Garrett Martin powers RailRiders past Indians in second-half opener

Garrett Martin turned Scranton/Wilkes-Barre’s second-half opener into a statement at Victory Field, blasting a 443-foot home run at 111.6 mph off Antwone Kelly in the third inning and driving in four runs in a 7-2 win over the Indianapolis Indians on Tuesday night. The RailRiders left the first half at 37-37, and Martin gave the reset immediate force by putting them ahead 2-0 with one swing.

Scranton/Wilkes-Barre kept pressing after that first jolt. In the fourth inning, the RailRiders sent all nine batters to the plate and scored three more times, with Oswaldo Cabrera delivering an RBI single and Martin adding a run-scoring infield hit. Indianapolis answered with two runs in the bottom of the fourth, but the visitors never let the game slip into doubt. Scranton/Wilkes-Barre added insurance in the eighth on RBI singles from Cabrera and Martin, and the final line showed how thoroughly the RailRiders controlled the night: Cabrera and Martin each had three hits, and eight of the nine SWB hitters reached base safely.

The offense backed a pitching effort that held together after a brief opening from Alexander Cornielle. He worked three-plus innings and allowed one run on two hits with two strikeouts and four walks, then Carson Coleman finished the middle innings with 1.1 scoreless frames to earn the win. Yovanny Cruz and Brad Hanner handled the final 4.1 innings to close it out, while Kelly took the loss after giving up the first four runs on three hits over three innings.

For Martin, the night added another immediate return on a move from Double-A Somerset on Saturday. The 25-year-old right-handed outfielder from Arlington, Texas, who was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the 22nd round in 2018, had already homered twice in three Triple-A games for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre before Tuesday’s breakout. That kind of quick impact matters for a Yankees affiliate that is built to shuffle personnel and still compete, and Martin’s power gave the RailRiders a cleaner, more forceful opening to the second half than a tight road win would have.