BUFFALO, NY (June 6, 2019) - The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders fell just short in a comeback bid Thursday night in the series finale at Sahlen Field, a last-ditch solo home run by Brad Miller in the 9th inning wasn't quite enough in a 3-2 loss at the hooves of the Buffalo Bisons.
BUFFALO, NY (June 6, 2019) - The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders fell just short in a comeback bid Thursday night in the series finale at Sahlen Field, a last-ditch solo home run by Brad Miller in the 9th inning wasn't quite enough in a 3-2 loss at the hooves of the Buffalo Bisons.
The RailRiders got the scoring started in the 5th inning after Drew Hutchison and Graham Spraker traded scoreless frames over the first few innings. Billy Burns came to bat with a pair of runners aboard and was able to deliver a fielder's choice ground out to plate Ryan Lavarnway. Buffalo shortstop, Richard Ureña, fielded the grounder and fired home but it skipped in on catcher Reese McGuire who wasn't able to pick the baseball due to Lavarnway speeding to the plate and arriving simultaneously.
Hutchison made the lead hold into the bottom of the 6th inning and recorded a pair of outs before running into some two-out difficulty. Back-to-back doubles by Anthony Alford (3-for-3, 2 2B, R, BB) and Sócrates Brito tied the game 1-1. The ensuing batters in Patrick Kivlehan and Richard Urena also drove in runs and four consecutive two-out hits made it a 3-1 lead for the Bisons. The runs in the inning snapped a 24-inning scoreless streak by the RailRiders pitching staff which dated to the 3rd inning Tuesday night with Daniel Camarena on the mound.
Stephen Tarpley entered out of the bullpen for the RailRiders and kept things close, tossing a scoreless 7th and 8th innings while striking out a pair to keep it 3-1 entering the 9th inning. The left-hander's ERA lowered to 1.50 on the season in Triple-A.
The 9th inning featured Miller's leadoff homer, but the next three RailRiders were retired in order by Justin Shafer to close out the ballgame. Buffalo's closer went two innings and struck out five men for his 5th save of the year.
Scranton Wilkes-Barre piles on the bus following Thursday's game and heads back to Scranton to ready for a weekend series against the Syracuse Mets. RHP Randall Delgado (0-1, 8.00) gets the ball for the RailRiders going against RHP Chris Flexen (3-2, 3.86) for the Mets. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. with pregame coverage with Adam Marco and Adam Giardino beginning at 6:05 p.m. on the RailRiders Radio Network.
