Alex Presley is congratulated after one of his two home runs.  











Indianapolis Indians  13, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees  2
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The Indianapolis Indians exploded for 13 runs on 15 hits to defeat the Yankees at Victory Field tonight, earning a split of both the 4-game series and the 8-game season series with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.  LF Alex Presley blasted a pair of 3-run home runs to lead the offense, as each member of the line-up collected at least one hit, and all but one scored at least one run.  

Both starting pitchers began their evening with struggles in the first inning.  For Tribe starter Justin Wilson (photo), the game started with a triple off the bat of Yankees' 2B Kevin Russo.  Russo's lined into right field, where RF Miles Durham raced in and made a feet-first slide, but missed the ball.  By the time, Durham got up and chased the ball down, Russo was gliding into third base.  SS Ramiro Pena dropped down a safety squeeze bunt, with Wilson scrambling off the mound to make the scoop and throw right back to C Eric Fryer as Russo came from third.  Fryer blocked the plate, but he dropped the ball, and Russo was safe.  It was first ruled a sacrifice bunt and a fielders' choice -- but then the ruling was changed to a missed catch error on Fryer, with no RBI for Pena.  

With a runner still on first base, Wilson got C Jesus Montero to fly out and struck out 3B Jorge Vazquez.  A wild pitch moved Pena to second base, then he scored on 1B Brandon Laird's single, lined over SS Chase d'Arnaud's head and into left field.  Both runs were unearned, but the Yankees had a 2-0 lead.  

But Yankees' starter Andrew Brackman was having his own troubles.  His pitches were going everywhere, with no apparent control on his part.  He walked lead-off batter d'Arnaud, with d'Arnaud ducking out of the way as one pitch came in a little too close to his head, and ball four going crazy wild all the way to the backstop.  Another crazy wild pitch to 2B Brian Friday let d'Arnaud advance to second base.  Brackman settled down enough to get Friday to fly out, then retired Presley on a high bouncer back to the mound, and struck out 1B John Bowker.  When Brackman came out for the second inning, his command was even worse -- reminiscent of the "Wild Thing" character in the movie "Major League".  Brackman walked both 3B Andy Marte and DH Matt Hague, with pitches going everywhere.  After three more balls for a 3-1 count on Fryer, Brackman threw another wild one that hit Fryer on his helmet, then bounced off the helmet and into the stands behind the visitors' dugout.  That was the last pitch for Brackman, who was quickly yanked.

Reliever Ryan Pope came on for the Yankees, with the bases full and no outs.  RF Miles Durham cleared the bases on Pope's first pitch, with a ringing double to the base of the wall in right-center field, and the Indians took a 3-2 lead as Marte, Hague, and Fryer all scored (photo).  Pope also gave up a single to CF Gorkys Hernandez and walked Friday before ending the inning on two fly outs.  

Wilson was able to relax after that first inning.  He gave up a two-out single to CF Austin Krum in the 2nd inning, but struck out Russo to end the inning.  He loaded the bases in the 3rd inning with singles by Montero and RF Jordan Parraz and a walk to Vazquez.  But with two outs and the bases loaded, Wilson reached deep, and fired two pitches at 92-93 mph to strike out LF Dan Brewer and end the inning.  Wilson went on to pitch 3 more innings, without allowing another hit.  He walked two batters in the 5th, but erased one base runner with an around-the-horn double play (Marte to Friday to Bowker, 5-4-3).  Alex Presley made the final out of the inning with a spectacular leaping catch of Laird's fly ball to deep left field, snatching the ball at the top of the left field scoreboard.  

Thursday evening's action with the Pirates' lower minor leaguers...

Altoona Curve  5,  Trenton Thunder  1
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Starter Jeff Locke struck out 8 Trenton batters in his 5.1 innings of work, while getting plenty of run support -- 3 home runs from his offense.  The only run Locke surrendered came in the bottom of the 2nd, when Trenton loadd the bases on a walk, a hit batter, and a single.  Another walk by Locke forced in the run, then a strikeout and a double play got him out of the inning.  Locke allowed only a walk and a double over the next three innings.  He began the 6th with a pair of walks and a strikeout before being relieved by Diego Moreno.  

Meanwhile, the Curve were pounding out the hits -- a total of 15, including 3 by 2B Brock Holt.  Each Curve batter had at least one hit.  1B Matt Curry, who had two hits in the game, began the Curve scoring with a solo home run to lead off the top of the 2nd.  Holt led off the 3rd with a line drive single to short, then moved to second on LF Quincy Latimore's walk, and scored on SS Jordy Mercer's RBI single.  

