L.I. Ducks: Darin Downs' gem repels York Revolution

From the desk of:  THE WEBBED SPIKES NINE

Series tied 1-1

I - YRK 8; LID 4

II- LID 3; YRK 1

LONG ISLAND DUCKS: Darin Downs halts Revolution, while Mother Nature bogs down Patriots.

Long Island starter Darin Downs hurled his team back in the win column after Monday's series opening loss against the Revs, but more importantly helped the Ducks close to within a half-game of (rain-delayed) Somerset Patriots.

Tuesday's 3-1 victory was only the Ducks second over the Revs this season, against six losses versus the Freedom Division leaders.  Winning the day was nevertheless a temporary reprieve from York's season long dominance.

Back-to-back 2-out doubles in the first inning gave the Revs an early 1-0 lead.  Downs then shut York down through the next six innings.  All told, Darin allowed one lone run on just three hits and no walks, with 10 strikeouts.  He faced just 23 batters, and threw 100 pitches with 67 going for strikes.

Downs improved to 5-4 this season with a 4.21 ERA (down from 4.50), and likewise reduced his WHiP from 1.330 to a 1.250 mark.  He's allowed 74 hits and fanned 83 batters in 77 innings pitched.

Todd Coffey pitched a scoreless ninth, registering his 11th save of the season.

First baseman Mike Blanke and catcher Mike Dowd each stroked clutch 2-out hits with runners in scoring position in the bottom of the second.  York gifted the Ducks an insurance run in the eighth when Dan Lyons scored from third base on a wild pitch.

LIBERTY DIVISION

Patriots   36-28
Ducks      36-29

The game in Somerset between the Patriots and New Britain was halted in the sixth inning due to rain.  The Bees held a 3-0 lead at the time, while southpaw starter Josh Outman had the Patriots limited to just one hit through 5.1 innings of work.

L.I. Ducks: Flock Force First Place Showdown Against Patriots

From the desk of:  THE WEBBED SPIKES NINE

Flock at the Gates!

Ducks lead Patriots 2-0

I - LID 9; SOM 3

II - LID 11; SOM 9

III - Sunday @ SOM

Long Island Ducks: Flock Continues Waddling Through Somerset Patriots; First Place Now Within Their Grasp.

After overwhelming Somerset on Friday, the Ducks withstood a fierce Patriots counter-attack Saturday, then regrouped, and somehow mounted a counter of their own to ultimately gain victory in Game Two of their weekend set.

Long Island assured themselves of their first series victory over the Patriots this season with a five run outburst in the top of the ninth inning, and will now attempt the sweep on Sunday.  Game Three could potentially see a transfer of first place in the Liberty Division, as the Ducks now trail the Patriots by a mere half game.

Ducks starter Bobby Blevins struggled, allowing six earned runs on seven hits and a walk, with two strikeouts.  Somerset finally knocked him out of the box with four runs in the fourth.

Patriots starter Jeremy Horst fared little better through five innings of work.  The Ducks, though, trailed 7-6 after eight innings of play.

The Atlantic League's new all-time saves leader, and former Ducks closer, Jon Hunton was summoned by Somerset to close out the ninth inning.  Instead, he faced nine batters, allowed five runs (four earned) on five hits for the loss.  With one out, Cody Puckett's RBI single, Mike Blanke's 2-RBI double, and another 2-RBI double by Matt Wessinger flipped the tables on what seemed like a sure Patriots victory.

Cody Puckett and Mike Blanke combined for 7-RBI, and Ruben Gotay resumed his hot hitting with a 3 for 4 night, with three runs scored and an RBI.

Waddling Tall

Since starting the season 1-6, the Ducks have gone 17-5 in their last 22 games, thus improving their record to 18-11 for the season.  Long Island has also scored 29 runs over their last three games.

A sweep of the Patriots would be ideal, as the Ducks and Patriots will not face each other again in the first half.

L.I. Ducks: Flock Waddles Over Somerset Patriots in Series Opener

From the desk of:  THE WEBBED SPIKES NINE

Flock at the Gates!

Ducks lead Patriots 1-0

I - LID 9; SOM 3

II - Saturday @SOM

III - Sunday  @SOM

Long Island Ducks: Extra! News from the front ... Flock overwhelm first place Patriots in Friday night's series opener at Somerset.

On this night, Long Island's six-run third inning outburst and a dominant starting performance on the mound proved too much for the Liberty Division leaders.

This was only the Ducks second victory (2-6) over the Patriots this season, and their first at Somerset. I guess timing is indeed everything then, as Long Island's 9-3 win brings them to within 1 1/2 games of first place entering Saturday's action.

