Courtesy of RedWingsBaseball.com
Max Kepler had three hits and drove in two runs, helping the Red Wings to a 9-3 win over the Gwinnett Braves Tuesday night at Frontier Field. It was the fourth straight win for the Wings, who moved over the .500 mark with a 17-16 record.
Red Wings starter Tommy Milone was making his first appearance, after starting the season with the Twins. Milone gave up a lead-off single Tuesday, then set down the next three batters.
G-Braves starter Casey Kelly brought a 13.1 scoreless inning streak into Tuesday’s game, and the Wings quickly went to work on trying to end that streak. A pair of walks loaded the bases with one out, before Kelly struck out Adam Brett Walker. Buck Britton lined out, and Kelly escaped the jam.
Gwinnett got on the board first with one swing of the bat in the top of the third. Ozzie Albies took Milone’s second offering of the frame and roped it to left for a solo homer to make it 1-0. Milone induced three straight fly ball outs following the solo shot to end the inning.
In the second and third innings Kelly turned in 1-2-3 frames after the rocky first. From the final out of the first to the last out in the third, Kelly retired seven straight batters with three punchouts.
Trouble returned for Kelly in the bottom of the fourth but he did not get out of it this time. Rochester loaded the bases three times in the inning and put up seven runs, a season-high for an inning, on Kelly and reliever Ryan Weber, including a two-RBI double from Kepler, to take a 7-1 lead into the fifth inning.
Kelly (1-1) entered the night with a 13.1 scoreless inning streak dating back to April 29 but the Wings ended that. He exited in the fourth and rounded out with seven runs (five earned) on four hits with five walks and four strikeouts in 3.1 innings.
After having not thrown for nearly 30 minutes, Milone did not miss a beat in the top of the fifth. He retired the side on 12 pitches but Gwinnett forced Milone out in the sixth. He left with two on and two out in the inning and gave way to J.T. Chargois for his Triple-A debut. Chargois allowed a two-RBI double to Ronnier Mustelier that made it 7-3, but forced a groundout to end the frame.
Milone (1-0) went 5.2 innings and allowed three runs on five hits with five strikeouts. He threw 81 pitches, 63 for strikes.
The Wings added two more in the home half of the sixth. The G-Brave’s Matt Marksberry loaded the bases and the Wings took advantage. Britton drew the walk to score one followed by a Wilfredo Tovar infield single that scored another to make it 9-3 after six frames. Tovar’s hit snapped an 0-for-15 drought from the plate over the last five games.
Marcus Walden relieved Chargois in the seventh inning, and threw 1.2 innings of perfect relief. Ryan O’Rourke pitched the ninth, setting down all three batters he faced.
The Red Wings out-hit the Braves 10-6. Vargas walked four times, and Buxton had two hits – giving him more than one hit in six of his last nine games.
NOTES: James Beresford extended his on-base streak to 13 games…RHP J.T Chargois was transferred from Double-A Chattanooga to the Wings Tuesday. Chargois was 0-0 with a 1.54 ERA in 11 games for the Lookouts, with 14 strikeouts in 11.2 innings. He was 7-for-7 in save opportunities.
5/11 vs GWN 7:05 pm LHP Andrew Albers (0-0, 5.56) vs. RHP Williams Perez (1-2, 3.26) WHTK 1280
5/12 vs GWN 1:35 pm RHP David Martinez (1-2, 4.80) vs. RHP Tyrell Jenkins (2-2, 2.76) WHTK 1280
5/13 vs SYR 7:05 pm LHP Jason Wheeler (1-1, 1.80) vs. RHP A.J. Cole (3-2, 5.47) WHTK 1280, Time Warner Cable SportsChannel
5/14 vs. SYR 7:05 pm LHP Logan Darnell (3-3, 4.25) vs. RHP Taylor Hill (1-2, 3.31) WHTK 1280
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