Comeback effort leads Long Island to series victory
(Central Islip, N.Y., July 3, 2014) – The Long Island Ducks defeated the Bridgeport Bluefish 6-2 in a rain-shortened game on Wednesday night at Bethpage Ballpark in the final game of a five-game series.
GAME AUDIO: Highlights from the series finale
POSTGAME VIDEO: Kevin Baez, John Brownell and Fehlandt Lentini talk about the victory
Bridgeport gained a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning on a fielder’s choice from Ramon Castro and a throwing error which scored James Simmons. Long Island tied the game in the bottom of the third on a RBI single from Lew Ford off Bluefish starter Hunter Jones.
The Ducks took the lead in the bottom of the fourth on a two-run double from Fehlandt Lentini. The Bluefish responded in the fifth on a Prentice Redman solo home run off Ducks starter John Brownell, but the Flock plated three more runs in the bottom of the fifth to go up by four. A RBI single from Brendan Harris, a run-scoring error off the bat of Jan Vazquez and a run-scoring wild pitch did the damage.
It stayed that way until the bottom of the sixth inning when the skies opened up and the game was eventually called due to inclement weather.
Brownell (8-4) earned the win after allowing two runs on six hits and two walks while striking out four in six innings. Jones (3-7) received the loss, yielding six runs (five earned) on 10 hits and two walks with two strikeouts over five and one-third innings of work.
Ford led the Ducks’ bats with three hits, while Lentini added two hits, two RBI and a run scored.
Long Island begins a three-game series with the Camden Riversharks on Friday night. First pitch is slated for 7:05 p.m., with the Bethpage Ballpark gates opening at 6:05. Following the game, all fans in attendance will be treated to an Independence Day Pyrotecnico Fireworks Extravaganza, presented by Atlantic Honda. In addition, the Ducks will be wearing special camouflage jerseys which will be auctioned off during the game. Fans can place their bids by visiting the auction tables located on the concourse outside of the Waddle In Shop. Right-hander Bobby Blevins takes the mound for the Ducks against Camden righty Pedro Liriano.
Tickets for the game and every Ducks regular season home game are now on sale. Fans can purchase their tickets by visiting the Bethpage Ballpark box office, calling 631-940-TIXX or by CLICKING HERE. Those unable to make the game can follow all the action with live streaming video and audio available on the Ducks official YouTube channel by CLICKING HERE.
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Duck Tales: With three hits on Thursday night, Lew Ford recorded his seventh three-hit game of the season and second consecutive three-hit contest. He also picked up his team-leading 26th multi-hit game this year. The former big leaguer now has six hits in his last eight at-bats. Ford currently leads the league in RBI (54) and runs (51), while ranking second in home runs (11), batting average (.361) and on-base percentage (.438)…Fehlandt Lentini went 2-for-4 on Thursday and has now hit safely 27 of his last 28 games. Lentini is one of only two players in the Atlantic League that has at least 90 hits (Ford, 90). In addition, Lentini is now 29-for-29 in stolen base attempts after stealing third base in the third inning. He currently leads the league in hits (93), doubles (23), stolen bases (29) and at-bats (278)…With his complete game on Thursday, John Brownell earned his league-leading fourth complete game of the year. He also picked up his eighth victory of the season, which ties him with teammate Shaun Garceau for most in the Atlantic League. Brownell leads the league in strikeouts (74) and innings pitched (96.1) as well. Last year, Brownell led the Atlantic League with seven complete games while finishing second in strikeouts with 133…With Long Island’s win, the Ducks now lead the 2014 Ferry Cup Series six games to four and became the first team to win back-to-back games in the series this year. The Ducks have won the Ferry Cup three times since its inception (2009, 2011, 2013), and no team has ever won it in back-to-back seasons. Bridgeport holds a slim 138-137 advantage in the all-time series between the two teams, but the Ducks have a 79-62 lead at Bethpage Ballpark…Thursday’s crowd of 6,578 was the Ducks’ fifth past-capacity crowd of the 2014 season. Long Island has now hosted 632 sellouts all-time, an Atlantic League record.
Game Date: 07/03/2014 Bridgeport Bluefish 2 AT Long Island Ducks 6 YTD YTD Bridgeport AB R H BI AVG L Island AB R H BI AVG J.Simmons CF 3 1 2 0 .303 F.Lentini CF 4 1 2 2 .335 P.Redman RF 2 1 2 1 .267 C.Puckett 2B 3 0 0 0 .280 R.Castro 3B 3 0 0 0 .240 L.Ford DH 3 1 3 1 .361 L.Lopez DH 3 0 1 0 .220 R.Ruiz 1B 2 0 0 0 .291 D.Almonte LF 3 0 0 0 .200 B.Harris 3B 3 1 1 1 .282 L.Rodriguez C 3 0 0 0 .188 J.Brodin RF 3 0 1 0 .252 A.Gallagher 1B 3 0 1 0 .170 J.Myers LF 3 1 1 0 .216 J.Martinez 2B 2 0 0 0 .219 J.Vazquez C 3 1 1 1 .219 M.Richard SS 1 0 0 0 .277 D.Lyons SS 2 1 0 0 .257 23 2 6 1 26 6 9 5 Bridgeport 1 0 0 0 1 0 - 2 6 1 L Island 0 0 1 2 3 0 - 6 9 1 2B--F.Lentini 2 (23), L.Ford (15), J.Myers (6). HR--P.Redman (3). RBI--P.Redman (22), F.Lentini 2 (32), L.Ford (54), B.Harris (18), J.Vazquez (9). SB--F.Lentini (29), J.Brodin (11). E--D.Almonte (2), C.Puckett (11). LOB--Bridgeport 5, L Island 6. DP--C. Puckett(2B) - D. Lyons(SS) - R. Ruiz(1B). YTD IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA Bridgeport H.Jones (L,3-7) 5.1 9 6 5 2 2 0 4.40 5.1 9 6 5 2 2 0 L Island J.Brownell (W,8-4) 6.0 6 2 2 2 4 1 4.02 6 6 2 2 2 4 1 WP--H.Jones 2 (3). SO--D.Almonte 3, A.Gallagher, J.Myers, J.Vazquez. BB--P.Redman, M.Richard, R.Ruiz, D.Lyons. BF--H.Jones 28 (332), J.Brownell 25 (405). P-S--H.Jones 103-65, J.Brownell 99-60. T--2:10. A--6578 Plate Umpire - J.B. Torres, Field Umpire #1 - Fred DeJesus, Field Umpire #2 - Frank Leparik