Bisons Announce 09 Schedule
The Bisons will make their first roadtrip of the 2009 season on April 17 when they open a six-game trip against the Syracuse Chiefs at Alliance Bank Stadium.
"We are pleased to announce our 2009 schedule and give our fans a chance to plan ahead for next season," said Bisons Vice President/General Manager Mike Buczkowski. "With a late start to the season and an increase in fridaynightbash!® games, 2009 should be a fantastic year in downtown Buffalo."
Game times will be released at a later date.
Two more fridaynightbash!® games in 2009
The 2009 Bisons home schedule will put the "bash" back in Friday nights in downtown Buffalo. The Bisons will host 12 fridaynightbash!® games, with pre-game plaza parties and post-game fireworks. The 12 games are an increase of two from the 2008 season.
The Bisons will be home for five consecutive Fridays, April 24 - May 22, to give every fan a chance to get a jump start on the summer. Another five fridaynightbash!® games will be held at Dunn Tire Park in July and August, an increase of two from the 2008 schedule.
Along with 12 Fridays, the Bisons will be home for 10 Saturday games and 10 Sunday games, giving fans 32 weekend games to choose from (44 % of schedule). The team will host 14 Thursday games in 2009 with the fewest games falling on Mondays (9), Tuesdays (9) and Wednesdays (8).
A Summer at the Ballpark
Because of the way the 2009 calendar falls, the Bisons won't begin their 2009 season until April 9, the latest start since opening the 1998 season on April 9 against Rochester in the team's return to the International League. That means the Bisons will host their first September home games since the 2003 season. The Herd will face the Red Wings on September 1 before ending their home schedule with a two-game series against the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees, September 2-3.
Labor Day this year falls on Monday, September 7. The Bisons are in Lehigh Valley that day for the final game of the 2009 regular season.
Herd/PawSox Opener Starts Year Off
The Bisons home opener on Thursday, April 9 against Pawtucket will start their 22nd season at Dunn Tire Park. Since the ballpark opened on 1988, the Bisons are 13-8 in home openers. This Bisons have hosted the Red Sox for their home opener two other times, defeating them 5-2 on April 5, 2001 and 10-8 on April 3, 2003.
The Bisons have posted a winning record at home in 17 of the previous 21 seasons at Dunn Tire Park with an overall record of 891-611 (.593 winning percentage).
Since Dunn Tire Park opened in 1988, the Bisons have had a paid attendance of 17,472,359.
2009 Schedule Highlights
Two great Buffalo Bisons traditions will become one on July 3, 2009 against the Rochester Red Wings. On a fridaynightbash!®, the Bisons will host their 15th Annual Independence Eve Concert with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus and the largest fireworks show of the year. In the previous 14 years, the event has drawn over a quarter of a million fans.
The Bisons will begin the home portion of the 2009 Thruway Series when the Syracuse Chiefs come to Dunn Tire Park on Friday, April 24. In its 12th year, the Thruway Series features the three Triple-A teams located in New York state. The team with the best winning percentage in head-to-head competition wins the Thruway Cup.
The Gwinnett Braves, the new Triple-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves, will make their first visit to Dunn Tire Park from May 12-15. The Triple-A affiliate of the New York Yankees, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, will play eight games in Buffalo (April 13-16, July 7-8, September 2-3).
Schedule Format
The International League format is unchanged from last season. Each team is scheduled to play 144 games (72 at home). The Bisons will play North Division opponents 16 times each (eight at home) and the Herd will face teams from the South and West Division 8 times each (four at home).
2009 All-Star Game
The 22nd Annual Triple-A All-Star Game will be played on Wednesday, July 15th at PGE Park in Portland, OR, home of the Pacific Coast League's Portland Beavers. Representatives from the International League will face off against the best from the PCL.