It may not have been a walk off, but the Bisons used some late inning heroics again to beat the Red Wings tonight 7-3 in front of 16,454 fans at Coca-Cola Field.

Heading into the bottom of the eighth with the game tied at two, the Red Wings committed two errors on consecutive at-bats that led to the Bisons scoring five unearned runs and giving them the sweep of Rochester.

With Jesus Feliciano and Lucas Duda on base with two outs, Fernando Martinez, fresh off a minor stint with the Mets had the chance to put his team ahead. F-Mart hit a sharp liner that looked like it was going to get through and out to right field until Rochester second baseman Matt Macri made an impressive stab at the ball and stopped it right in its tracks.

As Macri rose to his feet he bobbled the ball with Feliciano flying around third and towards home. Macri tried to make the play at the plate but Feliciano slid underneath the tag of Danny Lehmann and got the go-ahead run, putting the Herd up 3-2.

In the following at-bat Mike Cervenak grounded back to the pitcher Rob Delaney. Delaney then threw the ball out of the reach of his first baseman Dustin Martin, allowing Duda to score and putting F-Mart on third. Russ Adams then put the game away as he hit his 11th home run of the year, also his second in three days, making the score 7-2.

The Bisons were kept in the game early by a terrific start from Raul Valdes. Making his fourth start of the year, Valdes threw his first quality start of the season by going for seven innings and only giving up two runs off of six hits while striking out seven.

After Valdes’ exit the Bisons bullpen continued their phenomenal month of August with two scoreless innings of relief between Chad Cordero and Yhency Brazoban. So far this month the bullpen for the Herd has tossed 56.2 innings and has a combined record of 5-0 with 56 strikeouts.

With the victory Buffalo continued their strong push towards the postseason. The Bisons have now won four straight, and 15 of their last 18 games. They also completed the season a perfect 9-0 on Friday nights and swept the Red Wings, their sixth sweep of the season. Also with Louisville losing 8-1 to Syracuse tonight the Bisons are now only two games behind the Bats for the lone Wild Card spot.

BISONS NOTES: Nick Evans hit his third home run of the season back in the fourth inning that gave the Bisons the first lead of the game. The Herd now has a rare and crucial six-game series with the Pawtucket Red Sox this weekend, including a double-header tomorrow. The Bisons will send Fernando Nieve (2-0, 4.19 ERA) to the mound to take on Fabio Castro (5-8, 4.87 ERA) to start of the set.

Buffalo Bisons
67-56, 2nd(-6.0)
LHP Raul Valdes 1-1, 1.88

Rochester Red Wings
47-79, 6th(-27.5)
RHP Mat Fox 6-8, 4.23

Friday, August 20, 2010
Coca-Cola Field – Buffalo, NY

TV: Time Warner Cable SportsNet 13
Radio: WWKB AM 1520, WGR Sportsradio 550, bisons.com

TODAY’S GAME: This evening, the Bisons take on the Rochester Red Wings in the final game of a three-game set from Coca-Cola Field (7:35 p.m.). The Herd rallied yesterday in the ninth inning for a 4-3 win to earn their second consecutive walk-off victory. After this series, the Bisons host Pawtucket for six-game in five-day series that starts with a doubleheader on Saturday.

COPYBATS: The Bisons did not gain any ground in the IL playoff race last night as Louisville won again. The Bats beat Syracuse, 6-2. The Bisons trail Louisville by three games in the IL Wild Card Race.

RED HOT HERD: The Bisons have won 15 of their last 18 games for a .833 winning percentage since July 30. The Herd has also won 12 of its last 13 games at Coca-Cola Field, including six straight going into tonight’s game. Buffalo is now 11 games above .500 for the first time since August 27, 2007 (73-62).

THRUWAY CUP: The Bisons are 8-5 against the Red Wings this season, including a 4-3 mark at home. Buffalo is now 13-12 in the Thruway Series, 4.5 games behind Syracuse (17-7) and six ahead of Rochester (7-18). There are 11 Thruway Series games left in 2010, with the Bisons playing in seven of them.

DRAMA: Yesterday’s victory was Buffalo’s 11th walk-off win and 31st comeback win of the season. It was also the second time the Herd has walked off in back-to-back games this season. The Bisons beat Gwinnett on July 16 on a OF JESUS FELICIANO RBI-single in the 11th and defeated the Braves again on July 17 in the ninth on a OF JORGE PADILLA sacrifice fly.

