F-Cats drop home opener
A ninth-inning rally was not enough to salvage the home opener as the New Hampshire Fisher Cats dropped their first game of the season on Tuesday, losing 9-7 to the Portland Sea Dogs.
MANCHESTER, N.H. – A ninth-inning rally was not enough to salvage the home opener as the New Hampshire Fisher Cats dropped their first game of the season on Tuesday, losing 9-7 to the Portland Sea Dogs.
After both teams traded runs in the first, a Steward Berroa sacrifice fly brought Zac Cook across the plate in the second, giving New Hampshire what would be their only lead of the night. Portland added two in the third, fourth in the fifth and cancelled out a Luis De Los Santos RBI double in the fifth with another run in the sixth, that one coming off a bases loaded wild pitch by Alejandro Melean that let Ceddanne Rafaela across the plate.
Both teams continued to trade runs until the Fisher Cats’ two-out rally in the ninth finally fizzled out on Damiano Palmegiani’s fly to right.
Berroa went deep for the ‘Cats in the eighth, his first home run of the year, as he and De Los Santos both contributed a pair of hits in the loss.
Adam Kloffenstein (0-1) was the loser of record, allowing four earned runs off five hits and four walks in his four-inning start for New Hampshire.
The two teams return on Wednesday with first pitch coming at 6:35 p.m., Sem Robberse (0-0, 1.93 ERA) will take the mound for New Hampshire.
