L.I. Ducks ~ Championship Series Shifts To York Tied 1-1

From the desk of:  THE WEBBED SPIKES NINE

ATLANTIC LEAGUE

Championship Series

FRIDAY

GAME THREE

LONG ISLAND DUCKS (1-1)

vs.

York Revolution (1-1)

From

Some Park out in Pennsylvania

LONG ISLAND DUCKS:  Things to Ponder on the Bus Ride to Game Three.


There's a tired overly used phrase that has probably never been more appropriate in describing the Ducks' post-season thus far.  They are following a similar script they followed in clinching round one.  With the Ducks hoping it's more a sign of good fortune ahead instead of an omen...,  there's an overwhelming sense of -  Here we go again.


With Mike Loree pitching a successful opening game victory in the divisional round, Josh Banks followed up with a disappointing start as the Ducks lost Game Two.  Long Island then went on the road after splitting the first two games at home and eliminated the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs in four games.


After Mike Loree's successful opening game victory in the Atlantic League Championship Series Wednesday night against the York Revolution, Josh Banks followed up with another abysmal start in Game Two.  The Ducks split the first two games at home, and by choice will take the now best two out of three series on the road to York, Pennsylvania where a League Champion will be crowned.


The start to both rounds almost mirror each other, but are all together unsettling for Duck Fans.  Long Island will send Bob Zimmermann to the mound looking to avoid getting put into an elimination situation on Saturday.  The strategy worked for them in the first round as the Ducks won the first two games on the road to clinch the Liberty Division pennant.  So, here's to hoping the plan works out for them again over the weekend.  Game Three is Friday night in a place the Ducks won four games and lost five during the regular season.


After Mike Loree halted the Revolution in Long Island Wednesday, York mounted a successful counter-attack Thursday evening with a 9-0 sacking of the Ducks.  Josh Banks lasted a mere 2.1 innings and faced only thirteen batters.  After a five hit power surge that netted York six earned runs, Ruddy Lugo was forced into long relief by the third inning.  But one run or nine runs would have sufficed for York.  The Long Island Ducks were held to zero in Game Two.


It may not happen often in a Championship Series; I don't know; but it's seems natural the League's best two teams could trade shut-outs over the first two games; that is, without knowing the particulars of this series.  But the Ducks have now officially been outscored 9-1 over two games.  So what gives?  The potent Long Island Nine have been effectively shut-down over the first two games by Nick Schumacher and Lorenzo Barcelo; not exactly Spahn and Saine.  Neither pitcher was York's best.  He's still coming.  The fact remains, Game Two's shut-out loss comes on the heals of getting held to one run on four hits in Game One.  The League's top offensive team has been held to ten hits in the series so far.


Mike Loree was able to make his lone run of Ducks' support hold up.  That's what aces do.  But Josh Banks had no such luck in Game Two.  Three home runs in the first three innings by the Revolution were more than enough to quiet the Ducks and their crowd who waved good-bye to their team knowing they face an uncertain trip to Pennsylvania with the series tied at a game apiece.


The Ducks haven't suffered through many offensive droughts this season; if any. And I'm sure the Long Island Nine would strongly concur this is the worst time for a sudden short circuit in production. But then again, offensive outages never happen at convenient times.  Do they?


The York Revolution still have their Ace; Corey Thurman; in reserve and maybe ready for Game Three or Four.  Then perhaps Shaun Garceau pitches a game.  As mentioned, the Ducks will pitch Bob Zimmermann tonight, who proved himself very capable when faced with this same situation in Round One.  It worked out that Long Island will only face Thurman once.  And apparently, they will not be seeing York's strikeout specialist, Matt DeSalvo this series either.   He last pitched on September 25th in a loss against Lancaster during the divisional round.


The Ducks will no doubt pitch Mike Loree again on short rest.  The question is do you pitch him in Game Four on two days' rest should the Ducks lose tonight and go down 2-1 in the series?  Ruddy Lugo and Mark Diapoules were pressed into relief duty last night.  After Banks and Loree, they are the only two pitchers left on the staff who have made regular starts this season.  Perhaps now, Valerio De Los Santos or Chris McCoy stand to make a start if the series should go the full five games.  Ruddy pitched 3.1 innings in relief of Josh Banks yesterday.  Diapoules pitched an inning, so he may be an option or be held back for long relief.  However, if the Ducks win Game Three behind Bob Zimmermann, do you give De Los Santos; McCoy; or Diapoules a start and the Ducks' bullpen a chance to close out the series with another win?  You would be saving Mike Loree, who will then be pitching on three days rest, for a possible Game Five scenario should the Ducks need it due to a loss over the next two games.


