Brubaker Bests Bats, Indians Win 3-2

INDIANAPOLIS - J.T. Brubaker allowed just two runs over six innings, and both Kevin Newman and Christopher Bostick continued their torrid months at the plate as the Indianapolis Indians held off the Louisville Bats on Monday night, 3-2. The Tribe turned an unconventional 4-6-3-2 double play to seal the win.

Johnny Hellweg closed the door for his eighth save in the ninth thanks to a heads-up play by Tribe first baseman Wyatt Mathisen. Hellweg induced a ground ball to second baseman Kevin Kramer who turned and fired to Kevin Newman for the force at second. Newman's relay sailed past Mathisen, but a friendly carom off Louisville's dugout screen flew back into Mathisen's right hand. He then flipped the ball to Jacob Stallings at the plate who applied the tag on Gabby Guerrero attempting to score the tying run from second base.
Indianapolis (22-19) used a two-out double by Bostick and single by Stallings to grab a 1-0 lead after one inning of play. The Tribe then pushed their advantage to three in the third on run-scoring hits by Pablo Reyes and Bostick.
Brubaker (W, 2-0) won for the second time in three Triple-A starts, both victories coming against the Bats. He racked up five strikeouts against five hits and two walks, his lone mistake coming with two down in the top of the fifth. With a runner on and facing his counterpart Brandon Finnegan, Brubaker saw the left-handed hitting pitcher connect for his first career home run onto the grass berm in right field.
The 374-foot shot was just the seventh hit in 77 career at-bats for Finnegan, and the first dinger by a Louisville (13-27) pitcher since 2011.
Brubaker settled in to work a scoreless sixth before handing over to Bo Schultz, Tanner Anderson and Hellweg for the final three innings of scoreless ball.
Bostick's 2-for-4 showing improved his average to .375 (21-for-56) over the last 12 games. He has six doubles and 13 RBI during that stretch.
Newman logged two more hits from the top of the lineup, giving him 25 knocks since May 8, the most in professional baseball. The 24-year-old is batting .416 (32-for-77) in the month of May.
Mathisen's game-saving play overshadowed two more hits that elevated his average with the Tribe to .478 (11-for-23) through eight games.
Indy and Louisville continue their four-game series with an 11:05 a.m. ET start on Tuesday, May 22 at The Vic. The Indians will send righty Clay Holmes (2-2, 4.31) to the bump, opposite Bats left-hander Cody Reed (0-2, 4.24).
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