Omaha Takes Game One Against Indianapolis 7-4

PAPILLION, NEB. — The Omaha Storm Chasers won the opening game of the series against the Indianapolis Indians Tuesday at Werner Park, with a 7-4 victory behind timely hitting and a strong bullpen effort.

As both teams met for the first time in 2024, the Indians struck first 3-0 as four hits and three walks scored in the opening three frames, one in the first and two in the third, with a stretch of five straight batters retired between the first and third innings

In the bottom of the third inning, the Storm Chasers answered with their first runs of the game, quickly tying the score at 3-3. With hits in his first three plate appearances, Nick Loftin drove in his first Triple-A run of the season as Drew Waters scored on a Loftin single that got Omaha on the board 3-1. After a Logan Porter single loaded the bases, Devin Mann and Cam Devanney had a pair of forced ground outs that each drove in two runs to tie the game.

The scoring continued in the bottom of the fourth inning, as Tyler Tolbert hammered his first of two singles to plate Mike Brosseau for a 4-3 Omaha lead. Waters followed with a single to put runners on the corners and Loftin rocked his third hit of the night to left field to bring Tolbert home, then Mann followed with a single of his own and drove in Waters to increase the first Chaser lead of the night to 6-3.

Starting pitcher Daniel Lynch IV earned his second win on the season, striking out six batters over 5.0 innings to tie season-high. He allowed an additional run in the fifth on a groundout to move the score to 6-4 in favor of Omaha, but worked through the end of the fifth to qualify for a win before Jake Brentz came in to relieve him.

Brentz walked his first two batters, but worked a double play for the first two outs and ended the sixth with a strikeout, before handing the ball off to Dan Altvailla.

Altavilla put three runners on in the top of the seventh inning, but worked out of trouble with a double play ball that kept Indianapolis off the board for a second straight inning.

Devanney added insurance in the bottom of the seventh, as he crushed his fourth homer of the year to right field and extended Omaha’s lead back up to three runs at 7-4. That home run capped off Devanney’s fifth multi-hit game of the year, the third-most on the team.

Steven Cruz took the mound in the top of the eighth and, struck out one in a scoreless inning before Will Klein followed him with a 1-2-3 ninth inning that featured a pair of strikeouts to secure his third save of the season and finish off a 7-4 Omaha win.

The Storm Chasers continue this six-game series against the Indians and 2023 College World Series standout Paul Skenes as first pitch is at 11:05 a.m. CT Wednesday at Werner Park.