Ponies Bounced in Rubber Game Loss
MANCHESTER, NH - The New Hampshire Fisher Cats racked up a dozen hits, including a trio from Jon Berti, and breezed past the Binghamton Rumble Ponies, 7-1, on Sunday afternoon at Northeast Delta Dental Stadium. Starter Harol Gonzalez allowed a half-dozen extra-base hits in Binghamton's rubber game defeat.
The Fisher Cats extra-base push against Gonzalez started early as Bo Bichette and Cavan Biggio supplied back-to-back two-out doubles to put New Hampshire on the board in the first inning. Berti continued the roll in the third with a solo homer to right-center in the third.
New Hampshire, the Eastern League leaders in team batting average and runs scored, kept their foot on the gas pedal in the fourth with two more tallies off Gonzalez. Patrick Cantwell stroked an RBI double to left before Berti zipped a run-scoring single to right. Santiago Espinal added an RBI single in the fifth to give New Hampshire a five-run lead.
Fisher Cats starter TJ Zeuch kept the Rumble Ponies bats in check over five strong innings. He induced eight groundouts, while allowing one run on four hits to collect the victory. Binghamton's only tally against the righty came in the second when Andres Gimenez beat out a potential inning-ending double play ball to plate Jhoan Urena.
Gonzalez (0-8) suffered his eighth loss in as many starts with Binghamton. He was touched for six runs (five earned) on eleven hits.
The Rumble Ponies (61-71) open a four-game series in Hartford against the Yard Goats on Monday at 7:05 PM. RHP Mickey Jannis gets the ball for Binghamton. The Horizons Federal Credit Union pregame show starts at 6:50 PM and can be heard on NewsRadio 1290 AM WNBF and the Binghamton Rumble Ponies channel on TuneIn.
POSTGAME NOTES: Harol Gonzalez allowed 10 hits or more for the second time as a Rumble Pony…New Hampshire racked up a total of 38 hits against Binghamton pitching in the three-game series…the defeat sealed a losing record for the Rumble Ponies in 2018