As the wheels on the bus go round and round on their way to York, Pennsylvania, so too do the thoughts of a one; Kevin Baez.







MIke.BTB

L.I. Ducks ~ Caught in a Maelstrom

From the desk of:  THE WEBBED SPIKES NINE




LONG ISLAND DUCKS:  The First Eleven Days of the Post Mike Loree Era Have Been Worrisome...At Best.

Long Island's pitching dilemma has now taken a very visible toll on the Ducks.  The Ducks no longer enjoy the lofty perch they've held for quite some time up in the .700 winning percentile.   Two other teams (Bridgeport and York) have joined them in the sixty win bracket, where for so long this season, the Ducks remained far ahead of the pack.


Hoping now, Mother Nature could have interceded a little longer and delayed this tail-spin the Ducks find themselves in, they couldn't avoid getting swept by the Somerset Patriots.  Before tonight, those last three losses in a row complimented a stretch where they lost eight of their last eleven games since losing Mike Loree to the Pirates organization.


Then came tonight.  On this Wednesday night, The Ducks started a road series against the York Revolution.  Ruddy Lugo took another turn on the mound, and promptly suffered his worst outing of the season; and perhaps the worst start to a game for the Ducks all year long.  It most probably ranks up there in all-time bad starts in Long Island history.  Before inducing the Revs into three outs, he walked two batters; gave up nine hits; and surrendered nine earned runs in the first inning of play.  The Ducks pitching gave up 21 hits in all.


The offense stepped in to make a game of it.  But the night ended in a 14-9 final.


In Tuesday's double-header, Mark Diapoules only lasted 4.1 innings, in a decent effort at best; as the Ducks lost 2-0 to Somerset in game one.  The Ducks failed new spot starter Bob Zimmermann who pitched a very good game.  But they dropped game two, 3-2, on their second offensive disappearance for the day.  On Monday, Valerio De Los Santos pitched five innings and gave up three earned runs in a 7-2 loss.  These are pedestrian numbers.  But they represent the absolute best the Ducks can do right now.


So just to update the worsening news, the Ducks are now losers of nine of their last twelve games.  It's official..;  The Ducks are now caught in a maelstrom.




Mike.BTB

L.I. Ducks ~ Sharks Feed on Ducks' One Weakness

From the desk of:  THE WEBBED SPIKES NINE





LONG ISLAND DUCKS:  The Webbed Nine Had Their Soft White Feathered Under Belly Exposed in Camden.


What's wrong with the Ducks?


Nothing.  They got swept by the Camden River Sharks; that's all.  When the team is going this well, you can't be taken aback by something like that.  It happens.  They lost a double-header Saturday and lost Sunday after getting rained out Friday evening down in Camden, N.J.


But what really happened to the Ducks besides meeting up with a Camden team playing well at the moment?  Camden is after all 22-12 in the second half, and in second place behind Long Island.


Last week, Mike Loree won his 14th game of the season.  That set the Long Island Ducks' single season record for victories; previously set by Troy Cate (13) in 2009.  He also struck out 10 batters in that game.  This season, Mike Loree is the Atlantic League's leader in wins; strikeouts; and ERA.  And he will be tonight's starter when the Ducks open up a series against Southern Maryland at Bethpage Park.


And now you can start talking about the Ducks' problems.  Between Loree starts, the Ducks are now officially thin.  And Camden caught Long Island within the void as Mike Loree pitched last  Wednesday and goes again tonight. 


Although seemingly moving right along, and continuing to win games at a 67% clip after the contracts of Mike Parisi and Shane Youman were sold, perhaps this is a glimpse into what kind of havoc lack of depth in the starting rotation can cause in a short series.  With the playoffs right around the corner, it's a scary glimpse I'm afraid.


In this most recent turn through the rotation, besides Mike Loree's victory last Wednesday, the only other Ducks' pitcher to record a win was Mark Diapoules; when he followed Loree last Thursday and completed a sweep of the Road Warriors.