THAT’S A RELIEF: The Bisons’ bullpen has been phenomenal in the month of August. In 54.2 innings of work, the relievers are 4-0 with three saves, 54 strikeouts and a 1.65ERA. In 12 appearances, LHP MIKE O’CONNOR has thrown 12.0 innings with a 1.50ERA, a win, and 15Ks in August. In seven appearances, RHP JOSE DE LA TORRE has tossed 10.2 innings and posted two wins, a 0.84ERA and a .111 opponent batting average this month.

TGIF: Tonight is Buffalo’s final fridaynightbash! of the season. The Herd is undefeated (8-0) on Friday nights at Coca-Cola Field in 2010, outscoring their opponents, 71-35. The Bisons were only 4-9 last year on Fridays at home.

METS UPDATE: The Mets (60-61) lost in Houston, 3-2, last night. Former Bisons LHP PAT MISCH allowed three runs in six plus innings of work in the loss. The Mets are still 8.5 games behind the Phillies in the NL Wild Card race. New York will travel to Pittsburgh to play the first of three against the Pirates tonight at 7:05 p.m.

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The Bisons used a walk off single from J.R House to defeat the Rochester Red Wings 4-3 this afternoon at Coca-Cola Field.

It was the second walk off victory for the Bisons in as many days against the Red Wings who were beaten by a Mike Cervenak single in last night’s 7-6 Bisons win.

Buffalo started today’s rally in the bottom of the ninth when Nick Evans drew a lead-off walk, the last thing the opposing pitcher wants to do while protecting a one run lead.

Following a strikeout from Kirk Nieuwenhuis, Cervenak came through in the clutch again today, singling to left and keeping the inning alive. After Cervenak’s single, designated hitter Russ Adams came to the plate. Going 0-3 in his previous at-bats Adams had a chance to tie the game up with runners on first and second with only one out.

On a 1-0 pitch to Adams he tried to check his swing thinking the ball was out of the strike zone. Luckily for him and the Bisons his check swing made contact with the ball sending a screamer past Rochester third baseman D’Angelo Jimenez and into left field. Adam’s check swing double allowed Evans to score and put Cervenak, the winning run, 90 feet from a win.

Luis Hernandez was intentionally walked to load the bases and bring House to bat for his chance to be today’s hero. House was able to do so as he singled softly to left bringing home Cervenak and another win for the Red Hot Herd.

The walk off victory for the Bisons was their 11th this season. In today’s edition House was the hero, making him the tenth different member of the Bisons to have a walk off hit.

The win for Buffalo also keeps their hot streak going. Since July 30 the Bisons have come alive in the late push for the postseason, going 15-3 in that stretch.

Rochester had plenty of opportunities to break the game open but were only able to plate home three runs, despite getting 13 hits. The Red Wings grounded into three double plays and left 13 runners on base as a team. The Red Wings had their first of many chances in the first inning when they got three consecutive singles to load the bases with only one out. Buffalo starting pitcher Michael Antonini forced Brendan Harris into an inning-ending double play to get out of the jam.

While Antonini gave up ten hits in his six inning outing today, he only managed to give up three runs and keep his team in the game. Sean Green, Adam Pettyjohn and Jose De La Torre then worked three innings combined out of the pen to hold the Red Wings to no more runs as the offense was able to come back and get the win. The Bisons are now 67-56 on the season and have moved to within 2.5 games of the Wild Card spot behind Louisville. The Bats play later this evening against Syracuse.

Buffalo Bisons
66-56, 2nd(-6.0)
LHP Michael Antonini 1-1, 4.50

Rochester Red Wings
47-78, 6th(-26.5)
RHP Kyle Gibson 0-0, 1.59

Thursday, August 19, 2010
Coca-Cola Field – Buffalo, NY

TV: Time Warner Cable SportsNet 13
Radio: WWKB AM 1520, bisons.com

TODAY’S GAME: This afternoon, the Bisons take on the Rochester Red Wings in the second game of a three-game set from Coca-Cola Field (1:05 p.m.). The Herd struck first in the series thanks to last night’s 7-6 walk-off win. After this series, the Bisons host Pawtucket for six-game in five-day series.

COPYBATS: The Bisons did not gain any ground in the IL playoff race last night as Louisville also earned a walk-off win. Triple-A rookie C Devin Mesoraco hit a walk-off grand slam to help the Bats beat Syracuse, 5-3. The Bisons trail Louisville by three games in the IL Wild Card Race.

RED HOT HERD: The Bisons have won 14 of their last 17 games for a .824 winning percentage since July 30. The Herd has also won 11 of its last 12 games at Coca-Cola, including five straight going into today’s game. Last night’s victory was Buffalo’s 10th walk-off win and 30th comeback win of the season.

