IL1 Indianapolis Indians

Team Captain Confident in Turnaround

Published on August 5, 2013 under International League (IL1)
Indianapolis Indians News Release


Team captain Matt Hague knows he's going to be at the helm of any playoff push for the Indianapolis Indians. Although the Tribe has seen its divisional lead drop to single digits during the current homestand, Hague says his team is on the verge of turning the corner after winning three of the last five games.

"I think we're getting a little momentum going here, playing good baseball," Hague said. "We didn't have a very good July, but I think the key is getting back to doing things the right way and moving runners up and scraping out runs and getting the win and taking the momentum to the playoffs."

The Indians jumped out to a 55-30 record by the end of June but have since limped to 11-21 through July and early August. During the tough stretch, Indianapolis has collected its fair share of hits on a daily basis, but has struggled to bring runners home to put a dent in the scoreboard.

The lack of run production has become especially magnified over the last few weeks as Tribe pitchers have limited opponents to no more than three runs in 11 of the last 22 games, while the team's offense has been unable to score more than three runs in 18 of those same 22 contests.

"I think that we've got to start moving runners and do the little things to get runs to help our pitching staff," Hague said. "Because our pitching's been there, that's kind of our anchor to the team. We can distance ourselves (divisional lead) by putting some runs up there on the board."

For offensive production, Indianapolis needs to look no further than the team captain himself, who not only leads the Tribe with 124 base hits, but ranks first in the entire International League in that department. As the season has worn on into the so-called "dog days" of the year, Hague has continued to heat up as well, and recently tied the team's longest hitting streak of the season.

Hague said any credit for the success belongs to his never-wavering work ethic. Even after suiting up for the most games of any player in the league this year, Hague has continued to lead by example, never letting himself - nor any one for that matter - cut corners during the season.

"You have to keep the mind set of going about your work and doing things the right way, even though it's hot days in summer and it's getting towards the end of the season," Hague said. "If I see something (a negative in the locker room) I'll say something, but for the most part just going out there and playing the game and hopefully guys catch on and do the same."

The slugger has first-hand experience of leading a team with all the players "clicking" together at the same time. Hague, along with former Tribe standouts Alex Presley and Jordy Mercer, helped fuel postseason surges in back-to-back years that paced championship runs for both High-A Lynchburg and Double-A Altoona in 2009 and 2010 respectively.

However, with Presley and Mercer currently playing for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Hague will have to shoulder more of the weight this time around.

"It kind of comes back to just expecting to win and doing things we have to win, to win," Hague said. "In order do that, I think that we know we have to start playing the right way."

He spoke for the team as a whole when he elaborated on his idea of the "right way" to play.

"It comes down to just driving in runs and playing good defense," Hague said.

Both fundamentals were essential at the beginning of the season as the Indians boasted the league's top-ranked defense while winning at a record-setting pace. Since then, Indianapolis has fallen into last place in the IL with 120 total errors on the year, including 20 miscues in the last 18 games alone.

The recent defensive lapses haven't concerned Indianapolis' captain though, and Hague spoke confidently when he said the mental gaffes are an easy fix for the type of high-caliber players in the locker room.

"We've got a good group of guys and there's a lot of guys here who have been a part of championship team at one point," Hague said. "I think the key is just identifying, 'Yea we might clinch playoffs, but at the same time we have a further goal, we can't take stuff for granted.'"

Despite the recent setbacks, the Tribe still holds an eight-game divisional lead over second-place Louisville with just 26 regular-season contests remaining. Provided they maintain their spot atop the IL West, the first-place Indians are aiming not only for their second straight division title, but have also set thier sights on much higher aspirations while they gear up for a playoff push.

And they know just who to turn to, to lead the charge.

"I think (my role) it's just keeping that winning mentality," Hague said. "Just to remind people that while we are playing for playoffs, we want to go deep in the playoffs. Not just get there.

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