Top of the order helps Saints crush Indianapolis 8-1

The St. Paul Saints used a four-run fifth inning to pull away and thump Indianapolis 8-1 at CHS Field on Thursday night.

The first three hitters in the Saints' batting order — Royce Lewis, Alex Kirilloff and Spencer Steer — combined to go 7-for-12 with two home runs and six RBI. Kirilloff finished 3-for-4, with a homer, double, three RBI and three runs scored.

Starter Mario Sanchez became only the second pitcher for the Saints (18-26) to work six innings, allowing one run on four hits while striking out five. It was only the Saints' second quality start of the season.

The Saints have now won back-to-back games for the first time since May 4-5 at home against Iowa.

With the Saints leading 2-1 in the fifth, Derek Fisher walked and eventually scored on Lewis' single. Lewis stole second and scored on Kirilloff's single to right-center. Steer then crushed his first Class AAA home run, a two-run shot to left-center, increasing the Saints' lead to 6-1. Steer went 2-for-4 with a double, home run, two RBI and a run scored.

The Saints and Indianapolis (23-21) meet in game five of the seven-game series on Friday night.

NEWS SERVICES