Big 6th inning helps Charlotte Knights knock off Louisville Bats
The Charlotte Knights used a six-run sixth inning to pull away from the Louisville Bats for a 7-2 Class AAA International League baseball win Monday night at BB&T BallPark in the opener of their eight-game home stand.
The highlight performance belonged to Knights starter Kyle Drabek, who stymied the Bats over five scoreless innings.
Drabek, who wound up with a no decision, held Louisville to just one hit, while walking one and striking out five. The Bats spent the night pounding Drabek’s two-seam fastball into the dirt. Of the 11 balls they put in play, just two – a single and a weak flyout – left the infield.
Drabek also showed a sharp curveball.
The Knights (17-13) took a 1-0 lead against old friend Dylan Axelrod (1-3) in the fourth inning when Matt Davidson singled home Carlos Sanchez.
The Bats (13-18) rallied for two runs off Shawn Haviland (1-2) in the sixth, but Charlotte responded in a big way in the bottom half of the inning, when the first six batters reached base (three singles, two errors, and a walk) and eventually scored.
Maikel Cleto held Louisville scoreless over the final two innings to preserve the Knights’ third win in as many nights.
Quote
“That two-seam (fastball) has been a major plus for me. I’m getting more ground balls as long as I keep it down, because I have left some up and they were getting it over the wall. After my second surgery, the fastball miles per hour never really got back to where it used to be. Being able to sink it, cut it, and use the change has helped me out a lot more than just trying to blow it by people.” – Knights’ starter Kyle Drabek.
Worth mentioning
With two hits, Charlotte second baseman Carlos Sanchez took over sole possession of fourth place on the Knights’ all-time hits list, moving out of a tie with Brian Daubach (285). Sanchez trails only Josh Phegley (312), Joe Borchard (439) and Jordan Danks (449). … Drabek has gone 0-1 in his past two starts despite allowing only one run in 11 innings. … Cleto lowered his ERA to a team-leading 0.47 over 19 innings this season. He has not allowed a hit in his past five innings. … The Chicago White Sox outrighted reliever Javy Guerra to the Knights. … Axelrod spent parts of the 2011, 2012 and 2014 seasons with Charlotte and is 10th all-time on the Knights’ strikeouts list.
What’s next?
The Knights will play Game 2 of their four-game series at 7:05 p.m. Tuesday at BB&T BallPark. Right-hander Chris Beck (1-1, 4.78) will take the mound for the Knights against right-hander Josh Smith (0-0 8.31).
This story was originally published May 11, 2015 at 10:44 PM with the headline "Big 6th inning helps Charlotte Knights knock off Louisville Bats."