Long Island sweeps series over Bridgeport
(Central Islip, N.Y., July 7, 2013) – The Long Island Ducks defeated the Bridgeport Bluefish 4-3 on Sunday night in the finale of a three-game series at Bethpage Ballpark.
GAME AUDIO: Josh Barfield’s solo homer, Ramon Castro’s three-run homer and the final out
POSTGAME VIDEO: Kevin Baez, James Houser and Ramon Castro talk about the sweep
The Ducks opened the scoring in the first inning when they erupted for four runs. Josh Barfield blasted a solo home run, and Ramon Castro socked a three-run homer to put Long Island in front. Ducks starter James Houser took a no-hitter into the sixth inning, but Daniel Mayora hit a one-out solo home run to left field to put Bridgeport on the board. Yusuf Carter added a two-run home run in the ninth inning, but the Bluefish could not pull even.
Houser (7-0) picked up the win, throwing six innings, giving up just two hits and one run with four strikeouts and no walks. Bridgeport starter Miguel Martinez (1-3) took the loss, letting up four runs on five hits in three innings. Eric Niesen pitched the ninth to pick up his first save of the season.
Bryant Nelson and Castro led the Ducks with two hits apiece, and Castro added three RBI.
Following the All-Star break, the Ducks head to Bridgeport to open a three game series against the Bluefish on Friday, July 12. First pitch from The Ballpark at Harbor Yard is scheduled for 7:05. Fans can follow all the action live on the radio home for the Ducks, 103.9-FM WRCN, and online by CLICKING HERE.
Long Island returns home on Monday, July 15 to take on the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs in the first game of a three-game set. It’s Camp Day with a special 11:05 a.m. first pitch. The Bethpage Ballpark gates will open at 10:05. 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.
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Duck Tales: With the home runs by Josh Barfield and Ramon Castro, the Ducks have now hit 77 home runs which leads the Atlantic League. Somerset ranks second with 75. The homer by Barfield was his fourth of the season while Castro earned his sixth of the year…Castro posted his tenth two-hit game and 12th multi-hit game overall. He also drove in three runs for the first time this season. It was the fifth time Castro has driven in multiple runs…With the win, James Houser improved to 6-0 as a starter. In 39.2 innings through eight starts, the southpaw has surrendered just eight runs and 26 hits, posting a 1.82 ERA in that span. Houser has allowed one run or less in each of his last seven starts, lowering his ERA from 5.03 to 2.44…With seven strikeouts on the night, the Ducks pitching staff increased their season total to 541, the most in the Atlantic League this season. Last season, the Ducks pitching staff totaled 932 strikeouts which was third-most in the league behind Southern Maryland (962) and Bridgeport (941).
GAME DATE: 07/07/2013 Bridgeport Bluefish 3 AT Long Island Ducks 4 YTD YTD Bridgeport AB R H BI AVG L Island AB R H BI AVG D.Mayora 2B 4 1 2 1 .327 J.Brodin 1B 4 0 0 0 .325 A.Krum DH 4 0 0 0 .322 J.Barfield 2B 4 1 1 1 .293 P.Redman RF 4 0 1 0 .245 B.Nelson 3B 4 1 2 0 .274 L.Lopez 3B 4 0 0 0 .262 B.Hall SS 3 1 1 0 .277 J.Simmons CF 3 1 0 0 .250 R.Castro C 4 1 2 3 .255 Y.Carter C 4 1 1 2 .297 A.Bailey RF 3 0 0 0 .257 V.Diaz 1B 3 0 0 0 .181 R.Navarrete DH 3 0 0 0 .248 S.Smith LF 4 0 0 0 .233 P.Phillips LF 3 0 0 0 .260 I.Suarez SS 3 0 1 0 .218 K.Binick CF 3 0 0 0 .200 33 3 5 3 31 4 6 4 Bridgeport 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 - 3 5 1 L Island 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 x - 4 6 2 2B--B.Nelson (16). HR--D.Mayora (5), Y.Carter (8), J.Barfield (4), R.Castro (6). RBI--D.Mayora (29), Y.Carter 2 (25), J.Barfield (16), R.Castro 3 (19). E--L.Lopez (10), B.Nelson 2 (16). LOB--Bridgeport 5, L Island 4. DP--B. Nelson(3B) - J. Barfield(2B). YTD IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA Bridgeport M.Martinez (L,1-3) 3.0 5 4 4 1 0 2 4.54 J.Bateman 3.0 0 0 0 0 3 0 4.36 E.Fruto 1.0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1.80 J.Fulchino 1.0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0.82 8 6 4 4 1 4 2 L Island J.Houser (W,7-0) 6.0 2 1 1 0 4 1 2.44 T.Hose 1.0 0 0 0 1 2 0 3.16 N.DeBarr 1.0 2 0 0 0 0 0 6.75 E.Niesen (S,1) 1.0 1 2 2 1 1 1 3.23 9 5 3 3 2 7 2 SO--J.Simmons 3, Y.Carter, V.Diaz 3, J.Barfield, A.Bailey, P.Phillips 2. BB--J.Simmons, V.Diaz, B.Hall. BF--M.Martinez 16 (180), J.Bateman 9 (39), E.Fruto 3 (39), J.Fulchino 4 (87), J.Houser 22 (227), T.Hose 4 (112), N.DeBarr 4 (271), E.Niesen 5 (163). P-S--M.Martinez 66-43, J.Bateman 36-29, E.Fruto 14-8, J.Fulchino 9-7, J.Houser 86-58, T.Hose 16-8, N.DeBarr 11-6, E.Niesen 14-8. T--2:42. A--5188 Umpires: Plate Ump - Frank Leparik, Field Ump #1 - Hank Himmanen, Field Ump #2 - Alan Reyes