This Day in Indianapolis Indians History

1974: On a Saturday afternoon at Bush Stadium, Dick Baney hurled a one-hit shutout to lead the Indians to a 1-0 win over Oklahoma City. He walked one batter and struck out one. His counterpart was left-hander Brent Strom, who took the loss despite striking out 11 over 8.0 innings of one-run ball. Joel Youngblood singled in Tom Spencer for the only run of the game in the sixth inning after Spencer had doubled. The game was completed in a tidy 1 hour and 49 minutes.

1997: The Indians won 3-0 and 4-0 in a doubleheader sweep over Nashville at Victory Field, which led the American Association Eastern Division at the time. Scott Klingenbeck tossed 6.0 scoreless innings in Game 1 and Scott Service earned his seventh save of the year in the 3-0 win. In the nightcap, right-hander Brett Tomko improved to 6-3 with 6.0 three-hit innings and Felix Rodriguez finished off the 4-0 win. Eric Owens and Tim Belk each had multiple hits in the opener, with Belk driving in a run on the only home run of the day. Pat Watkins and Aaron Boone led the offense with multi-hit games to end the twin bill.

2012: When Jeff Clement went up to the plate against Syracuse in the bottom of the seventh inning, a triple to center field secured a cycle for the Indy first baseman, just the third recorded by an Indian in the Victory Field era. His night started in the second inning with a double to center off Syracuse starting pitcher Tanner Roark. In his second at-bat, he stroked a soft line drive to center field for a single. Clement’s sixth home run of the season came in the sixth inning to left field, putting him a triple shy of the cycle. The fly ball to center not only recorded Clement’s cycle, it also extended the Indians lead over Syracuse and led to their 7-3 win.

2007: Center fielder Rajai Davis went 1-for-3 vs. Charlotte in the final game of his Victory Field era longest hitting streak. In the 21st game of his streak, Davis blasted a first-inning home run for his fourth of the year with Indy. During the stretch, Davis batted .364 (32-for-88) and drove in 13 runs. He was called up the following day by the Pirates and spent the next eight weeks with Pittsburgh before being traded to San Francisco at the July trade deadline. He hit .279 (53-for-190) with one home run, nine RBI and 22 stolen bases at the major league level.

2016: The Indians carried a 10-2 lead through six innings at Toledo, but the Mud Hens scored one in the seventh, three in the eighth and four in the ninth, with the game-tying swing being a grand slam by Jordany Valdespin off Arquimedes Caminero. Both teams traded single runs in the 11th inning before Indy hung a five-spot in the top of the 13th to win 16-11. Indians second baseman Alen Hanson hit a three-run homer off Logan Kensing in the final frame and finished with a game-high tying four RBI alongside Danny Ortiz.

1982: On a Friday night at Bush Stadium, the Indians gave up six runs in the top of the first against Wichita, only to respond with five in the bottom half en route to a thrilling 10-9 victory. The Indians went run-for-run with Wichita, countering a two-run top of the fourth with their own pair in the bottom half. Facing a two-run deficit entering their eventual final half inning, Indy plated three runs in the bottom of the eighth to complete the comeback. Ronnie Farkas was the player of the game, going 3-for-3 with a double and four RBI. Tom Lawless and Dallas Williams scored six of the Indians' 10 runs from the top two spots in the lineup.

2005: With the game knotted at 6-6 in front of 11,000 fans at Victory Field, Jose Leon launched a two-out, three-run homer to left-center field to give the Indians a 9-6 win over Charlotte. Behind a six-RBI day by Leon, the Indians battled with the Knights, trading a pair of runs in the fourth and four-spots in the sixth to tie the game. Paul Chiaffredo, who entered the game as a defensive replacement, roped a two-run single to tie the game in the sixth.

2015: Indians closer Blake Wood recorded his 15th save of the season in a 5-2 win over Lehigh Valley after converting seven save opportunities in the month of May, which is tied for the third-most by an Indians pitcher in a single season dating back to 2005. Wood converted 29 saves in 34 opportunities to lead the International League in that category for that season, it was the most saves by an Indians pitcher since Bob Scanlan recorded 35 in 2000.

2001: The Indians swept a twinbill vs. Durham at Victory Field behind a walk-off home run in Game 1 and a four-run seventh inning to mount a comeback in Game 2. Right fielder Micah Franklin smacked three extra-base hits on the day, making him one single away from the doubleheader cycle. Franklin hit a double and a solo home run in the opener, his seventh of the season, in a 4-3 walk-off win. Franklin would go on to pace the team with 23 home runs in 2001. In the nightcap, trailing 5-3, a four-run seventh inning was highlighted by a bases-clearing triple off the bat at Franklin as the Indians sealed the doubleheader sweep with a 7-6 win.