With Long Island's need for starters, Diapoules stepped out of the bullpen and into a starting role.  As a relief pitcher through mid-June, he record was 1-1 and by then his ERA had grown to 3.96.  Since then, he's amazingly 6-0 as a starter, and his 4.06 ERA is not much higher than previous to starting his new role.


Then came a weekend series in Camden; a trio of loses; and three questions moving forward.


Regular starter; Joselo Diaz; pitched the first game of a double-header Saturday; ...well, technically anyway.  He lasted all of 1.1 innings and gave up seven runs; six earned.  It falls right in line with his overall struggles this season.  He's 5-7 as a starter this season with a 6.90 ERA.  He's walked almost as many as he's struck out in 19 starts for the Ducks.


In game two Saturday; staff regular; Ruddy Lugo took his turn and coughed-up 4.2 innings pitched.  He allowed 10 hits; 6 runs/4 earned.  In sixteen starts this season, Ruddy is 5-3 with a 5.91 ERA.  In 74 innings pitched, he too walks as many as he strikes out; 39/40.


Sunday, Dave Williams; like Diapoules who was summoned from the bullpen to start games; made his third start of the season, and eighteenth appearance over all.  Of the three weekend starting pitchers against Camden, Williams went the longest, but suffered the same fate as the others; he lost.  He pitched 6.0 innings, while surrendering five runs on eight hits.


Now tonight, Ducks' Ace Mike Loree; who is the League leader in all three Triple Crown categories for a pitcher; must also play stopper for Long Island.


But what could be wrong?  Southern Maryland can either expose the dilemma I spelled out, or put some of these anxieties to rest with this series opening up tonight.


We know how in the playoffs, what you have left to compete against is good pitching.  And the saying goes, good pitching stops good hitting.  The Ducks have basically been pounding opponents into submission with their offense; with League batting leaders, and League leaders in RBI.  They have the highest team batting and have scored the most team runs.


But their pitching is now depleted.  Will they be able to slug their way through the playoffs?  Ideally, Mike Loree only gets one start in a round of playoffs.  If he makes two starts, it's because the series went to a fifth and deciding game.


Are you comfortable with that?





Mike.BTB

L.I. Ducks ~ Hook Bluefish With First Place on the Line

From the desk of:  WADDLING AROUND BROOKLYN




LONG ISLAND DUCKS:  Taking on the Surging Bridgeport Bluefish After Dropping Two of Three to Lancaster.  Heading Into Tonight, Ducks Led Bluefish By Mere Half-Game in Second-Half Standings.


Tuesday Night Final:
Ducks.......7
Bluefish....5

Second Half - Liberty Division

Long Island Ducks     18-6      *

Bridgeport Bluefish    17-8    1.5  GB

Delayed; but in one of the few games that wasn't rained-out in the local area, the Long Island Ducks hosted the Bridgeport Bluefish in a second-half battle for first place of the Liberty Division.  Both teams were 8-2 over their last ten games entering tonight.  The Bluefish were only a half game behind Long Island with a 16-7 record.  Last year's A.L. Champion is mounting a second-half surge I thought they were capable of back in June; but it was a surge which never materialized for them before the first half ended.  Before tonight's final, the 17-7 Ducks were coming off a series in which they dropped two games out of three to the Lancaster Barnstormers.


Long Island's Ruddy Lugo started in search of his fifth win of the season.  After six innings pitched, he left the game with the Ducks staked to a 7-3 lead.  He allowed the Bluefish seven hits and surrendered four earned runs.  He walked four batters and struck out four before giving way to Jeremy Hill for the seventh inning.


Bridgeport jumped on Ruddy Lugo right away.  A walk; double; and two singles plated three first inning runs on three hits for the Bluefish.


Long Island got them all back plus one in the second inning.  John Rodriguez reclaimed the League lead in RBI by leading-off the inning with his 15th home run of the season and accumulating his 69th RBI of the season.  John Rodriguez led the League earlier in the season before being sidelined by a few injuries.  He's found his way back to the top, ahead of team mate, J,R. House.  Bridgeport's Wes Bankston is third in the League.  Kraig Binick then tripled home J.R. House and Matt Esquivel who reached base on consecutive singles.  Kinnard Jones got Binick home with a sac-fly for a 4-3 Ducks lead.


