On the mound, Nate Bump set the tone. The Lehigh Valley starter carried a no-hitter into the fourth inning before Kirk Nieuwenhuis doubled off the center field wall, just missing a homerun. Bump was just two over the minimun pitching into the seventh inning before the Bisons finally knocked the starter out of the game.

At the plate, Lehigh Valley did all the damage they needed in the first two innings to beat the Bisons 6-3.

After getting the lead-off batter in the first inning Bisons starter D.J. Carrasco gave up a single to short stop Kevin Frandsen. Carrasco nearly escaped the inning when Lehigh Valley center fielder Cory Sullivan hit a tailor made double-play ball. But Luis Hernandez’s throw to second pulled Ruben Tejada off the base, allowing both Lehigh Valley runners to reach safely.

Third baseman Ronnie Belliard hit a single off Carrasco with two outs plating two runs for Lehigh Valley. In the third Lehigh Valley added three more runs on a sac-fly and a two run double by Cory Sullivan.

With two outs in the seventh the Bisons threatened Lehigh Valley scoring two runs but stranding three. After Lehigh Valley starter Nate Bump got the first two batters Nick Evans singled to center-field. Jesus Feliciano singled into center and with two ducks on the pond Luis Hernandez hit a ground-rule double to center-field scoring Evans.

Lehigh Valley brought in reliever Michael Schwimer who walked Salomon Manriquez. Russ Adams pinch-hit for Casey Fossum, facing four straight balls one being a wild pitch that scored Jesus Feliciano. The inning ended with Tejada called out on a check-swing stifling the Bisons two out comeback.

Lehigh Valley loaded the bases with one out in the eighth inning, Matt Miller pinch hit for the pitcher and plated another run on a sac-fly to left-field taking a four run lead. With runners on second and third lead-off batter Josh Barfield struck out looking.

Bisons continued to threaten in the late innings, stranding two runners in the eighth inning. Down 6-2 in the ninth Manriquez drove a no-doubt homerun over the wall to bring the Bisons within three, but in the end it wasn’t enough.

TO SUM IT UP: Lehigh Valley starter Nate Bump carried a no-hitter into the fourth inning and went just two over the minimum in 6.2IP to lead the IronPigs in a 6-3 win… Bump’s no-no went into the fifth before Kirk Nieuwenhuis drove the ball deep just missing a homerun… Making his first start since being optioned, DJ Carrasco pitched three innings (pitches: 57/36)… Carrasco: 3IP, 5R/3ER, 2K, 2HBP.

FAST FACTS: : Solomon Manriquez hit his first HR as a Bison… Casey Fossum is batting 1.000 after getting a base hit during his first at-bat of the season, in relief Fossum struck out the side in the sixth inning, notching a total of five strikeout… Dating back to 2009, the Bisons lost to Lehigh Valley starter Nate Bump for the first time making them 1-2 when facing Bump…

Saturday, April 30, 2011 (6:35 p.m.) – Coca-Cola Park
Radio: WWKB AM 1520, bisons.com

Buffalo Bisons (10-13, T4th(-4.5), North)
RHP D.J. Carrasco (0-0, 0.00)

Lehigh Valley IronPigs (11-11, 3rd(-3.0), North)
RHP Nate Bump (0-1, 5.49)

TODAY’S GAME: Tonight, the Buffalo Bisons are in the Lehigh Valley for the first game of a four-game series against the IronPigs from Coca-Cola Park (6:35 p.m.). The Herd is coming off a four-game split in Rochester against the Red Wings. Following this series, the Bisons will return home to host their first non-divisional opponent of the year, the Louisville Bats from May 5-8.

VS. IRONPIGS: The Bisons are 2-2 against the IronPigs this year as the teams split a four-game set at Coca-Cola Field in Buffalo, April 22-25. The Herd was 5-3 in Lehigh Valley last year, thanks in large part to a two-game sweep, August 9-10. The Bisons have not won a four-game set at Coca-Cola Park in the three years of the IronPigs existence.

HEY MR. D.J.: RHP D.J. CARRASCO will make his first start as a Bisons pitcher today. The 34-year old pitched an inning of shutout relief on Tuesday in Rochester in his Herd debut. Carrasco was 0-1 with a 5.91ERA in eight games with the Mets before being optioned to Buffalo. One of those outings was a start as the righty worked 3.2 innings in Atlanta (4H, 3R, 3ER, 3BB, 2K).

