Three out of four ain’t bad. That’s what they say as two of the Blue Jays’ affiliates are definitely moving into contention. The Lugnuts (25-18) remained tied atop the Eastern Division of the Midwest League while the Bisons (23-20) are only a game back of first place in the International League North.
Buffalo Bisons 12, Toledo Mud Hens 4
Buffalo broke out the bats and put a nice little exclamation point on their victory over the Toledo Mud Hens by scoring six runs in the top of the ninth inning to give Bo Schultz a cozy cushion to work with. Miguel Castro made the start and had his best outing as a Bison. He threw 73 pitches and worked five strong innings, allowing one unearned run on four hits and a walk with six strikeouts. Jeff Francis allowed three runs in his inning of work, blowing the save but Rob Rasmussen held the Mud Hens off the board for two innings (without allowing a hit and just one walk) to pick up the win after the hitters broke the tie in the eighth. Schultz finished the game in a non-save situation with two strikeouts and one hit allowed in his inning of work.
While they didn’t hit any home runs, the club smacked five doubles including three from first baseman Matt Hague. Hague was 3/5 with two runs and five RBI on the night. Jose Reyes was 2/4 with two runs and two RBI in his four at bats playing shortstop while red-hot Brad Glenn (2/5, 2B, RBI) and A.J. Jimenez (2/5, 2 R) each added a pair of hits. Andy Burns was 1/4 with two RBI as well.
Roster Notes: Jeff Francis was activated and Austin Bibens-Dirkx was placed on the DL.
Player of the Game: Matt Hague and Miguel Castro
New Hampshire Fisher Cats 4, Altoona Curve 1
The New Hampshire Fisher Cats are making the Altoona Curve think twice about coming back to Manchester as they won their second straight game on the back of another fine pitching performance, this time by staff ace, Matt Boyd. Boyd went seven innings, allowing just a solo home run to score while giving up three hits in total and one walk with eight strikeouts. Greg Burke followed with a scoreless inning and Blake McFarland had a 1-2-3 ninth to pick up his seventh save.
While the offense wasn’t clicking on all cylinders, two players accounted for more than half the hits and all but one RBI. Dwight Smith, Jr. was 3/4 with a double and two RBI while Jorge Flores was 2/4 with an RBI. Matt Newman struck for the other run, hitting his fifth home run of the season.
Player of the Game: Matt Boyd and Dwight Smith, Jr.
Dunedin Blue Jays 2, St. Lucie Mets 14
The Dunedin Blue Jays’ continue to slump offensively, scoring only two runs while the pitching surrendered 14 runs to the St. Lucie Mets in yet another loss. Roemon Fields was 2/4 with an RBI but was caught stealing (for the seventh time this year) while Mike Reeves was 2/4 with a double.
On the mound, Luis Santos was hammered for five runs on seven hits through 5 1/3 innings and Matt Dermody surrendered just one run on five hits with three strikeouts in 1 2/3 innings. Brady Dragmire‘s ERA took the biggest hit as he was charged with six runs in 2/3 of an inning, bloating the stat to 10.53. Carlos Ramirez finished the game but wasn’t unscathed either, giving up two runs in 1 1/3 innings despite three strikeouts.
Player of the Game: Mike Reeves
Lansing Lugnuts 10, Fort Wayne TinCaps 1
The Lansing Lugnuts continue to beat up on the Fort Wayne TinCaps, this time taking a 10-1 victory at home thanks to strong pitching from Canadian Shane Dawson and a trio of home runs. Dawson went 6 2/3 innings, allowing just the one run on five hits and one walk with six strikeouts and Tim Mayza finished the game off, going 2 1/3 innings with just two hits against and two strikeouts.
Richard Urena was a triple away from the cycle, taking over the team lead in home runs with six while going 3/5 with three RBI. Dan Jansen drove in three and was 2/4 with two runs scored and Tim Locastro also drove in three, going 1/3 and getting hit by a pitch and scoring twice. Rowdy Tellez was 2/5, Chris Carlson was 2/4 with an RBI and Anthony Alford was 2/3 with two walks and a run. D.J. Davis walked three times and was 1/2 with two runs scored.
Player of the Game: Shane Dawson and Richard Urena
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