Durán Grand Slam Lifts Chasers to 7-4 win Over Indy

PAPILLION, NEB. – The Omaha Storm Chasers even this weekend’s series with a 7-4 win over the Indianapolis Indians Saturday at Werner Park.

For the second straight night, the Indians got on the board first and plated a run in the top of the third with an RBI double, jumping ahead 1-0. the top of the third inning and took the lead 1-0 off of three hits in the first three frames.

The Chasers answered in the bottom of the fourth and tied the game 1-1 as CJ Alexander doubled, moved to third on a sacrifice bunt from Nick Pratto and scored on a Brian O’Keefe sacrifice fly.

Indianapolis took back the lead in the top of the fifth inning as Omaha starting pitcher Chandler Champlain allowed a solo home run, then a pair of two-out RBI singles to jump ahead 4-1.

Champlain finished the night with four runs allowed over 5.0 innings, paired with no walks and three strikeouts.

Omaha inched closer in the bottom of the fifth, as Cam Devanney crushed his 15th homer of the season, to tie for the team lead and trim the deficit to 4-2.

The Chasers regained the lead and scored in a third straight frame in the bottom of the sixth as a single by Pratto and walks from Ryan Fitzgerald and O’Keefe set up for Rodolfo Durán to hit his first career grand slam for a 6-4 Omaha lead.

In the bottom of the eighth inning, the Chasers extended the lead to 7-4 with a run of insurance as O’Keefe knocked in his 12th homer of the season to left for a three-run advantage that held to be final.

Behind Champlain, Omaha’s bullpen combined for 5.0 scoreless innings. First, left-handed reliever Walter Pennington came on for the sixth and fired 1.2 scoreless innings, including a pickoff in the sixth. Steven Cruz took the reins for the Chasers in the top of the seventh inning with two outs remaining and put a pair of runners on but retired the last batter with a strikeout to get out of the inning, then fired a 1-2-3 eighth inning for 1.1 scoreless frames.

Evan Sisk took over for Omaha in a save opportunity in the ninth and dealt a 1-2-3 inning as he ended the night with a strikeout to earn his fifth save, combining for Cruz to retire the final seven hitters of the game.

The Storm Chasers conclude this weekend’s series against the Indians Sunday, July 21 with a 5:05 p.m. CT first pitch and Daniel Lynch IV is slated to start for Omaha.