Lefty Breaks Through Metzger Marks Up First Pro Win While Pitching Indians To Victory Indians 3 Hawks 1

Jon Metzger wasn’t in the Spokane Indians’ starting rotation when the season began.

But Metzger is making a bid to remain among the starting five as the Northwest League season enters its final month.

Metzger (1-1) earned his first professional win by scattering five singles over 6 innings during Spokane’s 3-1 win over the Boise Hawks at Memorial Stadium on Saturday night.

The left-hander from the University of Virginia struck out six, walked none and allowed one earned run. In his last two starts, Metzger has allowed one run and eight hits in 13-1/3 innings, striking out 11 and walking one.

A minor injury to Spokane starter Zach McClellan in early July gave Metzger his first two starts. Metzger returned to the rotation when opening-night starter Kyle Turner, who had started five games, was dropped from the roster three weeks ago.

Metzger’s return sputtered at first. He gave up nine earned runs and seven walks over 7-1/3 innings during two late-July starts.

Saturday, Metzger outdueled Jarret Gruban (0-1), who made his Boise debut after being called up from Butte (Mont.) of the Pioneer League. Gruban allowed three runs - two earned - and walked four in five innings. Boise committed errors in each of the three innings in which Spokane scored off Gruban.

Spokane’s Chad Santos collected his 32nd run batted in, No. 2 in the NWL behind Boise’s Jeff Wagner (33), with a first-inning double. Marco Cunningham scored his league-best 38th run on the double. Cunningham had reached scoring position by stealing his 21st base.

Boise touched up Metzger in its first. Wagner singled, moved to second on a wild pitch, and scored on Brad Downing’s single, his league-best 56th hit. Downing has a seven-game hitting streak.

Rich Devine’s two-out, RBI single in the second put the Indians ahead for good. Devine also walked, stole second and scored Spokane’s final run, in the fifth.

Indians reliever Michael Natale picked up his fourth save by pitching no-hit ball for 2-2/3 innings. Natale coaxed an inning-ending fielder’s choice with the bases loaded in the seventh, and struck out Wagner to end the eighth with a runner aboard.

Spokane won the series 2-1 and leads the season series 5-4. Spokane hadn’t won a series at Boise since August 1997. The Indians are 6-15 at Boise in the last four seasons.

The Indians (24-21) remained two games behind first-place Yakima (26-19) in the North Division. Yakima defeated Everett 5-2 to knock the AquaSox (23-22) into third place.

Spokane’s Abel Martinez, the league’s second-leading hitter, went 2 for 4 to increase his average to .347. Martinez is on an 8-for-19 tear.

Santos extended his hitting streak to nine games. He is 11 for 39 (.282) during the streak. Ray Hattenburg of the Indians has a seven-game streak, during which he is 10 for 26 (.385).

Saturday’s attendance of 4,212 was the best of the series.

Spokane begins a three-game home series at 6:05 tonight against Everett. Afterward. the Indians won’t be home again until Aug. 18.

Ian Ferguson (2-5, 5.45) is scheduled to start tonight for Spokane. Ferguson shares the league lead in losses.

Notes

Spokane improved its road record to 11-10. The Indians are 7-8 against North Division teams… . Spokane and Boise meet again Aug. 29-31, in Boise. Sandwiched around those three games for Spokane are 12 against firstplace Yakima… . Spokane (252) and Boise (245) are 1-2 in league scoring. Boise (32) leads the league in home runs. Spokane (225) leads in walks.