Tribe reach Carolina League Finals

Scott Lewis and J.D. Martin combined on a four-hitter Thursday as the Kinston Indians earned a spot in the Carolina League Championship Series with a 5-0 blanking of the Salem Avalanche.

Lewis (1-0) scattered three singles and a walk over six innings. The 22-year-old left-hander struck out six and won his first start since July 26.

"It was a good feeling to win the clinching game," said Lewis, who led the league with a 1.48 ERA during the regular season. "I had good command of my fastball and I was able to stay ahead by locating my pitches.

"We came in prepared. Our pitching coach (Steve Lyons) put together a video for us. Plus, I had faced these guys six times."

Martin allowed one single and fanned five in three innings to notch the save for the Indians, who swept the best-of-3 series.

Kinston got on the board in the first inning, when Jose Constanza led off with a single, stole second, moved up on a double play and scored on a wild pitch by starter Rory Shortell. Costanza went 3-for-4 with an RBI single in the second.

The Indians added three runs in the third. Rodney Choy Foo led off with a double and came home on Jordan Brown's double. Two batters later, Stephen Head belted a two-run homer off reliever Raymar Diaz to cap the scoring.

Shortell (0-1) surrendered four runs on seven hits and two walks in two innings. Diaz yielded one run on two hits and a walk over three frames before Enyelbert Soto and Ryan Thompson finished up for Salem.

Francisco Caraballo had two hits for the Avalanche, while Drew Sutton and Wallace Torbert had one.

Kinston will face either Frederick or Wilmington in the best-of-5 Carolina League Championship Series, which begins Saturday.

"We'd rather face Wilmington," said Lewis. "The lineup for Frederick is strong."