Alexander great in victory

The only returning Spokane Indians player came back in a big way Saturday night.

Chris Alexander drove in his first five runs of the season, including a two-run homer in the bottom of the 10th inning, to give Spokane a 7-6 win over Boise to complete a three-game series at Avista Stadium.

Alexander, the lone roster member who also played for the 2003 Northwest League baseball championship team, connected against Hawks closer Kris Gross (1-1) with one out and Billy Susdorf on first base after being hit by a pitch. The blast sailed into the Grotto area in right field, the short porch the Indians installed this season.

“Thank goodness it’s only 296 feet down that line,” Alexander said.

Spokane (9-7) won the series 2-1 and knocked Boise (8-8) out of what had been a three-way tie for first place in the East Division. Spokane is 4-2 against the Hawks this season and has won three of its first four series.

Alexander, a 6-foot-4, 223-pound first baseman/designated hitter, hit five homers in 55 games for Spokane last season. He entered Saturday’s game hitting .243, with zero homers and runs batted in.

“It’s been a rough stretch at the beginning of the season, but I think I have things under control,” Alexander said. “I’ve made some recent changes and adjustments, and things are looking up right now.”

Alexander had a two-run double during a three-run first, and added an RBI double in the third with Susdorf at second base.

His game-winning shot warmed up a crowd of 5,911 awaiting fireworks. Boise left fielder Luis Montanez had hushed the fans in the top of the inning with a leadoff homer, his second long blast to left field on the night.

Boise came out swinging against Indians starter Clayton Jerome. Anthony Granato crushed a leadoff homer to left on a 2-1 pitch. After one out, Montanez outdistanced Granato with a homer to a similar spot.

Spokane bounced back in the first to take a 3-2 lead. Ben Harrison singled home Brandon Boggs with one out, and Alexander lined his two-run double into the gap in left-center with two out.

Jerome had retired seven consecutive batters, including the first two in the third, when Boise struck for three runs. Ryan Norwood doubled in two runs and scored on Alfredo Francisco’s single for a 5-3 lead.

Susdorf walked with two out in Spokane’s third, stole his third base of the season and scored on Alexander’s opposite-field double down the right-field line.

The Indians tied the game at 5 in the sixth on Bobby LeNoir’s RBI groundout.

Reliever Shawn Phillips kept Spokane in the game by pitching five shutout innings, starting in the fourth. Phillips, who entered with an 8.59 earned-run average, allowed three hits, struck out three and walked none.

Jarrad Burcie (1-0) picked up his first professional win by working the ninth and 10th. The homer by Montanez was the first earned run allowed by Burcie.

Loser Gross, Alexander’s college teammate at New Mexico, was seeking his league-leading fifth save.

“That’s a great win right there,” Alexander said. “It was a tough game. They took the lead in the top of the 10th, but we were able to come back and get the win.”

Spokane begins a three-game home series against the Yakima Bears tonight.

Notes

Tuesday will feature the Indians debut of right-hander Thomas Diamond, the Texas Rangers’ first-round pick last month out of the University of New Orleans. … The Rangers released outfielder Brock Jacobsen, who hit .226 in 10 games for Spokane. The Indians were carrying seven outfielders.