Cannonballs Coming: Curve heroics highlight perfect playoff day

Three playoff openers and one rainout, the last being Morgantown.

-- Indianapolis scored six times in the 1st and coasted to a 7-3 win over the tediously named Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders.  The big blow was a three-run double by Dan Gamache, who later added a fourth RBI on a sac fly.  Josh Bell went 2-4 and Keon Broxton 2-3.  Alen Hanson was 1-4.  Wilfredo Boscan gave up just an unearned run on seven hits in seven innings.  He was helped by five double plays, including one in each of the first four innings.  One came when Willy Garcia doubled a runner off first on a fly ball.  Josh Wall got a four-out save, which may indicate that Blake Wood's blown save on the last day of the season, which cost the Indians a division title, may have prompted a change.

-- Chad Kuhl got drilled for seven 2nd-inning runs, but Altoona came back for a walkoff, 8-7 win over Bowie.  After pitching brilliantly for the last couple months, Kuhl's playoff debut was done after an inning and two-thirds.  Three of the runs were unearned, but Kuhl gave up three doubles as well.  Four relievers followed with seven and a third scoreless innings, with Montana DuRapau throwing the last two to get the win.  Altoona got a run in the 4th and made it 7-5 on a grand slam by Barrett Barnes (pictured) in the 5th, but there was no more scoring until the bottom of the 9th.  Jose Osuna got a one-out infield hit and Austin Meadows tied the game with a HR.  Barnes followed with another infield hit and went to second on a throwing error.  Jacob Stallings then singled up the middle to end it.  Barnes finished 3-4, while Erich Weiss went 2-4 and Meadows, Max Moroff, Osuna and Stallings all went 2-5.

-- West Virginia came from behind to take a 4-2 win from Hickory.  Austin Coley, who won 16 in the regular season, got the playoff win, too, allowing two runs on seven hits in six innings.  Sam Street and Nick Neumann were perfect over the last three innings.  Pablo Reyes went 2-4 and Kevin Kramer 2-3, each getting a double.  Taylor Gushue tied the game in the 5th with a two-run HR.  Kevin Newman was 0-4.