The Rochester Red Wings (86-57, 41-29) fell to the Buffalo Bisons (67-75, 32-35) in Tuesday’s series opener, 9-8. Buffalo CF Daz Cameron recorded five RBI on the night, all of which contributed to both of his squad’s four-run innings. Rochester RF Leandro Pineda extended his on-base streak to 32 games, LF Trey Lipscomb notched his 32nd home run of the season, and CF Sam Petersen went 3-for-4 at the plate with a trio of RBI. Scoring four runs in the final two innings, the Red Wings’ late rally wouldn’t be enough to surpass the Bisons.
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The opening frame saw 1B Buddy Kennedy earn himself a walk via a nine-pitch battle with rehabbing Buffalo RHP Trey Yesavage. 3B Cayden Wallace followed with a double to right-center field to score Kennedy from first. On the attempt to throw out Kennedy at home, the ball squirted out of the mitt of Buffalo catcher Shawn Ross, allowing Wallace to scoot over to third. Up next to the plate was DH Riley Adams, who skipped a ground ball through the infield gap for an RBI-single that brought Wallace home. It was an early 2-0 lead for Rochester.
The Buffalo offense responded with a huge four-run second inning. They quickly loaded the bases by means of two singles and a walk from their first three batters. C Shawn Ross knocked an RBI-single for the first Buffalo run of the evening. CF Daz Cameron hit a ground ball through the Red Wings infield for a two-RBI single. A Rochester throwing error allowed a third run to score on the play, putting the Bisons up 4-2.
Both sides stayed quiet for over two innings before the Bisons extended their lead in the fifth. DH Yohendrick Pinango drew a walk before moving to second base on a wild pitch. A single from 2B Jay Harry quickly turned into a “snowball fight” for the Red Wings defense, as multiple throwing errors allowed Pinango to score and Harry to make his way to third. The Wings escaped the inning only allowing one run, now trailing the Bisons 5-2 after five innings.
The Red Wings got back on the scoreboard with a pair of runs in the sixth inning. Riley Adams reached base with a walk, which was followed by a double to the right field corner by Leandro Pineda. C Maxwell Romero Jr. drew a walk of his own to load the bases. Sam Petersen popped a high-flying single to right field to score both Adams and Pineda, bringing the Red Wings within one run.
Buffalo once again answered the Rochester offense with an even bigger inning of their own. 3B Nick Goodwin became the first Buffalo baserunner of the frame with a single. He would move over to second base after a walk from C Shawn Ross. LF Rhylan Thomas loaded the bases with a single of his own. The second multi-RBI hit from Daz Cameron was a hard-hit double to the left-centerwall, scoring all three baserunners in the process. Cameron would move to third after a wild pitch, and eventually score off a Yohendrick Pinango single. The four-run sixth inning for the Bisons would extend their lead to 9-4.
Trying to hang around in the late stages, Rochester started the eighth inning with a single from Riley Adams and a walk from Leandro Pineda. A single from Maxwell Romero Jr. suddenly gave the Wings an opportunity with the bases loaded. Following a Buffalo pitching change, Sam Petersen recorded his third single and third RBI of the game, scoring Adams and cutting the deficit to four.
LF Trey Lipscomb kicked off the ninth inning with a bang, sending a blast 111 MPH off the bat for his 32nd home run of the season. The Wings would ride the momentum, as a single from Cayden Wallace and a double from Riley Adams put a pair of runners in scoring position. Leandro Pineda drew a walk, loading up the bases with no outs. 2B Liover Peguero drew a walk on a challenged strike call, scoring Wallace and making it a two-run game. Maxwell Romero Jr. hit a sacrifice fly to left field, bringing Adams home and bringing the deficit to one. Now with one out, Sam Petersen took a walk on four pitches to fill the bases once again. Despite the effort, two strikeouts ended the ballgame and solidified a 9-8 Red Wings loss.
In his first appearance since June 30th of this year, LHP Connelly Early kicked off his rehab assignment with Rochester. The southpaw threw a total of 35 pitches, striking out two and allowing three runs on a pair of hits and walks each. RHP Jack Cebert relieved Early and went 4.1 innings, conceding two runs on five hits and four walks, while punching out two. In his Triple-A-leading 57th appearance of the season, RHP Eddy Yean then allowed two runs on three hits and a walk through 0.2 innings of work. RHP Erick Mejia was next to the mound for the Wings, dealing two strikeouts, and allowing one hit and walk a piece in one scoreless inning. RHP Josiah Gray pitched a scoreless inning of his own with one strikeout and walk each.
The Rochester Red WIngs Player of the Game is CF Sam Petersen. The Ankeny, IA native went 3-for-4 at the plate with a walk, highlighted by a two-RBI single that cut the Buffalo lead to one run in the sixth inning. He recorded a third RBI in the eighth inning on his third single of the game. Tuesday night was Petersen’s 11th consecutive game with a hit, extending his longest hit streak in his professional career.
Rochester will be back at Sahlen Field Wednesday night for game two of the I-90 series with Buffalo, where RHP Josh Stephan will get the nod for the Bisons. First pitch is slated for 6:05 p.m.
Find the box score attached HERE.
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