STAFF REPORTS
The IronPigs used power and pitching to pick up a pair of victories over the Bisons on Sunday afternoon from Coca-Cola Park. Lehigh Valley tallied victories of 7-2 and 1-0 to complete the four-game sweep of the Herd.
The Bisons were held to just nine hits in the two games combined. Buffalo is now just 1-6 against the IronPigs this season.
Tom Eschelman stole the show in game one. The IronPigs starter went the distance and kept the Herd out of the hit column until the sixth inning. He retired the first 11 batters of the game before issuing a two-out walk to Rowdy Tellez in the fourth. Shane Opitz led off the sixth inning with a clean single, ending Eschelman’s no-hit bid.
Eschelman should’ve had the complete game shutout if not for a two-out error from his shortstop, Pedro Florimon in the seventh. With extra at-bats, the Bisons scored their only two runs of the day on three consecutive singles from Raffy Lopez, Ian Parmley and Opitz.
Mat Latos started for the Bisons in game one and yielded seven runs over 4.2 frames of work. The IronPigs scored a single run in each of the first three innings before Dylan Cozens punctuated a four-run fifth with yet another home run. Cozen’s three-run blast to center traveled an estimated 469 ft. and was his fourth homer in the four-game series. He now leads the International League with 10 homers on the year.
The only run in game two came in the bottom of the fifth inning as Nick Williams led off the frame with a double off Buffalo reliever John Stilson. Cameron Perkins followed with an RBI-single to right field to plate the speedster Williams.
The Bisons went 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position in game two. Alex Monsalve hit a one-out double in the seventh inning but pinch hitters Darrell Ceciliani and Rowdy Tellez could not move the runner any further.
Luis Santos started game two for the Bisons and allowed just two hits in four innings of work. He struck out three.
The Bisons return to Buffalo for a seven-game homestand starting tomorrow night. Monday’s ‘Markdown Monday’ marks the start of the Bisons ‘NO RAIN GUARANTEE‘ week at the ballpark.
BISONS NOTES: The four-game sweep was the first the Bisons have suffered since losing a five-game home-and-home set with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, August 30-September 3…Deiferson Barreto made his Triple-A debut for the Bisons in game two. The second baseman went 0-2 in his first game above the Single-A level in his career…Roemon Fields went 3-5 in the two games combined.
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