The Cleveland outfielder, sent to the Aeros to rehabilitate a sore right thumb, brought a Canal Park crowd of 8,224 to its feet twice last night with monstrous home runs. His first homer, with one out in the third, tied Akron with Bowie, which eventually won 6-5. Curtis' second homer, in the sixth, came with Robin Harriss and Guillermo Mercedes aboard. The Akron-Bowie series concludes today with a 2 p.m. game.
New Haven comes to town tomorrow to start a three-game series.
He had been away from the game for two weeks after suffering a sprained thumb in a clubhouse altercation with Kevin Mitchell. But in each of the last three Aeros' games, Curtis has started in center field and led off the batting order. Curtis' second homer had tied the score at five but Bowie won with a single run in the ninth. Bowie's Chris Kirgan was hit by a pitch and, after Lincoln Martin ran for Kirgan and Wady Almonte walked, Jesse Garcia singled to right to score Martin. The Bay Sox added single runs in the fifth on Melvin Rosario's home run and in the sixth before Curtis' second round-tripper of the night forced the deadlock.