ZIPPIDY DUDA: OF LUCAS DUDA has five extra-base hits in his last five games, including a pair of home runs. The slugger had just one double and one homer in his first 13 games of the season.

BULLY FOR THE PEN: The Bisons bullpen came through again last night with five shutout innings. LHP MIKE O’CONNOR threw three frames for the win while RHP DALE THAYER worked the final two for his first save of the season. So far this year, Herd relievers have posted a 2.79ERA with only 69 hits allowed in 80.2 innings of work.

HIT MACHINE: OF JESUS FELICIANO is starting to heat up at the plate. The outfielder has five hits in his last three games, including two doubles and two RBI. Feliciano had just two hits in his first six games of the season. He has averaged .311 and .339 in his past two seasons in Buffalo. His .320 average in 228 career games with the Bisons is the second-highest average in the team’s modern era (OF Dave Clark, .327).

METS UPDATE: The Mets (11-15) lost to the Phillies by a 10-3 score on Friday night. Former Bisons INF IKE DAVIS and OF JASON PRIDIE hit home runs in the loss as INF Ryan Howard had two home runs of his own, including a grand slam off RHP DILLON GEE. The Mets take on the Phillies again today at 1:10 p.m.

The big bat of Lucas Duda came through in the clutch for the Buffalo Bisons.

The Herd’s 2010 Most Valuable Player had the biggest hit on Friday night in Rochester with an eighth-inning home run in a 3-2 Bisons win over Rochester at Frontier Field.

Duda’s second blast on the season broke a 2-2 tie and gave Buffalo a split of a four-game series with the Red Wings.

It was only a matter of time until Duda’s powerful swing had an impact on this Bisons’ season. After 42 extra-base hits in 70 games with the team in 2010, the 25-year old slugger had just one double and no home runs in his first 17 games with Buffalo in 2011.

Duda doubled in his first at-bat on Friday, driving a Yorman Bazardo pitch over the head of the speedy Ben Revere and scoring Kirk Nieuwenhuis for the game’s first run. Duda then scored on single from Valentino Pascucci for a 2-0 edge.

Rochester tied it at two in the first inning and the game stayed locked up until the eighth. Duda led off the inning by taking a 1-2 pitch to deep centerfield for the game winning run.

Duda now has three doubles and two home runs in his last five games.

Jenrry Mejia started for Buffalo but could only get through four innings of work. He used 39 of his 81 pitches in the first inning as the Red Wings scored their only two runs of the game.

Mike O’Connor earned the win with three innings of work. Dale Thayer worked the eighth and ninth inning for his first save of the season.

The Bisons will now travel to Lehigh Valley for a four-game series against the IronPigs.

BISONS NOTES: Statistically ranked 14th of 14 teams in defense, the Bisons played errorless baseball in three of the four games in their series against Rochester…Jesus Feliciano finished the game 2-4…Catcher Ronny Paulino was activated by the Mets off his mlb injury rehab assignment with the Bisons. Paulino played seven games with Buffalo.

TO SUM IT UP: Lucas Duda drove in two runs, including a go-ahead eighth inning HR to help the Bisons win, 3-2, and earn a split in Rochester… Duda had an RBI double in the first to put the Herd ahead 2-0 early… Jenrry Mejia fought fridgid temps early, using 39 first inning pitches, 81 in all over his four innings of work.

FAST FACTS: Duda’s HR was the second of the series and year… Duda has hits in four of the last five gaems…  Ruben Tejada is 5 for his last 9 at the plate… Dale Thayer earned his first save of the season… Jesus Feliciano has hit in three straight games (5-11)… Kirk Nieuwenhuis has reached base in 20 of Buffalo’s 23 games…

WHAT’S NEXT: DJ Carrasco will make his first start for the Bisons to open a four game series in Allentown, PA agasint the IronPigs, Saturday 6:35 pm.

Friday, April 28, 2011 (7:05 p.m.) – Frontier Field
TV: Time Warner Cable Channel HD 713                 
Radio: WWKB AM 1520, bisons.com

Buffalo Bisons (9-13, 5th(-5.5), North)
RHP Jenrry Mejia (1-2, 2.59)

Rochester Red Wings (9-11, 4th(-4.5), North)
RHP Yorman Bazardo (0-1, 5.06)

TODAY’S GAME: Tonight, the Bisons take on the Rochester Red Wings in the final game of a four-game series from Frontier Field (7:05 p.m.). Down 2-1 in the series, the Herd needs a victory today to earn a split of the set. Following today’s game, the Herd will travel to Lehigh Valley for a four-game set.

