All six Indians runs came in the first inning
By Anna Kayser
DES MOINES – The Indianapolis Indians posted six runs in the first inning courtesy of an Andrés Alvarez leadoff home run and Mike Jarvis grand slam en route to a 6-1 victory over the Iowa Cubs at Principal Park on Sunday afternoon.
The victory clinched a series split for the Indians (23-25) for their first road trip with more than one win this season. It also marked just the second time in the Victory Field era that they hit a leadoff home run and grand slam in the same game, following July 3, 2003, at Columbus.
Indianapolis was off to the races in the first inning, with Alvarez taking Thomas Pannone (L, 3-5) deep to left field for the team’s third leadoff homer this season. Command issues plagued the I-Cubs starter, who walked Matt Fraizer on four pitches – his third consecutive base-on-balls – to bring home another run later in the inning. With two outs and the bases loaded, Jarvis then cranked his first Triple-A homer in dramatic fashion to clear the basepaths.
Quinn Priester (W, 2-1) worked with his lead, spinning a shutout gem across 7.0 one-hit innings. He worked efficiently, tallying just 81 total pitches with 14 outs recorded on the ground. Priester’s lone hit surrendered came with one out in the first inning.
Iowa (23-28) recorded its second and final hit in the eighth inning after Priester’s exit and broke up the shutout bid via a run-scoring wild pitch by Josh Fleming.
Jarvis’ blast was his third career grand slam and first since April 30, 2023, with High-A Greensboro vs. Rome. Alvarez and Malcom Nuñez led the club with two-hit performances.
The Indians head back to Victory Field tomorrow for a Memorial Day celebration vs. the Omaha Storm Chasers, Triple-A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals, at 6:15 PM ET.
Originally posted on milb.com/indianapolis