Back-to-back solo homers by Latimore and Mercer added another 2 runs in the 5th inning.  The Curve loaded the bases on three consecutive singles in the 6th -- by RF Jose Hernandez, Holt, and CF Brad Chalk, but Latimore struck out to end the inning and leave all three runners on base.  The final Curve run scored in the 8th.  The inning began with back-to-back singles by DH Travis Scott and 3B Greg Picart.  Picart was picked off first and caught stealing, but Scott advanced to third, and he was plated by Hernandez's sacrifice fly.  Holt also tripled in that inning.  

Moreno finished the 6th inning for Locke with a strikeout and a pop out.  Then he struck out the side in the 7th inning.  Michael Dubee pitched 2 scoreless innings to end the game.  He loaded the bases with a double, a single, and a walk in the 8th, but got out of that jam with a strikeout and a force out.  Then he worked around a single for a scoreless 9th.  

Starter Brian Burres threw 7 shutout innings, but got a no-decision.  











Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees  1,  Indianapolis Indians  0
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A pitching duel did not end up in the Indians favor today, as the S/W-B Yankees took a one-game lead in this 4-game series at Victory Field.  Tribe starter Brian Burres pitched an outstanding game, going 7 shutout innings, but left the game without any runs on the scoreboard, so he was not involved in the decision.  Yankees' starter DJ Mitchell also pitched 7 scoreless innings, but earned the win.  The game was scoreless until the starters were relieved in the 8th inning.  


Burres scattered 3 hits and 2 walks over his 7 innings, while striking out 5 Yankees.  He began his afternoon's work by retiring the first 6 batters he faced.  He gave up doubles to 2B Kevin Russo to lead off the 3rd, and to SS Ramiro Pena in the 6th, but left both of them on base.  Pena also singled in the 4th, dropping a liner into right-center field just out of the reach of CF Gorkys Hernandez.  Burres picked Pena off first, then 1B Matt Hague threw to SS Brian Friday, who tagged out Pena as he tried to steal second base (photo).   Burres walked 1B Jorge Vazquez in the 4th, but after Pena had been erased, and he walked LF Dan Brewer in the 5th.  Both of those runners were left on base, too.  Burres needed 98 pitches, with 58 hits, to get through his 7 innings.   

The Curve played an early game on Wednesday afternoon, with the Marauders and the Power playing in the evening: 

Trenton Thunder  7,  Altoona Curve  3
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A 4-run 6th inning by the Thunder was too much for the Curve to overcome, in an early afternoon game in New Jersey.  The Curve posted 11 hits, with Brad Chalk, playing center field today, collecting 3 hits.  LF Quincy Latimore, 1B Matt Curry, and 3B Jeremy Farrell all had 2 hits each.   

Each team scored one run in the 1st inning.  Chalk began the Curve rally with his first single, but was forced out at second on Latimore's grounder force out at second.  A throwing error by the second baseman on the play let Latimore reach second base.  SS Jordy Mercer singled into right field, scoring Latimore.  Two singles and a grounder force out gave the Thunder a run in the bottom of the inning to tie the game.  

Latimore also double in the 3rd inning, but didn't score.  Curry began a rally in the top of the 4th when he worked a walk.  Farrell singled, pushing Curry to third base, and a passed ball let Farrell move up to second base.  DH Tony Sanchez's RBI ground out scored Curry to give the Curve a 2-1 lead.   Trenton tied it up again in the bottom of the 5th, with a single, a throwing error by starter Aaron Thompson, and a sacrifice fly.  

Chalk singled again in the 5th, but was out in a force play.  The Curve threatened in the top of the 6th.  Curry, Farrell, and Sanchez hit three consecutive singles to load the bases with one out.  C Kris Watts grounded to first for a fielder's choice as a throw back to the plate forced Curry out at home.  A ground out ended the inning, leaving the bases loaded.  

Trenton got to Thompson again in the bottom of the 6th.  With one out, a single, a stolen base, and an RBI single gave Trenton a 3-2 lead.  Matt McSwain relieved Thompson, but the first batter McSwain faced reached base on a fielding error by Curry.  The next batter swatted a 3-run homer, giving Trenton a 6-2 lead.

The Curve got one run back in the top of the 7th.  Chalk and Latimore hit back-to-back line drive singles with one out.  Mercer popped up for an infield fly rule out, then Curry's single through the hole and into left field brought Chalk in to score.  That was all the Curve could get, though.  Sanchez walked to begin the 8th inning, and was erased on a double play, and the next four Altoona batters went down in order.  

McSwain gave up one more run in the bottom of the 7th, on a two-out triple and an RBI single.  Thompson was charged with his 5th loss of the season.