EL1 New Hampshire Fisher Cats

Cooper homers, scores three in loss to Sea Dogs

Published on June 29, 2009 under Eastern League (EL1)
New Hampshire Fisher Cats News Release


Manchester, NH- David Cooper went 2-for-3 with a homer, a walk, two RBIs and three runs scored, and Brian Dopirak added two hits, including a run-scoring double, to extend his hitting streak to a season-high 13 games, but it wasn't enough to prevent the New Hampshire Fisher Cats from dropping an 8-5 decision to the Portland Sea Dogs before a standing-room-only crowd of 7,141 at Merchantsauto.com Stadium in the completion of a suspended game from Sunday night that was halted by rain after eight innings.

When the game started on Sunday night, Portland (36-38) took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning on a two-out, two-run single by Ryan Kalish (4-for-5, 3 RBI, 2 SB) off losing pitcher Randy Boone.

When the game resumed on Monday night, Kalish added another RBI single off Adrian Martin in the top of the third inning to give the Sea Dogs a 3-0 lead.

Portland went in front 6-0 against Martin in the top of the fourth when Jon Still (2-for-5, HR, 3 RBI) tattooed his team-leading ninth home run of the year, a three-run blast that bounced off the roof of the Samuel Adams Bar & Grill.

The Fisher Cats (32-44) got on the board in the bottom of the fourth inning against Jarrod Plummer when Cooper drew a leadoff walk, advanced to third on Dopirak's double off the right-centerfield wall and scored on a ground out by Brad Emaus, trimming Portland's lead to 6-1.

New Hampshire made it 6-3 in the home half of the fifth when Darin Mastroianni (0-for-2, 2 BB, R) walked and Cooper drilled an opposite-field, two-run homer, his fourth, into the Poultry Products Dinner in the Den.

An unearned run in the top of the seventh gave Portland a 7-3 lead. Kalish singled, stole second, and scored when Celson Polanco committed a throwing error on Josh Reddick's infield single.

Again, the Fisher Cats responded in the bottom of the seventh when Luis Sanchez (1-for-3, R) and Cooper singled. Sanchez scored when Plummer uncorked a wild pitch, and Cooper scored his third run of the game when Dopirak lined a run-scoring single to center, knocking in his Eastern League-leading 58th run of the year, and making it 7-5.

The Sea Dogs put it away in the top of the eighth when Lars Anderson (1-for-3, HR, 2 BB) launched a solo shot, his eighth, off Polanco that landed on the access road in right for an 8-5 triumph.

Plummer (6-3) notched the victory despite allowing five runs on six hits in 5.2 innings. The right-hander fanned five and walked three.

Boone (5-5) took the loss even though both runs he yielded in the first inning on Sunday night were unearned. He allowed one hit, walked one and hit a batter in his brief, rain-soaked start.

The originally scheduled Monday night game was postponed due to rain and will be made up as part of a twi-night doubleheader on Saturday, August 29, at Merchantsauto.com Stadium. The single-admission twinbill will consist of two seven-inning games, with game one beginning at 5:05pm. The doubleheader will be followed by an Atlas Fireworks Show.

The Fisher Cats hit the road to open a four-game series with the Binghamton Mets at NYSEG Stadium on Tuesday night at 7:05pm. New Hampshire sends right-hander Brandon Magee (4-5, 5.06) to the mound against Binghamton left-hander Eric Niesen (0-3, 7.20). Radio coverage begins with the BayRing Pre-Game Show on the WGIR Fisher Cats Radio Network with Bob Lipman at 6:45pm.

The Fisher Cats will host the Portland Sea Dogs, Double-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox, in a three-game series over Fourth of July weekend at Merchantsauto.com Stadium. The series begins on Saturday, July 4, when the Fisher Cats take the field wearing the red, white and blue of the New Hampshire Primaries for a 7:05pm game vs. Portland, followed by a Fourth of July Atlas Fireworks Show.

Check out the New Hampshire Fisher Cats Statistics

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Eastern League Stories from June 29, 2009


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