TOLEDO, Ohio – Enmanuel Valdez homered and knocked in three runs, and it was his 10th-inning single that gave the Indianapolis Indians the 5-4 victory over the Toledo Mud Hens on Saturday night at Fifth Third Field in 10 innings, 5-4.
Nick Yorke began the 10th inning on second base, and Indianapolis (21-29) elected to use the inning’s opening batter, BIlly Cook, to sacrifice him to third base. Valdez then followed with a line-drive knock into center field. In the bottom of the 10th, Rafael Flores Jr. sealed the win when he lunged to his right for a game-ending catch with the tying run at third base.
Valdez’s big night began when he plated Yorke with a single in the first. He teamed up with Cook for back-to-back home runs in the third. Cook clubbed a two-run shot, and Valdez followed on the next pitch with his third longball of the campaign.
Toledo (24-26) slowly chipped away at the lead. Eduardo Valencia homered to put the Hens on the board in the third, and Max Anderson singled in two runs in the fifth to cut the Indians’ lead to one run. Anderson tied the game with a sacrifice fly in the seventh, setting up the extra-innings drama.
Beau Burrows (W, 2-0) did not allow a hit as he worked the game’s final two innings to earn the victory. Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander Jared Jones made his second rehab start for Indy and struck out six as he pitched into the fifth inning.
Tanner Rainey (L, 2-2) did not allow an earned run but did concede the inherited run in the 10th to pickup the loss for Toledo.
The Indians and Mud Hens will wrap-up their series on Sunday evening, first pitch is set for 5:35 p.m. Noah Davis (1-3, 4.46) is the scheduled starter for Indy but Toledo has not named a starter. A triumph on Sunday would give the Indians their first road-series victory of the season.