After the offensive explosion that occurred over the weekend for the Indianapolis Indians their bats were nearly silent in comparison as the Charlotte Knights got to Tribe starter Jay Jackson early and often in the 8-3 loss on Monday night.

Jackson could not handle the Knights’ offensive surge and gave up three runs in both the first and third innings. His final line was six runs on eight hits in 2.2 innings.

Monday night was the continuation of what has been a struggling time for Jackson. In his last 15.2 innings pitched – including Monday night – he’s given up 18 runs on 27 hits.

It was Rafael Perez who relieved Jackson of duty in the third and remained in the game until the end of the eighth. His outing on Monday lasted 5.1 innings – almost as long as his start on July 12 against the Columbus Clippers – with one unearned run scored and eight hits.

In the bottom of the first, the Tribe scored two runs to keep the game close; at that time they were only down by one run. Robert Andino tripled to lead off the inning and scored on a passed ball. Jaff Decker walked and was advanced to third by Brent Morel before being driven in by Chris McGuiness.

But, after the Knights ran away with the game in the third the Indians only scored one more run. With the bases loaded, thanks to two walks (McGuiness and Tony Sanchez) and a hit batter (Mel Rojas), and no outs the Tribe was unable to capitalize. McGuiness was the only batter to score a run that inning.

Victory Field provides a family friendly environment to take in a baseball game. It’s a fun place to take the family especially in the summer, but in the bottom of the fourth a beach ball strayed from the lawn and made it’s way onto the warning track. Play was halted as Michael Taylor, the Knights’ right fielder, retrieved the beach ball and threw it back to the fans.

It may not have been the night for the Indians, but two of the four players on the Knights’ roster that are from the Indianapolis area had solid performances for their team. Micah Johnson was 3-for-6 with a double and RBI, while Josh Phegley was 1-for-4 with two runs scored.

The Tribe will call on Brandon Cumpton to start game two on Tuesday night. Game time is 7:05 p.m.

Indians’ Player of the Game:

Rafael Perez

After a tough start by Jay Jackson, Rafael Perez helped keep the Tribe in the game. His final line is more likely to be seen next to the name of a starter in the box score than a reliever. Even though, he allowed another run to score, he kept the Tribe within four runs – a difficult deficit to overcome, but not completely impossible.

Final Box Score:

Winning Pitcher: Bobby Doran (2-0, 5.73)
Losing Pitcher: Jackson (5-4, 5.15)