VS. RED WINGS: The Bisons are 3-4 against the Red Wings this season. The teams split a four-game set at Coca-Cola Field, April 19-21. Dating back to last season, the Bisons are 7-4 in their last 11 games at Frontier Field. With the fact that the Bisons and Wings usually play two or three-game sets, the Bisons have not lost a four-game series in Rochester since rejoining the IL in 1998.

OH JENRRY: RHP JENRRY MEJIA is looking to stop a personal two-game losing streak. The righty is 1-2 with a 2.59ERA in his first four starts of the season with a team-high 20 strikeouts. Mejia’s first loss of the season came against Rochester as he allowed three runs (two earned) in 5.2 innings of work in the first game of a doubleheader on April 19 at Coca-Cola Field.

ROSTER MOVE: The Mets have activated C RONNY PAULINO from his major league injury assignment with the Bisons. Paulino hit .200 (5-25) with a double and two RBI in seven games with the Bisons. To make roster room, the Mets optioned C MIKE NICKEAS to the Bisons and he’ll join the team in the coming days. Nickeas hit .214 (6-28) in seven games with the Herd in 2010.

FOUR FOR HITTING: INF RUBEN TEJADA had four hits in last night’s defeat and finished a double away from the cycle. The shortstop collected both his second triple and second home run on the year. Tejada has now hit in seven of his last eight games with a .382 (13-34) average since April 21. His four-hit game was the Bisons’ second of the year, matching OF FERNANDO MARTINEZ’S four-hit game on Opening Day.

BULLY FOR THE PEN: The Bisons bullpen has been extremely solid all year. Herd relievers have posted a 2.97ERA with only 64 hits allowed in 75.2 innings of work in April. Sporting very impressive ERAs are RHP JOSE DE LA TORRE (0.77), LHP JUSTIN HAMPSON (1.00), LHP TAYLOR TANKERSLEY (0.90) and RHP DALE THAYER (2.38).

METS UPDATE: The Mets (11-14) saw their six-game winning streak come to an end with a 3-2 loss to Washington last night. Still, New York took two of three from the Nationals. Former Bisons C JOSH THOLE had three hits in the defeat. The Mets are now in Philadelphia for the start of a three-game set against the rival Phillies.

The New York Mets today announced that they have activated C RONNY PAULINO from his major league injury rehabilitation assignment with the Buffalo Bisons. In order to make room on the 25-man roster, the Mets optioned C MIKE NICKEASto the Herd.

 Nickeas, 28, hit .250 (5-20) with one double, one home run and three RBI in eight games with the Mets this year. The catcher played seven games with the Bisons last season, hitting .214 (6-28) with one double.

 Paulino hit .200 (5-25) with a double and two RBI in seven games with the Bisons

Both the Bisons and Red Wings came out swinging on Thursday night. For one team, the rallies were just a little bit more productive.

Rochester scored eight runs off Herd starter Pat Misch and held on for an 8-6 victory over the Bisons from Frontier Field. Ruben Tejada finished a double away from the cycle, but Buffalo could not produce as much offense as their Thruway rival.

The Red Wings scored a run in the first, two in the second, three in the third and two more in the fifth inning to build their big advantage. The lineup produced 13 hits, including six extra-base hits, off Misch to drop the Bisons’ southpaw to 0-2 on the season.

Buffalo stayed closed until Rochester’s three-run third inning. Matt Brown led off the frame with a home run before Misch retired the next two batters. Unable to get the third out, Misch allowed singles to Jeff Bailey and Ben Revere before a two-run double from former Bisons catcher, Rene Rivera.

Bailey had the two-run home run two batters into the fifth inning to give Rochester an insurmountable 8-3 lead.

Tejada had the best day at the plate for Buffalo. He led off the game with a triple and scored on a Fernando Martinez-ground out. Tejada homered in the third inning and singled in the eighth and ninth innings to finish 4-5 on the night.

Martinez brought the Bisons close in the eighth inning by plating two runs with a double before scoring on a single from Ronny Paulino. However, Buffalo did not threaten in the ninth as Phil Dumatrait struck out three in the final frame to close the game.

