The Bisons lost their first meeting with the Gwinnett Braves this season, falling 3-2 in Buffalo on Thursday.
A pitcher’s duel was decided in the top of the ninth inning, when Gwinnett’s left fielder, Ronnier Mustelier, walked with the bases loaded against Ryan Tepera, scoring the winning run for the G-Braves.
Both starters, Scott Diamond for the Herd and Aaron Blair for the Braves, allowed two runs over 7.0 innings.
“It was a nice job,” Bisons’ manager Gary Allenson said postgame of Diamond’s performance. “It kind of flirted away though. We faced a guy who, from what his numbers say, wasn’t pitching too good, but he may have pitched his best game in Triple-A.”
Blair entered Thursday on a string of four-straight starts allowing three or more earned runs, and lowers his ERA by .31 points with his performance.
After walking the leadoff batter, Dalton Pompey, in the bottom of the first, Blair served up a RBI double to Domonic Brown, giving the Herd a 1-0 lead.
The Bisons had runners on first and second with one out in the bottom of the first, when clean-up hitter Jesus Montero bounced into an inning-ending double play. The same occurred in the fourth, when David Adams grounded into a double-play that ended the frame.
The G-Braves knotted-up the game at one in the top of the fourth, as Sean Kazmar, Jr. knocked home a run with a RBI single.
In the bottom of the sixth, Matt Dominguez drove a ball into the left-centerfield gap, during which Jesus Montero scored all the way from first, to give Buffalo a 2-1 lead.
“We’ve kind of relied on Dominguez and Montero for a while,” Allenson said. “Matty drove in a run with a double, and he has been struggling. It’s time for some other guys to pick it up. It’s nice to have A.J. [Jimenez] back in the lineup.”
Jimenez returned to the lineup for the first time since June 25, going 1-4.
Gwinnett re-tied the score at two in the seventh against Diamond, as Blake Lalli plated Rio Ruiz with a run-scoring single to left. Diamond escaped the inning allowing just one run, stranding runners on the corners by fielding a chopper to the mound by Ronnier Mustelier.
Diamond earned a no-decision two runs on 10 hits. Aaron Blair also allowed two runs, walking a pair of Bisons. Both starters pitched to contact, as they combined for five strikeouts.
Danny Barnes hurled a perfect eighth inning for Buffalo, striking out two.
“He’s very reliable, he’s pitched great since he’s come up here, and he’s putting himself on the radar,” Allenson said of Barnes, who has allowed just one run in nine appearances with the Herd.
Things got dicey for Ryan Tepera in the top of the ninth, as the righty loaded the bases with two away. Ronnier Mustelier worked a full-count walk, as pinch-runner Matt Lipka crossed home plate for the go-ahead run. Ben Rowen entered with the bases loaded in the ninth after Tepera allowed the go-ahead run. The 2016 Triple-A All-Star punched-out Hector Olivera looking, escaping further trouble.
Rob Wooten pitched two scoreless frames to seal Gwinnett’s victory, en-route to his third win of the year.
Chris Colabello went hitless in four at bats in his fourth rehab game with the Herd, striking out and flying out to left field two times each.
He’s jumping a little bit, trying to swing a little too hard, and his front foots landing too quick,” Allenson said of Colabello. “He’s just got to slow everything down. Get some hits, take your 8-iron instead of your driver to get your timing back.”
Ryan Goins, also joining Buffalo on rehab, did not play on Thursday.
Jose Bautista will join Colabello and Goins on Friday as the third Toronto Blue Jays’ player on the Bisons’ roster on a rehab assignment. The six-time American League All-Star is recovering from an injured toe.
“If he hits, I’m looking forward to it,” the Bisons’ skipper said of Bautista’s upcoming debut with the Herd. “He hits 40 [homers] a year and it’s nice to have his bat in the lineup, and his defense and his leadership.”
Friday, Buffalo will take on Gwinnett in game two of a four-game series on the fridaynightbash! Casey Lawrence looks to build on an impressive performance last time out, when he allowed just three hits in a win over Lehigh Valley. He will be opposed by the Braves’ Rob Whalen, with first pitch scheduled for 7:05.
BISONS NOTES:
Catcher A.J. Jimenez was activated off the disabled list on Thursday. Jimenez last played on June 25 against Indianapolis… Reliever Franklin Morales’ wrapped up his MLB injury rehab assignment on Thursday, after nine appearances with Buffalo… Dalton Pompey extends his hitting streak to six games, and he has gone 12-24 in that span… Domonic Brown also moves his hit-streak to eight games, and he is batting .316 in his last 10 contests.
from Bisons.com via IFTTT
