the night. The I-Cubs retook the lead in the top of the sixth with a Tyler Ladendorf sacrifice fly to score Greg Deichmann before the Indians took advantage of free bases to win the game. In the eighth inning, three consecutive walks loaded the bases for Chris Sharpe to put the ball in play and score the tying run on a 1-3 groundout. Jared Oliva then lined a two-out single to drive in Ethan Paul as the game-winning run.

BLIGH GUY VS. THE CUBBIES: In 13 games against the I-Cubs this season, which trails only Cole Tucker (18) and Chris Sharpe (17) in games played against Iowa, Bligh Madris is hitting .405 (15-for-37) with a .757 slugging percentage, 1.257 OPS and five walks to six strikeouts. Last night, he doubled in the third inning and homered in the fifth for the Indians only two extra-base hits of the game. Against Triple-A East opponents this season, Madris' two highest averages come against Midwest Division opponents Iowa and Omaha. In 11 games vs. the Storm Chasers, he is hitting .324 (11-for-34) with a .618 slugging percentage and .993 OPS. The Indians play Omaha once more this season in the first week of the Triple-A Final Stretch from Sept. 22-26.

ABOVE AVERAGE IN AUGUST: With a 2-for-4 showing last night against Iowa, Jared Oliva ended the month of August with a .304 average (28-for-92) in 25 games with Indianapolis. He is currently working a four-game hitting streak, the most recent three having featured multiple base knocks. Oliva led all Indians batters with 10 multi-hit games in the month, four more than Cole Tucker's six. He hit .167 (8-for-48) in his first 15 games with Indianapolis after beginning the season on the injured list with an oblique injury, but has since turned it around to raise his average to .257 (36-for-140) in Triple-A.

MAJOR REHABBERS AT THE VIC: The Chicago Cubs announced last night that two-time National League All-Star and 2016 World Series champion Willson Contreras was assigned to the Iowa Cubs for a rehab assignment this week. He went 1-for-3 with a home run and two runs scored in the No. 2 spot of Iowa's lineup as the starting catcher. Since 2015, Contreras is the sixth top-tier rehabber to appear at Victory Field with an opposing team. The other five are listed below:

7/22, 7/25/21: Michael Fulmer ('16 AL ROY, '17 AL All-Star) - 2 games, 2.0ip, 1h, 0r, 2bb, 2k

6/24-25/19: Scooter Gennett ('18 NL All-Star) - 2 games, 2-for-8, 1 2B

6/19-20/18: Tim Beckham ('08 No. 1 overall pick) - 2 games, 1-for-8, 1 R, 5 K

7/5/15: Raisel Iglesias - L, 4.2ip, 4h, 2r, 2er, 1hr, 0bb, 7k

5/31/15: Justin Verlander ('06 AL ROY, '11 AL MVP, '11 & '19 AL Cy Young, 8x AL All-Star) - ND, 2.2ip, 6h, 3r, 3er, 2bb, 3k

TONIGHT: The Indians will look to tie their season-long winning streak with a fifth straight win tonight at 7:05 PM ET. They have also won five consecutive contests against Iowa dating back to Aug. 5 at Principal Park. Since 1988, Indianapolis has notched a five-game winning streak against the I-Cubs five times but has never stretched that streak to six. The Indians are currently 9-10 against the I-Cubs this season after winning their first of three series against them with four consecutive wins from Aug. 5-8. Tonight, the Indians bullpen will combine to face LHP Luis Lugo, who will make his third Triple-A start this season.

SEND 'EM UP IN SEPTEMBER: Today, the Pittsburgh Pirates recalled Max Kranick and selected the contract of Shelby Miller as the corresponding moves to major league active rosters expanding from 26 to 28 players in the month of September. This is a change from previous Triple-A seasons, when rosters would expand to 40 members with the culmination of the minor league regular season. Since coming off the injured list on Aug. 12, Miller has been vying for a big-league roster spot with an 8.1-inning scoreless streak (six appearances), 0.36 WHIP, .071 average against (2-for-28) and one walk to 14 strikeouts. Kranick will start for the Pirates in tonight's game at Chicago (AL) after splitting the season between Double-A Altoona, Indianapolis and Pittsburgh.

NEWBIE: Diego Castillo was promoted to Indy yesterday after playing in 28 games with Double-A Altoona. The 23-year-old infielder hit .282 (31-for-110) with three doubles and five home runs with the Curve. Castillo was traded to Pittsburgh from New York (AL) with Hoy Park in exchange for RHP Clay Holmes prior to the July 30 trade deadline. Split between Altoona and Double-A Somerset this season, Castillo is hitting .278 (93-for-334) with 16 home runs and 48 RBI in 86 games.

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