IL1 Indianapolis Indians

Game Information: Indianapolis Indians (8-7) vs. Syracuse Chiefs (10-6)

Published on April 24, 2018 under International League (IL1)
Indianapolis Indians News Release


The Indians continue their series against the Chiefs this morning at Victory Field. With a 2-0 win Monday night, Indy knotted up the season series against Syracuse, 2-2.

Location: Victory Field

First Pitch: 11:05 a.m. ET

Game #16 / Home #11: Indianapolis Indians (8-7) vs. Syracuse Chiefs (10-6)

Probables: RHP Tyler Eppler (1-1, 2.84) vs. LHP Tommy Milone (1-0, 4.11)

Radio: FoxSports975.com / iHeart App

TV: Comcast 90 / MiLB TV

From the Notes

ABOUT LAST NIGHT: Kevin Newman hit a tiebreaking single in the bottom of the eighth inning as the Indians took Game 1 of the series last night, 2-0. Christopher Bostick added a run-scoring groundout that plated Newman, and Dovydas Neverauskas benefitted from the late rally to earn the win with two scoreless innings in relief. Newman and Pablo Reyes set the table for Indy, combining for four of Indy's eight hits in the game. Jerrick Suiter hit a leadoff triple in the eighth to set up Newman's go-ahead knock. Alex McRae tossed six shutout frames and took no decision in the triumph.

McRAE'S DAY: On the heels of two subpar outings, Alex McRae bounced back with six shutout innings to earn his first quality start at the Triple-A level last night. He held the visitors to four hits and three walks with four strikeouts and stranded a total of seven baserunners when he was on the bump. He lowered his ERA from 10.80 to 6.75 and went pitch-for-pitch with Chiefs hurler Austin Voth.

LIMITED DUTY: Playing in just his fifth game for the Tribe, Jerrick Suiter has made the most of his limited duties so far in 2018. He entered as part of a double-switch last night in the top of the eighth inning and quickly impacted the game, tripling to start the bottom half and scoring the game-winning run on Newman's RBI single. Suiter is batting .294 (5-for-17) with one triple, two doubles, three RBI and one stolen base. His triple last night was the 10th of his career and first since Sept. 3, 2017 with Double-A Altoona against Harrisburg, also an affiliate of the Washington Nationals.

LAVARNWAY TAKES THIRD: Backup catcher Ryan Lavarnway roped a leadoff triple in the fifth inning last night but was left there after Todd Cunningham, Alex McRae and Kevin Newman were retired in succession. The three-bagger was just the third of Lavarnway's 11-year career -- his other two both occurred in 2009 with Low-A Greenville (Red Sox affiliate), the most recent on June 13 that season against Bowling Green.

TRIPLE NOTES: Indy leads the International League with nine triples after recording two in last night's victory. The Tribe had three two-triple games as a team last year, the most recent on June 1 against Lehigh Valley at Victory Field. High-A Daytona leads all of professional baseball with 12 triples, while Low-A Columbia and Triple-A Albuquerque have each racked up 11. Indy's nine triples are next in line (tied for fourth), as they're joined by the Diamondbacks, Low-A West Virginia, High-A Modesto and Inland Empire, Double-A Jackson and Triple-A Salt Lake.

WINS IN INDY: Since 2009, Indianapolis has protected Victory Field quite well when Syracuse comes to town, winning seven of the nine head-to-head series over the Chiefs. Indy split a four-game set with Syracuse in 2010 and was swept 4-0 in 2013. The Tribe are 24-11 against Syracuse at The Vic in the last nine-plus seasons.

REVERSE SPLITS: Unlike a year ago, right-hander Tyler Eppler has reverse splits in 2018. This year, right-handed batters have hit .406 (13-for-32) while lefties are batting a meager .190 (4-for-21). Last year, righties hit just .258 (84-for-325) while left-handed batters posted a .341 clip (75-for-220) against him.

POWER OUTAGE: Through 15 games this season the Indians have hit just one home run -- off the bat of Jose Osuna -- the lowest team home run total in professional baseball. There are five teams who have clubbed three home runs apiece -- Double-A Erie and four Low-A teams, including Greenville, Beloit, Kane County and West Michigan. The Indians' lowest home run total in a single month since 2005 is eight long balls over 22 games in April 2015. Deibinson Romero clubbed four of the eight homers that month, while Elias Diaz, Gorkys Hernandez, Brent Morel and Tony Sanchez all chipped in with one apiece.

NO. 13 REACHES 13: Tribe 3B/OF Jose Osuna, who wears No. 13, is riding a 13-game hitting streak to start the season, batting .333 (15-for-45) with six doubles, one home run and eight RBI during the stretch. He has collected exactly one RBI in eight of his 13 games played. The 13-game streak is the sixth double-digit hitting streak of his career and first since his career-high-tying 14-gamer from July 16-30, 2016 with Indianapolis. His previous five streaks all occurred in the months of July and August.

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International League Stories from April 24, 2018


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