Bridgeport tied the game at four apiece with a run off Ruddy Lugo in the fifth inning.  But the Ducks picked up three runs in their sixth inning allowing Ruddy Lugo to leave on the winning side of this game.  J.R. House led-off with his 17th home run of the year.  Kraig Binick reached first on an E3 to load the bases after Matt Esquivel and Matt Padgett both singled.  Esquivel scored when Dan Lyons grounded into a double-play.  And Kinnard Jones singled home Matt Padgett to make the game 7-4 Ducks.


Jeremy Hill allowed the Bluefish a run in the seventh inning to make it a 7-5 game.  In all he pitched two innings allowing only the one run.  He gave up one hit and a walk.  Three strikeouts highlighted his night.


Bubbie Buzachero pitched the ninth inning and set down all three batters he faced with strikeout to end the game.  It was his 14th save of the season.  And for Ruddy Logo, he earned his fifth win of the year against two losses.


Tuesday night's win ups the Ducks record to 58-30 over-all on the season; the League's best.




Mike.BTB

L.I. DUCKS ~ Fifty Reasons To Quack For Joy

From the desk of:  THE WEBBED SPIKES NINE


LONG ISLAND DUCKS:  FIRST TO FIFTY!

In the rubber game between the two first-half division champs, the Long Island Ducks won their 50th game of the season Friday night by consistently pushing across two-out runs against opposing pitcher J.D. Durbin and the rest of the Lancaster Barnstormers.

In the second inning, Matt Padgett and Tom Pennino (his first) hit back-to-back home runs to tie the game at two after Lancaster touched-up Ducks' starter Ruddy Lugo for two runs in the top half of the frame.

The Ducks went ahead 4-2 in the third on RBI singles by John Rodriguez and Lew Ford.  In the fourth inning, Long Island posted another pair of runs to make the score 6-2 Ducks.  Kraig Binick singled home Dan Lyons who doubled; then stole second.  Ray Navarrete singled to drive home Binick.

After a rain delayed start to the game, Ducks' starter Ruddy Lugo put forth a respectable effort after Lancaster got to him in the second inning.  He pitched five innings and threw eighty-five pitches.  Allowing three hits overall, he gave up the two earned runs in the second inning but no more, while walking three batters and striking out four.  Ruddy left the game on the winning side of what stood to be his fifth win against two losses.

Bob Zimmermann entered the game in relief of Lugo in the sixth inning and promptly pitched himself into trouble.  He gave up a home run, a walk, and back-to-back singles before he received a trip to the mound from his pitching coach after Lancaster made it a 6-4 game.  The meeting on the mound didn't work.  Zimmermann gave up another single to make it a 6-5 game with the tying run and go ahead run still on base.  Coach Baez came out of the dugout this time and yanked his pitcher with two outs.

Enter Bubbie Buzachero in a rather early call for him these days.  He hit the first batter he faced to load the bases.  Then, a single by Lancaster's Tommy Everidge drove home two more runs for a 7-6 Lancaster lead.  And so much for Ruddy Lugo's fifth win of the season.  He got stuck with the no-decision after a ruinous five run sixth inning for the Ducks' bullpen.  All five runs were charged to Zimmermann.

With two outs, an RBI double by Kraig Binick in the bottom of the sixth tied the score for the Ducks at seven apiece.  Then all-time Duck, Ray Navarrete, singled home Binick with yet another two out RBI by the Ducks for an 8-7 lead.  All eight runs scored by the Ducks to this point were scored with two outs.

Bubbie Buzachero managed the seventh inning after allowing the lead-off batter to reach base.  He wasn't sharp; pitching behind the count to all batters he faced.  But he kept things very quiet in the eighth inning.  And looking back on the outing, he most certainly earned the win in relief of Friday's game for his 2+ innings of work.


"New" Ducks' closer; Eric Wassermann...(and why not?  He's pitching lights-out).....  came in to pitch the ninth inning.  And in commanding Closer fashion, gave up a hit, but struck out the side to secure his 7th Save and the Long Island Ducks' 50th win of the season.


The Ducks are now the proud owners of an overall League best 50-28 record.  They remain as the only Atlantic League team above .600, playing to a .641 percentage.  In the second-half standings, they gained a game on Camden who lost Friday, and are now just one game behind the River Sharks for first place in the Liberty Division.

On July 30, 2011

vs. the ROAD WARRIORS

The Long Island Ducks Will Welcome Their

5,000,000th Fan To The Ball Park!