2019: With 13 strikeouts at Toledo, Mitch Keller broke his career-record of 11 strikeouts and became just the fourth pitcher in the Victory Field era to strikeouts 13 or more in a game. His Ks were the most since Ian Snell struckout 17 on June 28, 2009 vs. Toledo. The Indians would go on to lose the game, 3-1, at the hands of the bullpen, giving the Pirates No. 1 prospect the no-decision. Keller was recalled by Pittsburgh and made his second MLB start of the season five days later.

2000: The third inning at Ottawa was an offensive outpour for the Indians as they already led the Lynx, 2-1. Starting pitcher Everett Stull highlighted the inning with a grand slam and was one of two Indy players who drove in four runs (also: Kevin Barker). Outfielders Damon Hollins and Chris Jones each finished the game with four hits. Stull limited Ottawa to four runs in 6.0 innings.

1941: The Indians hosted the Boston Red Sox in an exhibition game at Perry Stadium and were handed a 23-14 defeat. The Red Sox starting lineup featured four Hall of Famers. LF Ted Williams, who hit .406 that season, went 1-for-2 with one RBI. SS Joe Cronin went 0-for-1 with a run scored. 1B Jimmie Foxx went 0-for-2. 2B Bobby Doerr was the star of the game, going 3-for-4 with a home run, five RBI and three runs scored.

1990: Indians center fielder Quinn Mack finished 5-for-6 with two doubles, two RBI and three runs scored as Indy won big in Oklahoma City, 13-1. The Indians tallied 20 hits with the lone home run coming from Mel Houston, his first and only dinger of the season in 106 games.

2012: For a third time in the Victory Field era, Indianapolis won by a record 16 runs on their home field when the Indians beat Rochester, 16-0. Every hitter, including three in-game substitutes, scored at least one run for Indy. Indianapolis batted around and scored six runs in the second inning. Left-hander Justin Wilson started the game for the Indians and tossed 7.0 innings of four-hit ball to hold the Red Wings at bay with a 10-0 lead while Indy extended the score in the seventh with another six-run inning.

2005: As the Indians struck out a Victory Field era road record 17 times at Rochester, including 13 by right-hander Boof Bonser, the team walked away with a 4-3 win with the help of a dominant bullpen and four-run sixth inning. The top of the sixth scoring started on third baseman Yurendell de Caster’s game-tying solo homer to left. Left fielder Nate McLouth plated another run with a line drive double to left to put the Indians up one. Then with the bases loaded and two outs, shortstop Shaun Skrehot gave the Indians insurance with a two-run single. Indy's bullpen held Rochester hitless in three innings of work to secure the comeback win.

1998: After losing Game 1 of a doubleheader vs. Ottawa, 2-1, starting pitcher Rodney Bolton tossed a 7.0-inning complete game shutout to win the nightcap, 3-0. Bolton improved to 6-5 on the season with the win as he surrendered hits runs, two walks and struck out five. The Indians were backed by an RBI single in the first off the bat of Mike Frank and a two-run homer by Mark Johnson in the fourth inning.

1978: In the top of the first inning in an exhibition against the Cincinnati Reds at Bush Stadium, Ken Griffey triped ahead of a two-run homer by Joe Morgan. The Indians grabbed a 5-3 lead through six frames, but the Reds plated five runs in the seventh en route to an 8-5 win over Indy. Ron Oester, Champ Summers, Lynn Jones and Tom Mutz each had two hits for Indianapolis.

2007: Southpaw Shane Youman fanned 10 Durham Bulls over 7.1 one-run innings for the first 10-plus strikeout outing by an Indians pitcher in the 2007 season, and the first in consecutive days. With Youman's third win of the season, the Indians improved to 40-27 on the season. The next day, right-hander John Wasdin also stretched his outing into the eighth inning and fanned 12 batters, but the Indians lost via a four-run eighth inning 7-3.

2002: In a pitchers duel that saw both starters go the distance, left-hander Jimmy Osting outlasted his opponent and shut out Ottawa in his second complete game of the season, 2-0, in Game 1 of a doubleheader. A two-run home run by Izzy Alcantara – who went 2-for-3 with a pair of extra-base hits – in the fourth inning was the difference and gave the Indians the win. They then dropped Game 2, 7-2.