TO SUM IT UP: Rochester scored eight runs off Herd starter Pat Misch and held on for an 8-6 victory over the Bisons from Frontier Field… Ruben Tejada finished a double away from the cycle, but Buffalo could not produce as much offense as their Thruway rival…Tejada had the best day at the plate for Buffalo, led off the game with a triple and scored on a Fernando Martinez-ground out… Tejada homered in the third inning and singled in the eighth and ninth innings to finish 4-5 on the night… Martinez brought the Bisons close in the eighth inning by plating two runs with a double before scoring on a single from Ronny Paulino.

FAST FACTS: Three Bisons had multi-hit performances (Tejada, F. Martinez, Paulino)… Ruben Tejada had a season-high 4 hits (4-5, triple, HR(2), RBI) becoming the second Bisons player with a 4-hit game (F. Martinez on Opening Day 4/7); It was Tejada’s second 4-game with Herd, 5/10/10 vs LOU going 4-4 on singles(6th of pro full-season baseball)… Ronny Paulino had his best rehab game, 2-4 with an RBI while catching all 9 innings… Jesus Felician is 3-7 with 2 doubles and 2 RBI the last 2 games… Jose De La Torre lowered his ERA with 2 scoreless innings to 0.77, Taylor Tankersley took his down to 0.90 with a scoreless frame… The Bisons defense turned three doubleplays… The loss was the first for Pat Misch at Rochester.

Thursday, April 28, 2011 (7:05 p.m.) – Frontier Field
TV: Time Warner Cable Channel 87
Radio: WWKB AM 1520, bisons.com

Buffalo Bisons (9-12, T4th(-5.5), North)
LHP Pat Misch (0-1, 5.68)

Rochester Red Wings (8-11, T4th(-5.5), North)
RHP Andy Baldwin (1-2, 8.27)

TODAY’S GAME: Tonight, the Bisons take on the Rochester Red Wings in the third game of a four-game series from Frontier Field (7:05 p.m.). The series is tied 1-1 following Buffalo’s 5-0 win on Tuesday and the Red Wings 3-2 victory yesterday. Following Friday’s game, the Herd will travel to Lehigh Valley for a four-game set starting April 30.

VS. RED WINGS: The Bisons are 3-3 against the Red Wings this season. The teams split a four-game set at Coca-Cola Field, April 19-21. Dating back to last season, the Bisons are 7-3 in their last 10 games at Frontier Field. Tonight’s starter, LHP PAT MISCH is 1-0 with a 4.82ERA and 15 strikeouts in 18.2 innings in three career starts against the Red Wings.

DISCH ON MISCH: LHP PAT MISCH is in search of his first win this season. The southpaw is 0-1 with a 5.68ERA in two starts for the Herd this season. Last year, Misch won 11 games with the Bisons, the most wins for a lefty in the International League. Overall, Misch was 11-4 with a 3.23ERA in 23 starts for Buffalo as their Most Valuable Pitcher.

ZIPPIDY DUDA: OF LUCAS DUDA clubbed his first home run of the season yesterday. The slugger is starting to heat up with five hits and three extra-base hits in his last three games. The Bisons 2010 Most Valuable Player, Duda had 23 doubles, two triples and 17 home runs in only 70 games with the Herd last year. That was good for a .610 slugging percentage.

SOMETHING NIEU: OF KIRK NIEUWENHUIS saw his 16-game hit streak come to an end yesterday. From April 11-26, the outfielder hit .382 (21-55) with eight doubles, three home runs and five RBI. Nieuwenhuis also failed to reach base for the first time this year. Dating back to last season, he had reached base in 28 straight Triple-A games

BISONS BITS: The Mets plan is to activate C RONNY PAULINO tomorrow from his major league injury rehab assignment…INF LUIS HERNANDEZ and INF RUBEN TEJADA both lost their respective six-game hit streaks in yesterday’s loss…Last night, LHP CASEY FOSSUM threw two shutout innings in his first relief outing with the Bisons this season.

METS UPDATE: The Mets (11-13) won their sixth straight game with a 6-3 win in Washington last night. New York scored four in the ninth inning to beat the Nationals. Former Bisons INF DANIEL MURPHY had a pinch-hit home run in the eighth inning and a two-run double in the ninth. Mets look for the sweep tonight at 7:05 p.m.