Former big leaguer’s pair of homers earn Ducks series win
(Central Islip, N.Y., July 4, 2013) – The Long Island Ducks defeated the Somerset Patriots 7-5 on Thursday night before a past-capacity crowd of 7,416 at Bethpage Ballpark.
GAME AUDIO: Highlights from the thrilling come-from-behind victory
POSTGAME VIDEO: Kevin Baez, Bill Hall and Bryant Nelson talk about the dramatic win
Somerset jumped out to a 4-0 lead with a run in the third and three in the fourth against Ducks starter John Brownell. Aharon Eggleston’s RBI double, Jeff Baisley’s two-run single and a RBI infield single by Eggleston did the damage. Long Island cut the deficit in half in the bottom of the frame on Bill Hall’s two-run homer off Patriots starter Graham Taylor.
Both teams exchanged runs in the fifth inning, as Corey Smith’s sacrifice fly to right and Dan Lyons’ RBI single to right made the score 5-3. It stayed that way until the bottom of the eighth when the Ducks put up a four-spot to take the lead for good. A RBI single to right by Bryant Nelson and a three-run homer to left by Hall highlighted the scoring.
Neither starter factored in the decision. Brownell threw seven innings, surrendering five runs on eight hits with six strikeouts while Taylor let up three runs on eight hits with six strikeouts in six innings. Eric Niesen (4-0) picked up the win for the Ducks, throwing a scoreless inning of relief, and Jason Lowey (3-2) took the loss, giving up three runs on two hits and a walk in one-third of an inning. Leo Rosales threw a scoreless ninth inning to pick up his 13th save.
Hall paced the Ducks with three hits, while Nelson and Josh Barfield added two apiece. Hall also drove in a game-high five runs.
The Ducks continue their homestand on Friday night when they take on the cross-sound rival Bridgeport Bluefish in the opener of a three-game series. Game time is slated for 7:05 p.m., with the Bethpage Ballpark gates opening at 6:05 as the 2013 Ferry Cup Series continues. It’s the first-ever “Bark in the Park” Night at the Duck Pond! The first 1,500 fans in attendance will receive Ducks Dog Bowls, courtesy of Total Pet Care and Natural Balance Pet Foods. To find out more information about “Bark in the Park” Night, please CLICK HERE. Right-hander Bob Zimmermann gets the start for the Ducks against Bluefish southpaw Hunter Jones.
Tickets for the game and all Ducks regular season home games are now on sale. Fans can purchase their tickets by visiting the Bethpage Ballpark box office, calling 631-940-TIXX or by CLICKING HERE. Fans unable to make the game can follow all the action live online, with streaming video and audio available on the Ducks official YouTube channel, http://www.youtube.com/ducksbaseball.
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Duck Tales: With his single in the fourth inning, Joash Brodin has now recorded a hit in 16 of his last 18 games. In that span he’s hitting .405 (30-for-74) with four doubles, four homers, 10 RBI and 10 runs scored. He is now tied with Daniel Mayora of Bridgeport for the most hits in the Atlantic League this season (92)…Bill Hall recorded his first multi-home run game of the season and the third overall for the Ducks. Bryant Nelson hit two homers on May 1 against Somerset and Ben Broussard launched two on May 31 at York. The Ducks have now hit 74 home runs on the year, which leads the Atlantic League…Hall’s three-hit game was his second of the season as well as his sixth multi-hit contest. His five RBI marked the second time he drove in five runs or more in a game after collected a single game Ducks-high of six RBi on June 8 against Southern Maryland. Hall now has six multi-RBI games in 2013…Tonight’s game marked the largest come-from-behind win of the year as they came back from four runs down to earn the win. The previous high was three, which was done on May 11 against the Patriots…The past-capacity crowd of 7,416 was the largest of the season at Bethpage Ballpark and the second-largest crowd in franchise history. The largest in team history was 7,582 exactly four years prior on July 4, 2009. Tonight’s game also marked the sixth sold out crowd of the season at the Duck Pond. The Ducks have now hosted 621 past-capacity crowds in franchise history, an Atlantic League record.
