EL1 New Hampshire Fisher Cats

Newman Nukes Eighth Homer Friday Night

Published on July 24, 2015 under Eastern League (EL1)
New Hampshire Fisher Cats News Release


PORTLAND, MAINE - The New Hampshire Fisher Cats scored five unanswered runs in the fifth and six innings, but couldn't overcome a huge early deficit Friday night, falling 10-5 at the hands of the Portland Sea Dogs at Hadlock Field.

The Fisher Cats (50-46) lost their third straight game for the first time since early June, when they lost four consecutive games. Portland (37-63) clobbered the Fisher Cats after a stunning ninth-inning comeback Thursday night gave them the win in that game as well. The Fisher Cats again failed to gain ground in the Eastern Division playoff race.

Portland opened the scoring in the bottom of the second against Fisher Cats starter John Anderson (L, 5-5). With Henry Ramos on first, Tzu-Wei Lin hit a high bouncer that gave Anderson trouble. The lefty fired wide of first base, allowing Ramos to score and Lin to reach third. Oscar Tejeda singled Lin home, and David Chester doubled to plate Tejeda. A two-out double by Manuel Margot brought Chester across the plate, and Carlos Asuaje singled to score Margot, making it 5-0 after two innings.

Portland poured it on in the subsequent innings. With runners at second and third with two outs in the third frame, Chester sliced a single up the middle to score Lin and Tejeda, running the lead to 7-0. In the fourth, Anderson put Asuaje and Travis on base before a wild pitch moved them to second and third. Tim Roberson cracked a single up the left field line, scoring both runners. Ramos then singled to put Roberson at second, chasing Anderson for reliever Jimmy Cordero. The righty let Roberson move up to third base on a wild pitch of his own, but fanned Lin for the second out. Tejeda then hit an infield single that scored Roberson, giving Portland a 10-0 advantage.

The Fisher Cats began to chip away in the top of the fifth inning. Jorge Flores hit a one-out double to right off Portland starter Mike McCarthy (W, 6-4), and Shane Opitz drew a two-out walk to bring Kevin Nolan to the plate. The Fisher Cats third baseman hit a sinking liner that just barely touched down in left field for a single, and Flores raced around third to score and trim Portland's lead to 10-1.

New Hampshire made a bigger impact in the top of the sixth against new reliever Simon Mercedes. The righty walked both Ryan Schimpf and Jack Murphy, putting runners at first and second with no outs. Matt Newman then crushed the first-pitch fastball over the right field fence for a three-run homer, his eighth of the year. Christian Lopes then singled his way on, and moved to second on Roemon Fields' one-out base hit. With new reliever Kyle Martin on the bump, Opitz singled to right, loading the bases for Nolan, who lofted a sacrifice fly to center field to score Lopes and make it a 10-5 ballgame. That was as close as New Hampshire would come, though, as they failed to score any more runs.

Anderson took the loss, allowing 10 runs on 14 hits (both career-highs) and a walk while striking out one in three innings of work. Cordero allowed three hits and struck out two in his two innings of relief. Scott Barnes threw a pair of shutout innings, allowing three hits and fanning one. Chad Girodo gave up a hit and a walk in a scoreless inning.

The Fisher Cats will try to snap out of their three-game skid Saturday night at Hadlock Field in the third game of the series. Righty Austin Bibens-Dirkx will start for New Hampshire against Portland right-hander William Cuevas. First pitch at Hadlock Field is set for 6:00 p.m., and Ben Gellman's pregame show begins at 5:45 p.m. on 610 AM WGIR and online at www.NHFishercats.com.

On Monday, July 27, the Fisher Cats will welcome their four millionth fan at Northeast Delta Dental Stadium with a bountiful prize pack! Tickets are still available by calling 603-641-2005, or by visiting www.nhfishercats.com.

Check out the New Hampshire Fisher Cats Statistics

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Eastern League Stories from July 24, 2015


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