Duda Drives in Six, Binghamton Wins Fifth Straight 9-5

From Press Release:

Lucas Duda drove in six of Binghamton’s nine runs and the B-Mets led from start to finish in a 9-6 win over New Hampshire Friday night at MerchantsAuto.com Stadium. The win was Binghamton’s fifth straight, tying the team’s longest winning streak since 2008. Mike Antonini notched his first win of the season with five innings of two-run ball.

Binghamton (6-3) wasted no time getting on the board in the first inning against Fisher Cats starter Marty McLeary. Kirk Nieuwenhuis led off the game with a single to center. Nick Evans followed with a single through the right side. After McLeary walked Marshall Hubbard, the bases were full for Duda, who smoked a double into the alleyway in left center to clear the bases. Later on, after Carlos Guzman was hit by a pitch and Luis Hernandez walked to fill the bases again, Mike Nickeas lined a single into left that plated two more, spotting the B-Mets a 5-0 lead and knocking McLeary from the game.

Bubbie Buzachero replaced McLeary and managed to get the final two outs in the first before facing resistance in the second. Evans led off the frame with his second single of the contest. Hubbard followed suit with a single to left leading to Duda in the cleanup spot. Once again he cleared the bases, but this time he cleared the wall in right for his third homer of the year, putting Binghamton ahead 8-0. However, Buzachero wasn’t out of the woods. Zach Lutz followed with a towering blast to left to go back-to-back with Duda, making it 9-0.

Antonini gave up his two runs in the fifth. After allowing Al Quintana to reach on a walk, he surrendered a two-run homer to Adam Loewen on a 3-2 pitch. That was all that the B-Mets southpaw would allow though. In his five innings, he allowed four hits and two walks, while striking out five.

The Fisher Cats managed three more runs down the stretch off reliever Edgar Ramirez, who threw three innings of relief before giving way to closer John Lujan. Lujan tossed a scoreless ninth for the second straight night to seal the win.

Evans enjoyed his second three-hit game of the season going 3-5 and scoring two runs. Hubbard extended his hitting streak to a team-best eight games with a two-hit day. Lutz’s home run was his second in as many games, tying him for the league lead with three.