Harold Ramirez's 4 Hits Lead Fisher Cats

New Hampshire hangs on to first place with pivotal win over Trenton

By Bob Lipman

July 16, 2018

Manchester, N.H. - Harold Ramirez went 4-for-4 with two doubles and two runs batted in as the New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Blue Jays Double-A affiliate) edge the Trenton Thunder (New York Yankees) 4-2 in the opener of a key Eastern League series on Monday at Northeast Delta Dental Stadium.With the win,

Manchester, N.H. - Harold Ramirez went 4-for-4 with two doubles and two runs batted in as the New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Blue Jays Double-A affiliate) edge the Trenton Thunder (New York Yankees) 4-2 in the opener of a key Eastern League series on Monday at Northeast Delta Dental Stadium.
With the win, New Hampshire moved to 1.5 games ahead of second-place Trenton. The top two teams in each division qualify for the Eastern League playoffs. The Fisher Cats are seven games ahead of third-place Hartford.
The Fisher Cats (52-40) continued a recent trend of scoring in the first inning. Jon Berti reached on an infield single, stole second, and scored on a single by Ramirez to make it 1-0.
Trenton did not score until the top of the seventh inning. Billy Fleming doubled and Kyle Holder walked. Both runners moved up on a groundout, ahead of a two-run single by Jeff Hendrix. That ended the night for Fisher Cats starter Jordan Romano, who limited the Thunder to two runs on five hits in his 6.2 innings.
The Fisher Cats bounced back to retake the lead in the bottom of the seventh inning. Juan Kelly walked and Gunnar Heidt bunted him to second. Dalton Pompey flew out, but Kelly advanced to third. Berti tied the game with a base hit and Ramirez doubled him home to make it 3-2. Dalton Pompey walked with the bases loaded in the bottom of the eighth inning to give the Fisher Cats an insurance run.
Kirby Snead (W, 3-3), Dusty Isaacs and Travis Bergen (S, 2) combined to work 2.1 innings of scoreless relief. Bergen had to pitch out of a bases loaded, no out jam in the ninth to preserve the win and earn his second save.
Domingo Acevedo (L, 2-2) took the loss despite pitching well for the Thunder (51-42). He allowed three runs on five hits with seven strikeouts.

The Fisher Cats and Thunder are scheduled to complete a suspended game from April 29 on Tuesday at 5:05 p.m. The teams will then play a seven-inning game as part of the action at Northeast Delta Dental Stadium. For tickets and information, visit nhfishercats.com.