THRUWAY CUP: The Bisons are 7-5 against the Red Wings this season, including a 3-3 mark at home. Buffalo is now 12-12 in the Thruway Series, five games behind Syracuse (17-7) and five ahead of Rochester (7-17). There are 12 Thruway Series games left in 2010, with the Bisons playing in eight of them.

STRIKEOUT KING: RHP DILLON GEE flew past the Bisons single-season record for strikeouts last night. Gee fanned eight Red Wings batters, giving him 144 strikeouts on the season. The previous record of 137 by RHP Vicente Palacios had stood since 1990. Gee’s 144 punchouts are four more than any other pitcher at the Triple-A level this season.

HOMERING HERD: INF RUSS ADAMS became the sixth Bisons hitter to reach 10 home runs this year with his shot off the right field foul pole last night. Adams has three homers and a .450 average (9-20) in his last seven games. The last time the Bisons had six or more with double-digit home runs was 2007 when INF Andy Marte (16) and five others reached the plateau.

HIT STREAK: OF JESUS FELICIANO extended his hit streak to 10-games last night. Feliciano has hit .304 (14-46) during the stretch. The outfielder is now 18 plate appearances shy of IL qualification.

METS UPDATE: The Mets (60-60) defeated the Astros, 3-2, in 14 innings last night in Houston. RHP R.A. DICKEY allowed just two runs in 8.1 innings of work, but did not earn a decision. Former Bisons INF IKE DAVIS hit a sac fly in the top of the 14th for the game-winning run. The Mets take on the ‘Stros again today at 2:05 p.m.

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The Bisons kept pace while their ace set a new one.

Dillon Gee broke the club’s modern era single-season strikeout record and the Bisons rallied late for a 7-6 walk-off victory over the rival Rochester Red Wings on Wednesday night at Coca-Cola Field. Mike Cervenak’s two-out single in the ninth drove home Justin Turner and gave the Herd their 10th walk-off win of the season.

With the victory, Buffalo kept pace with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in the divisional race and Louisville for the IL’s lone wild card spot. Both the Yankees and Bats won on Wednesday.

Walk-off wins have become almost customary for the Herd at home this season. This edition came as the Bisons also notched their 30th comeback victory of the season as Buffalo trailed by as much as three runs.

Turner drew a walk to lead off the frame and advanced to second on Nick Evans grounder. With two outs, Rochester decided to go Cervenak and walked Triple-A rookie Kirk Nieuwenhuis to get to the two-time All-Star. But the choice backfired as Cervenak delivered the base hit up the middle for the win.

Yet another late-inning victory shouldn’t overshadow the accomplishment of Bisons hurler Dillon Gee much earlier in the game. The righty broke the club’s modern era single-season record for strikeouts with eight more punchouts on Wednesday.

Gee now has 144 strikeouts on the year, but it was his 138th that set a new standard in Buffalo. Gee threw a nasty off-speed pitch to Jose Morales on a 1-2 pitch that got the Red Wings’ catcher swinging. The strikeout broke the 20-year old record of 137, set in 1990 by Vicente Palacios.

Gee was given a great ovation by the Coca-Cola Field crowd after the record-breaking strikeout. As the fans cheered, the hurler tossed the ball into the dugout for safe keeping.

Gee struck out Morales three times in the game, but ran into trouble while trying to hold onto a 3-2 lead in the sixth inning. After allowing a single to Dustin Martin and hitting Brendan Harris, Gee allowed a three-run home run to designated hitter Erik Lis. Gee left with a no-decision, failing at his bid to become the IL’s second 13-game winner.

Rochester increased its lead to 6-3 before the Bisons tied it with three in the bottom half of the sixth. Cervenak scored a wild pitch and J.R. House plated Russ Adams with an infield single. Turner singled with the bases loaded to tie the game.

Buffalo used the long ball to gain the early lead. Adams and Turner hit solo home runs in the second and fifth innings respectively.

BISONS NOTES: Jorge Padilla left the game in the fourth inning after a scary play at second base. Padilla slide into the bag trying to break up a doubleplay and Rochester’s shortstop Matt Tolbert hit Padilla in the head with his relay through. Padilla was able to walk off on his own power, but was taken to the hospital for further testing…Gee’s previous high for strikeouts in a season was 114, set in 25 starts between Single-A and Double-A in 2008…Buffalo didn’t gain any ground in the IL Wild Card race. Louisville got a walk-off grand slam in the first ever Triple-A game for catcher Devin Mesoraco for a 5-3 win over Syracuse.