Close games and hard luck losses were the name of the game in minor league action for three of the Blue Jays affiliates on Tuesday. Don’t forget to check out Jays Journal’s Minor League Report.
The Buffalo Bisons have had a tendency to lose close games and they lost another one in walk-off fashion, 6-5, to the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders on Tuesday. Ricky Romero‘s performance was a bit of a mixed bag, giving up five runs (four were earned) on nine hits but he didn’t walk anyone and struck out four batters in five innings. Austin Bibens-Dirkx provided two scoreless innings of relief but Ryan Tepera surrendered up the run in his second inning of work. Chris Getz had a big game with the bat, coming up with three hits but he neither scored a run nor drove one in. Dan Johnson had another two hits and Kevin Nolan walked, hit a triple, drove in a run and scored twice. In the Kevin Pillar watch, his batting average is up to .185 now.
Player of the Game: Chris Getz
The New Britain Rock Cats broke a 1-1 tie in the bottom of the eighth and didn’t need extra innings on Tuesday to defeat the New Hampshire Fisher Cats 2-1. The Fisher Cats only had six hits as a club including two by Jonathan Jones and didn’t get much going offensively. Kenny Wilson was designated for assignment and can’t play as a result leading to Jones getting the start in center field. Casey Lawrence was excellent but wasn’t supported by the bats, going 7 2/3 innings, allowing two runs on seven hits (and no walks) and striking out seven.
Player of the Game: Casey Lawrence
In yet another one-run game, the Lakeland Flying Tigers handed the Dunedin Blue Jays their fourth loss of the season, 4-3. Ben White gutted through seven innings, allowing two runs on eight hits with one strikeout. Justin Jackson threw a scoreless inning before Arik Sikula blew his first save of the season, allowing two runs in ninth for a walk-off Lakeland win. The batters put eight hits together including three from Gustavo Pierre. Dalton Pompey went 1/4 with a walk and two RBI while K.C. Hobson went 1/3 with an RBI and two walks.
Player of the Game: Gustavo Pierre
The Lansing Lugnuts won their second game in a row, opening up a six run lead by the end of the fourth inning and closing out a 6-1 victory over the Lake County Captains. The ‘Nuts capitalized on a great start by Jeremy Gabryszwski who went eight innings and surrendered the only Captains run on six hits and struck out six batters without walking a man. On the offensive side, Santiago Nessy went 2/4 with a double while Carlos Ramirez went 2/3. Mitch Nay‘s hitting streak came to an end (but he did steal his first base of the season) and Matt Dean and D.J. Davis both went 1/4 with doubles. Not to be left out, Jason Leblebijian went 1/2 with a walk and an RBI and scored two runs.
Player of the Game: Jeremy Gabryszwski
April 23 Preview
Buffalo Bisons (9-8)
This game is actually already underway, thanks to a late sleep after a very busy weekend for me! Kyle Drabek is on the mound for the visiting Bisons against the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders and Chase Whitley. Whitley, 24, has been very solid in his three starts for the RailRiders and is looking to build on his last start, a start in which he threw five scoreless innings against the Bisons. Drabek has struggled a lot, giving up 12 runs and 23 hits in 14 innings so far this year.
New Hampshire Fisher Cats (6-10)
The Fisher Cats have split their series so far with the 5-11 New Britain Rock Cats and D.J. Baxendale. Baxendale has similar season stats to Kyle Drabek (7.47 ERA, 23 H, 13 R, 15 2/3 IP) for Minnesota’s Double-A club while Aaron Sanchez is coming off a six-inning gem last outing in which he struck out six with just four hits and two walks. The game is at 6:35 pm.
Dunedin Blue Jays (14-4)
The D-Jays are sending Jesse Hernandez to the hill to try to rebound after a rare loss to the Lakeland Flying Tigers on Tuesday. Hernandez struggled in the first two innings of his first outing but has been spectacular since then, going eight subsequent innings without giving up a run. Yorfrank Lopez, 23, has a 4.80 ERA, 12 hits and 11 runs (eight earned) in 15 innings. He’s walked nine and struck out 11. The game is at 6:30 pm.
Lansing Lugnuts (5-13)
The Lugnuts try to go for three in a row against the Lake County Captains at home at Cooley Law School Stadium. The piggybacking duo of Adonys Cardona and Chase DeJong are taking the hill today for Lansing. Cardona has had mixed results with a 5.63 ERA and five walks and six strikeouts in only eight innings of work. DeJong had an outstanding outing his last time, throwing four shutout inning after a rough start to the season. They’ll face Adam Plutko, a 22-year-old righty from California. A UCLA player, Plutko’s season is off to a good start as he’s got a 2.84 ERA in 12 2/3 innings and has surrendered six runs (four earned) on nine hits and five walks with 17 strikeouts. This game is at 7 pm.
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