GAME DATE: 07/04/2013 Somerset Patriots 5 AT Long Island Ducks 7 YTD YTD Somerset AB R H BI AVG L Island AB R H BI AVG J.Skelton C 4 1 1 0 .259 J.Brodin 1B 2 1 1 0 .336 J.Tucker CF 5 0 0 0 .255 J.Barfield 2B 4 1 2 0 .302 C.Smith 3B 3 1 1 1 .292 B.Nelson 3B 4 2 2 1 .266 J.Fox 1B 3 1 1 0 .319 B.Hall LF 4 2 3 5 .262 C.Aldridge RF 4 0 0 0 .297 R.Castro C 4 0 0 0 .247 J.Baisley 2B 3 1 1 2 .194 R.Navarrete DH 4 1 1 0 .262 D.Hennigan 2B,PR 0 0 0 0 .215 P.Phillips RF 3 0 1 0 .267 E.Martinez-Este DH 3 1 2 0 .330 K.Binick CF 3 0 0 0 .273 A.Eggleston LF 2 0 2 2 .319 D.Lyons SS 3 0 1 1 .214 J.Holden LF 2 0 1 0 .350 B.Stevens SS 4 0 0 0 .217 33 5 9 5 31 7 11 7 Somerset 0 0 1 3 1 0 0 0 0 - 5 9 0 L Island 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 4 x - 7 11 0 2B--J.Skelton (6), A.Eggleston (14), B.Hall (8), R.Navarrete (11). HR--B.Hall 2 (6). RBI--C.Smith (51), J.Baisley 2 (12), A.Eggleston 2 (30), B.Nelson (37), B.Hall 5 (22), D.Lyons (17). SF--C.Smith (8). CS--D.Lyons (3). LOB--Somerset 7, L Island 2. DP--B. Stevens(SS) - J. Baisley(2B) - J. Fox(1B), C. Smith(3B) - J. Baisley(2B) - J. Fox(1B), D. Lyons(SS) - J. Barfield(2B) - J. Brodin(1B), C. Smith(3B) - J. Baisley(2B) - J. Fox(1B), B. Hall(LF) - R. Castro(C). YTD IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA Somerset G.Taylor 6.0 8 3 3 1 6 1 4.65 J.Hoey 1.0 0 0 0 0 2 0 2.12 J.Lowey (L,3-2) 0.1 2 3 3 1 0 0 2.70 B.Braboy 0.2 1 1 1 0 0 1 5.26 8 11 7 7 2 8 2 L Island J.Brownell 7.0 8 5 5 3 6 0 3.87 E.Niesen (W,4-0) 1.0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2.92 L.Rosales (S,13) 1.0 1 0 0 1 1 0 2.10 9 9 5 5 5 7 0 SO--J.Skelton, J.Tucker, C.Smith, C.Aldridge 2, J.Baisley, B.Stevens, J.Barfield, B.Hall, R.Castro 2, R.Navarrete 2, P.Phillips, K.Binick. BB--J.Skelton, C.Smith, J.Fox, J.Baisley, E.Martinez-Esteve, J.Brodin 2. BF--G.Taylor 23 (365), J.Hoey 3 (68), J.Lowey 4 (96), B.Braboy 3 (121), J.Brownell 31 (394), E.Niesen 3 (155), L.Rosales 5 (117). P-S--G.Taylor 92-60, J.Hoey 14-9, J.Lowey 21-9, B.Braboy 11-6, J.Brownell 132-81, E.Niesen 17-9, L.Rosales 21-14. T--2:58. A--7416 Bobby Stevens was ejected in the top of the ninth inning for arguing balls and strikes Umpires: Plate Ump - Tim McCaffrey, Field Ump #1 - Matt Beaver, Field Ump #2 - Allen Barnfield