Starter Darin Downs climbed the hill against Somerset's Mickey Storey.  While the usually reliable Mickey Storey continues struggling for the Patriots this season, Downs is officially on a roll.  Darin improved his record to 3-1, and lowered his ERA from 3.25 down to a 3.02 mark.  He faced 30 batters, allowed a pair of earned runs on five hits and no walks, and fanned 11 batters.  It was his third straight winning decision, and comes on the heels of a seven inning, eight strikeout performance on May 14 against Southern Maryland.

• Ducks pitchers have faced the second least batters this season, but lead the Atlantic League in strikeouts.  Ducks pitching also leads with a league low .231 average against.

Offensively, Cody Puckett and Matt Blanke combined to go 6 for 10 at the plate, and registered eight RBI, with four each.  Five Ducks batters posted multiple hit games.  Lew Ford accounted for the ninth Ducks run with a 2 for 5 effort and RBI.

• The Ducks have now scored nine runs in each of their last two games.  Somerset first, followed by Long Island, are the top two scoring teams in the league.  They both have hit 17 team home runs.  Somerset's .748 team OPS leads the circuit, however, while the Ducks .723 mark ranks fifth.

After starting the season 13-0, the Patriots have gone 6-10 since, and are 4-6 over their last ten games.  After starting the season 1-6, the Ducks have gone 16-5 since.

Obviously, the trick for Long Island would be to strike while Somerset is down by winning this weekend series, or even sweeping it, because they will not face them again over the remainder of the first half of the season.

That will leave the Ducks and Patriots scrambling to outpace each other against the remaining competition.


Michael Pfaff's latest acquisitions forcing Coach Baez into reshuffling infield deck.

Recently signed, and former Met, Ruben Gotay went 0 for 5 Friday, with two strikeouts.  This, however, was the first time he failed to hit safely as a member of the Ducks.  He went 7 for 15 during Long Island's four game split against the Sugar Land Skeeters previous to Friday, and is now batting an even .300 since arriving.

Gotay was apparently brought in to solidify second base along with Matt Wessinger.  But, wasn't that accomplished by signing Tyler Colvin, which allowed Sean Burroughs to shift over to third, and thereby allow Cody Puckett to play second?

Well ... Colvin started Friday's game in left field, Burroughs was back at first, Puckett played third, while Lew Ford DH'd.  That came after Cody Puckett DH's twice against Sugar Land.  Coach Baez is clearly spelling positional players with turns at DH, but Colvin playing outfield is not something I'd   entertain too often.  Then again, Anthony Vega's play of late seems to support Coach Baez's decision to pencil in Colvin for occasional spot starts in the outfield.  In fact, I'd be willing to bet Michael Pfaff is searching for Vega's replacement at this very moment.

In the meantime, the GM has afforded Baez a few options.  We'll see how Coach continues utilizing them.

L.I. Ducks: Jack Snodgrass hurls gem over Somerset Patriots

From the desk of:  THE WEBBED SPIKES NINE

Patriots @ Ducks tied 1-1

I - SOM 4; LID 1

II - LID 1; SOM 0

Game Three

Somerset Patriots

vs.

Long Island Ducks

FROM

The Pond

Long Island Ducks: Jack Snodgrass tosses gem to snap five game losing streak against Somerset Patriots.

Ducks three games back of 1st place.

Somerset got the better of the Ducks during Tuesday's series opener at Bethpage Ballpark.  The 4-1 loss to the Patriots brought Long Island's eight game winning streak to a screeching halt.

Starter Bobby Blevins lasted 5.2 innings in a losing effort.  He allowed 4 earned runs on 7 hits and 2 walks, with 4 strikeouts.  Long Island's lone run came on Mike Blanke's solo shot in the 7th inning.

In Game Two, the Ducks took an early lead in the 2nd on Mike Dowd's 2-out RBI single.
After which, the Ducks required a gem from their starting pitcher, and got just that en route to a 1-0 whitewashing of the Patriots.

Jack Snodgrass won his third straight decision in impressive fashion, fanning 12 Patriots batters over 6 scoreless innings of 2 hit baseball, while issuing just one walk.  He now sports a 3-1 record and 3.27 ERA, with 33 strikeouts over 22 innings pitched.

Reliever Todd Coffey faced the minimum during a scoreless 9th for his 3rd save of the season.

• The Ducks are presently the hottest team in the Atlantic League, having gone 9-1 over their last 10 games.  After stumbling out of the gate with a 1-6 record, the Ducks have gone 10-1 since.

• After starting the season 13-0. the first place Patriots have cooled off of late, with just a par 5-5 record over their last 10 games.

After the Patriots retreat upon conclusion of Thursday's series finale, the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs will move in for a four game weekend series.