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by civ ollilavad
Joe Martinez kept the Bulls guessing all night. And even he couldn't pinpoint what his secret was.
"Nothing in particular," he laughed. "I have to give credit to [catcher] Luke [Carlin] and my defense. They put a lot of balls in play and it was pretty easy for me. I just did what they told me to do."
Martinez pitched the Clippers back to the Governors' Cup Finals on Friday as Columbus completed a three-game sweep of the Durham Bulls with a 5-2 victory at Huntington Park.
The reigning Triple-A National Champions rode Martinez for eight innings before Zach Putnam worked a scoreless ninth. Nick Johnson went 3-for-4 and drove in two runs before the Clippers tacked on a pair of late insurance runs.
"Nick is swinging the bat well the last few fays. He's so valuable to us on and off the field, he's a huge asset for us," said Martinez. "He's a longtime big leaguer and he brings a real element of professionalism and plays the right way. And I think it rubs off on everyone else."
Columbus, which defeated Tacoma in last year's one-game showdown for the Triple-A title, will face the winner of the Lehigh Valley-Pawtucket series. The Clippers are trying to win consecutive Governors' Cups for the first time since 1991-92.
Martinez, who was 8-9 with a 4.04 ERA in 35 regular-season outings, held Durham to a pair of runs on nine hits in his longest outing of the year. He struck out four and did not walk a batter.
It was the first time Martinez (1-0) has gone at least eight innings since he threw a complete game for Triple-A Fresno on June 4, 2010.
"I would have liked to [have finished], but you can't argue," he said. "Zach has been great all year for us, so I was real confident with him going out. It's kinda nice."
Columbus took the lead in the second when Johnson doubled home Chad Huffman and scored on Argenis Reyes' single to left.
Former No. 1 overall pick Tim Beckham got the Bulls on the board in the third when he doubled home Robinson Chirinos with two outs, but Johnson restored the Clippers' two-run lead again in the bottom of the inning with an RBI single.
"It's nice because it gives you little more of a cushion," Martinez said of the early support. "I didn't have to be perfect all the time. We scored just enough to win, and that makes a huge difference."
Martinez said the celebration in the clubhouse was tempered a bit -- business as usual, in a sense, for the Clippers.
"We had a little champagne and stuff like that, but it's not the end, it's just the beginning of the playoffs," he added. "We still have another series to play."
Durham's final run came in the fifth when Leslie Anderson scored on a fielder's choice by John Matulia. The Bulls had runners on in each of the final four innings but could not get closer.
Columbus added an insurance run in the eighth when Johnson doubled and pinch-runner Ben Copeland scored on Carlin's single. Right fielder Matt Carson made a strong throw, but the ball got past Chirinos.
Carlin made a heads-up play moments later, scoring from second on Reyes' grounder that was thrown away by second baseman Ray Olmedo -- first baseman Dan Johnson never made an attempt to get Carlin at the plate.
Putnam, who worked the ninth in Game 2, worked around Carson's single to left for his second playoff save.
"I think everyone just wants to win every day, and if you win one game, then you worry about the next day," Martinez said. "Everyone is pretty loose. We have a good group, some good young guys and veterans."
Durham lefty Alex Torres (0-1) took the loss after allowing three runs on seven hits and four walks over six innings.