Bisons offense erupts in 17-3 victory over St. Paul Friday night

St. Paul, MN – The Buffalo Bisons erupted for a season high 17 runs on a season best 19 hits in their 17-3 victory over the St. Paul Saints on Friday night at CHS Field. It was the Bisons first win of the series against St. Paul.

Alan Roden led the offense with a four-hit night, finishing a triple shy of the cycle in the runaway victory. He was one of six straight Buffalo batters to score in the top of the first inning, allowing the team to lead the entire night against the Saints. Will Wagner led off the game with a base hit and was followed by a single off the bat of Joey Loperfido. Both base runners scored on Orelvis Martinez’s three-run home run off of Marco Raya for a 3-0 lead.

Roden, Riley Tirotta, and Will Robertson would all add base hits off of Raya before the right-hander recorded an out in the top of the first. Robertson’s first RBI base hit of the night extended the Bisons lead to 4-0. A ground ball double play added to the lead and was followed by an RBI double by Josh Rivera for a 6-0 advantage before an out was recorded.

Mickey Gasper led the Saints offense with four hits in the loss. His first of the night was a solo home run to right field that trimmed the early deficit to 6-1. However, St. Paul would not score again until the bottom of the sixth.

The Bisons scored in each of the first four innings. Robertson’s second RBI base hit in as many innings ballooned the lead to 7-1. Rainer Nunez added his first base hit of the night, a two-run single that helped Buffalo’s lead to extend out to 9-1 in the second inning. Wagner’s second hit of the night was a two-run home run in the top of the third inning for an 11-1 lead. Robertson led off the top of the fourth inning with a solo home run, giving the Bisons 12 runs on the game and a 12-1 advantage.

Roden capped his night with a pair of late run-producing hits. A two-run single in the top of the seventh inning pushed the Bisons lead to 14-2 over St. Paul. It was the young outfielder’s third hit of the game. He later hit a three-run home run to right field in the top of the ninth to cap the scoring at 17-3.

Justin Bruihl was credited with the victory in two innings of relief work. He was one of three pitchers to work after Andrew Bash went three and one-third innings in the start. Bruihl did not allow a run, he was followed by Kevin Gowdy and Tommy Nance to finish the game.

Seven different Bisons hitters recorded multi-hit performances, in addition to Roden and Robertson. Wagner, Loperfido, Tirotta, Nunez, and Rivera all had two hits as well. Robertson and Martinez each had three RBIs in the victory, in addition to Roden’s five.

The Bisons and St. Paul are scheduled to meet for game five of the series at 3:07 p.m. EDT on Saturday afternoon at CHS Field. Lazaro Estrada is slated to start for Buffalo as they go for a second straight win in the series. You can listen to the game on The Bet 1520 AM, the Audacy App, and bisons.com starting at 2:45 p.m. with the ‘Voice of the Bisons’ Pat Malacaro.