Congratulations to my own personal favorite, Buddy Harrelson, and to the entire

LONG ISLAND DUCKS ORGANIZATION.

And,

Congratulations to the Baseball Fans of Long Island.

Pat yourselves and each other on the back Saturday.

Mike.BTB

L.I. DUCKS ~ Moving On Without Mike Parisi

From the desk of:  THE WEBBED SPIKES NINE


LONG ISLAND DUCKS:  A Ripple in the Pond or a Tidal Wave of Trouble?

As July winds down and I settle in for the second half of the season, the first half Champion Ducks are already 14 games into the tail end with a match against the Lancaster Barnstormers tonight in game two of a three game series; kicking off a six game home stand at Bethpage Park.

The Ducks are 9-4 in their first 13 second half games.  But that places them behind a suddenly hot Camden River Sharks in the Liberty Division, who have started 11-3 thus far.  Long Island is still the overall Atlantic League leader with a 49-27 record.

The biggest concern for the Ducks moving forward has to be the purchase of Atlantic League All-Star, Mike Parisi's contract by the L.A. Dodgers.  He and Mike Loree combined to create a formidable one-two punch at the top of the starting rotation for Long Island.  Parisi still ranks among the League leaders in strikeouts and ERA even 10 days after his acquisition by the Dodgers.

While I for one don't think Camden will keep up their recent play, and think South Maryland will still continue to pester Long Island in the division, the Ducks continued winning hints they will survive Parisi's departure. 

I say not so fast.  Come playoff time, everything changes.  We all know that.  But I think the York Revolution may have a clear edge in starting pitching now.  Of course time will tell.

Veteran hurler, Shane Youman however, has stepped in marvelously for Long Island since his Ducks' debut on June 8th.  He easily won the the third spot in the rotation prior to Parisi's departure.  He has appeared in eleven games thus far and started five.  While compiling a 5-1 record, he's done it sustaining a very low 0.87 ERA.


Tonight's starter for Long Island is Joselo Diaz.  Much more is needed from him.  He's struggled all season and is currently sporting an ERA above the 6.00 mark.  Between him, Mark Diapoulis, Heath Phillips, and Ruddy Lugo, the Ducks must hope they will be enough to get through a short series. 


I'm afraid the loss of Mike Parisi is very compromising to the Ducks' post-season picture.  Long Island GM Michael Pfaff has a lot of work ahead of him trying to sure-up his starting rotation before September's playoffs roll around.


The Ducks' potent offense is now required to remain just that; potent.  Once teams face the Ducks' fourth and fifth starters of this rotation, the Long Islanders will most likely have to slug their way through them.


The loss of Parisi also alters the way Coach Baez utilizes his (very solid) bullpen now.  Clearly, they will be handling a bit of a larger load.  They will be called upon more often without that solid one-two punch Loree and Parisi provided..., and giving the Pen a night off from time to time.


While the good times are rolling in Bethpage Park this season with a first half championship in their back pockets, the Ducks have officially entered a very interesting portion of the season.


NOTE:  The Long Island Ducks' 5,000,000th fan will pass through the turnstiles for a game during this home stand.




Mike.BTB

L.I. DUCKS ~ Recapture First Place Over Weekend

From the desk of:  WADDLING THROUGH BROOKLYN




ATLANTIC LEAGUE WEEKEND RECAP;  LIBERTY DIVISION RACE:
South Maryland and Lancaster needed extra innings Saturday.

The Ducks had everything under control out in Bethpage Park Saturday making Lancaster versus the Blue Crabs as the game to keep tabs on.

In Lancaster, the Crabs put together three hits back in the second to build a 2-0 lead.   Lancaster tied it up at two each in the fourth.   In the top of the fifth, the Crabs scored on a passed ball.   And in the eighth, the Blue Crabs scored their fourth run on a sacrifice fly to give the Crabs a 4-2 lead.


South Maryland starter Virgil Vasquez was making strides towards a possible complete game.  He made it through seven innings, staying out of trouble after allowing Matt Watson of Lancaster to touch him for a two-run home run in the fourth.  But Vasquez kept the Barnstormers quiet otherwise.  It was decided he'd gone far enough while still owning a 4-2 lead in the eighth.  Blue Crab relief pitcher, Steve Palazzolo entered the game in relief of Virgil Vasquez.