1963: On Father's Day in Denver, the Indians split a doubleheader, winning Game 1 by an 11-3 score before losing the nightcap, 22-5. Joe Gaines led the offense with three hits in the opener, which included an eight-run eighth for Indy. Gaines' hot hitting continued in Game 2 with a four-hit performance despite the lopsided outcome.

1990: Indians first baseman German Rivera went 5-for-5 with a double, RBI and three runs scored in an 11-9 win over Oklahoma City at Bush Stadium. Indy scored in six of its eight trips to the plate, with eight runs through the first six innings before a six-spot in the seventh by Oklahoma City put the visiting team on top. The Indians then tied the game in the bottom half and plated two in the eighth, fending off defeat. They recorded 18 hits altogether.

2014: Chris McGuiness went 4-for-5, Jaff Decker went 3-for-5 with three RBI and Nevin Ashley went 3-for-4 with four RBI as the Indians put up four multi-run innings to beat Norfolk, 10-4. All of Ashley's hits came for extra bases with two doubles and a triple, while Decker sent a game-tying two-run home run out of the park in the third inning.

1953: Dave Pope homered in the bottom of the ninth to ignite a two-run rally and give the Indians a 4-3 comeback win over Columbus. Wally Post also homered in the game and scored the winning run on a double by Joe Macko.

1997: Tim Belk went 5-for-6 with a double, home run and four RBI as the Indians put up 18 runs on 20 hits in an 18-2 win vs. Iowa. Belk wasn't the only one with a standout performance, as Brian Hunter went 4-for-6 with four RBI of his own and a Victory Field era record-tying three doubles. Future International League Hall of Famer Chad Mottola joined the four-hit club with a home run and two RBI. The Indians pitching staff added to the overall dominance, allowing just two runs with nine strikeouts between starter Giovanni Carrara and Mike Walker.

1974: Indians second baseman Junior Kennedy went 6-for-6 with two doubles, three RBI and three runs scored in a 15-7 win at Denver. Kennedy’s six hits tied an American Association record. Center fielder Tom Spencer also smacked two home runs and had six RBI, and the Indians totaled 28 hits in the high altitude.

2005: In front of 10,300 fans at Fifth Third Field, southpaw Zach Duke improved to 12-3 on the season in an 8-3 win over Toledo. He struck out seven batters over 7.2 innings and allowed three earned runs on seven hits. It was his last appearance with Indianapolis that season before he had his contract selected by Pittsburgh. Duke went 8-2 with a 1.81 ERA over 14 starts down the stretch for the Buccos.

1980: The Indians beat Cincinnati, 8-5, in an exhibition game at Bush Stadium after Don Lyle hit a three-run, pinch-hit homer in the eighth inning. Dave Van Gorder also homered for the Indians. The Reds offense was led by Ray Knight's two homers and Joe Nolan's one.

2013: In the fifth game of a hitting streak, Josh Harrison finished a home run shy of the cycle after going 4-for-5 with two doubles, a triple, two RBI and three runs scored in a 9-7 loss to Rochester. He hit .500 (11-for-22) with eight extra-base hits and nine RBI during those five games, a stretch that included a six-RBI game on June 24 when he laced a pair of three-run triples. He was recalled by Pittsburgh the very next day on June 27.

2009: In his first appearance with the Indians since Aug. 31, 2005 vs. Toledo, right-hander Ian Snell again toed the rubber vs. the Mud Hens for a history-making outing. Snell struck out a Victory Field era record 17 batters in 7.0 two-hit innings as the Indians won, 2-1, in 10 innings against their divisional rival. The record-setting performance didn’t stop there as 13 of those strikeouts were consecutive, another Victory Field era best.

1936: The Indians rallied with one run in the ninth and one in the tenth to beat Cleveland, 7-6, in an exhibition game at then-Perry Stadium in Indianapolis.

2003: Pete Zoccolillio launched a two-out, solo home run in the bottom of the 12th inning to defeat Richmond in walk-off fashion, 3-2. After Indy took a 2-0 lead in the fourth, Richmond ran down to the wire and plated a pair to tie the game in the top of the ninth. Zoccolillo was one of four Indians batters ( also: Jim Rushford, Keith Luuloa and Alex Delgado) to notch multi-hit games in the win.

1990: The Indians prevailed at Iowa in 14 innings, 5-4, behind an 18-hit attack. Indianapolis sent the game to extras by scoring one in the ninth to make it 3-3, and both teams traded single runs in the 12th to extend the game further. Indy left 19 runners on base to Iowa's eight in the triumph. Center fielder Steve Hecht finished 3-for-8 with a double, RBI, two runs scored and a stolen base atop Indy’s lineup.