Simon homers again, but Indians fall 5-2 to Memphis

Ronny Simon was the lone constant in an otherwise muted night for Indianapolis, launching a 356-foot solo homer in the third inning and giving the Indians their clearest sign that his hot start may be turning into something more than a brief surge. Even with Simon and Esmerlyn Valdez delivering multi-hit games, Indianapolis fell 5-2 to Memphis on Thursday night at AutoZone Park.

The Redbirds took control early against Thomas Harrington, who absorbed the loss after allowing three runs in the second inning. Jimmy Crooks started the rally by scoring from second on a Matt Koperniak single, and Brody Moore followed two pitches later with a double to deep left field that cleared the bases for a 3-0 Memphis lead. That margin immediately put the Indians on the back foot in a series between two clubs headed in opposite directions, with Memphis entering at 18-9 and Indianapolis at 10-17.

Simon answered in the top of the third with his second straight home run, a first right-handed blast of the season that underscored how locked in he has been at the plate. The 26-year-old switch-hitter came into the game batting .383 with a 1.023 OPS, and the homer extended a stretch in which he had hits in seven of his last eight games. For Indianapolis, that kind of production has become the best indicator of whether the offense can generate enough damage to keep pace.

But the Indians never found the inning that could flip the game. Memphis stretched the lead in the fifth on a throwing error by Davis Wendzel, then Moore added his third hit of the night with an RBI single in the sixth to make it 5-1. Indianapolis finished with more hits than Memphis, 9-7, yet the Redbirds consistently delivered when it mattered and the Indians did not.

There was still a late flicker. Tyler Callihan snapped an 0-for-11 run in the series with a ninth-inning single, and Simon followed by lining a double off the top of the center-field wall to score him for Indianapolis’ second run. Ryan Murphy shut the door with a groundout, ending the comeback and preserving Memphis’ 5-2 win.

Beau Burrows provided one of the quieter positives for Indianapolis, working his sixth scoreless outing in his last seven appearances. That kind of relief stability has helped keep games within reach, but the Indians are still paying for early mistakes and missed chances. Simon’s power spike, now with back-to-back homers and three long balls on the season, looks increasingly real. The team around him still needs to match that momentum with cleaner innings and more timely swings.