And it was Crab's Steve Palazzolo who was the charitable one in relief.  He promptly relinquished the Blue Crabs' lead in the eighth inning by allowing Lancaster two runs on two hits; throw in an error by the catcher, and a walk.

They went into the ninth inning tied at four apiece.  The Blue Crabs did not score in their top half.  Charlie Manning came in to pitch for S. Maryland to end Lancaster's last licks.  Manning pitched a scoreless ninth walking one and striking out another.

While the fans in Lancaster were getting treated to extra inning free baseball, the Long Island Ducks were pounding the Somerset Partiots mercilessly in Bethpage Park Saturday night.  A Ducks win and a Crab loss would give Long Island sole possession of first place again.  But in Lancaster, the tenth inning came and went without incident as did South Maryland's top half of the eleventh inning. 

Then finally, in the bottom of  Lancaster's home eleventh inning, came the big news the Long Island Ducks wanted to hear.  Lancaster scored and defeated the South Maryland Blue Crabs 5-4 Saturday night in eleven innings.




Sunday, South Maryland Kept the Game Close, But Faired No Better.

The final score in Lancaster Sunday evening was Lancaster Barnstormers 3; South Maryland Blue Crabs 2.


But the damage was done the night prior.  The Ducks had their taste of first place; liked it; and pounced all over Somerset two nights running.  South Maryland meanwhile is realing right now while the Duck have gone full blown Mighty.  South Maryland had now dropped down to third place.




LONG ISLAND DUCKS:  Webbed Feet Gone Wild!

DUCKS SWEEP PATRIOTS
RAY NAVARRETE TOUCHES ANOTHER MILESTONE

The Long Island Ducks went hog-wild on the Somerset Patriots all weekend long.  Between Saturday and Sunday, the Ducks defeated the Patriots twice by a combined score of 31-11.


On Saturday, the Ducks went airborne.  In wave after wave, they made it rain runs all game long to the tune of a 20-8 Long Island carpet bombing of the Patriots.  Keeping score of the game would have made anyone's scorecard look like the bottom of a bird cage; in other words, a complete mess.


The Ducks smashed five home runs Saturday on their way to scoring twenty runs.  Scoring seven runs alone in the first inning should have served as a bad omen for the Somerset Patriots.   And as it played out, as suspected, it got quite ugly for the Patriots.

The Ducks enjoyed a very prosperous beginning in Saturday's game against Somerset.  There was the seven run first and after two innings of play, the Ducks had an 8-0 lead.  The Patriots scored four runs in their half of the fourth, but the Ducks came back with a pair in their half to put them up 10-4.  In the seventh inning, both teams exchanged a pair of runs again updating the score to 12-6.


Then the scorecard goes kaplooey.  The final was 20-8.  But more importantly it gave the Long Island Ducks a firmer hold on first place in the Liberty Division.


Sunday, while South Maryland was losing a close one to Lancaster, the Ducks just picked up where they left off.  They completed a three game sweep of Somerset and won their fifth game in a row all at home.


Ducks starter Ruddy Lugo got touched for 10 hits in five innings pitched.  But he limited Somerset to 3 earned runs.  Down 3-0 early, the Ducks' offense picked up their pitcher Lugo's tough start, tied the score, and gave him four more runs before handing the game over to the bullpen for the final four innings.  Somerset's Bill Pulsipher got roughed up for Long Island's seven run answer within his four innings pitched.


Ray Navarrete hit his 6th home run of the season as the Ducks continued their drubbing of the Patriots on their way to another double-digit scoring day.  This time they defeated the Patriots 11-3 in front of another packed house in Bethpage Park.  Also, Ray Nabarrete just put another dent in the Ducks' record books.  After becoming the Long Island Ducks all-time hits leader earlier this season, he ties the same player; Justin Davies; on the Ducks' all-time runs scored list with 426.


Kraig Binick crept up and away from the .400 mark and has his batting average back up to .409 again.


The Ducks indeed got healthy at home after a dismal road trip.  They've recaptured first place and are hotter than tube sox in a Fireman's boots right now.  They've managed to shake off the South Maryland Blue Crabs for the moment after running neck and neck with them for a week or so.  But with them out of the way, the Bridgeport Bluefish have now appeared to occupy second place.  They trail Long Island by only half a game as of Monday morning.


The Ducks are heading back on the road now.  Hopefully they will have a better go of it this time around.






Mike.BTB