Buffalo Bisons (0-1, T4(-1.0), North)
RHP Jenrry Mejia (NR)

Syracuse Chiefs (1-0, T1, North)
LHP Ross Detwiler (NR)

Friday, April 8, 2011 (5:05 p.m.) – Coca-Cola Field
TV: Time Warner Cable SportsNet 13 / HD 713
Radio: WWKB AM 1520, bisons.com

TODAY’S GAME: Tonight, the Bisons face the Syracuse Chiefs for game two of a two-game set at Coca-Cola Field (5:05 p.m.). Yesterday, the Chiefs bested the Herd, 8-5, on Opening Day. After tonight’s game, Buffalo continues their six-game homestand with a four-game series with the Pawtucket Red Sox.

VS. CHIEFS: The Chiefs got on the board first in the season-series with the Bisons. Syracuse’s 8-5 victory over the Herd yesterday also continued Buffalo’s struggles at home against their rival. The Chiefs are now 18-7 at Coca-Cola Field since the start of the 2008 season.

OH, JENRRY: RHP JENRRY MEJIA makes his 2011 debut this evening. The 21-year old is the Mets #1 prospect by Baseball America after making the Mets Opening Day roster last season. Mejia did make one start for the Bisons last year, August 30 against Syracuse. In that game, Mejia struck out nine and allowed just one run in eight innings. However, he did not earn a decision as the Bisons lost 4-1 in 10 innings.

QUICK START: OF FERNANDO MARTINEZ got his season off on the right track. The 22-year old outfielder had four hits, including his first double of the year. It was Martinez’s first four-hit effort in 117 games with the Bisons. He also swung the bat well in spring with a .364 (8-22) average in 10 exhibition games with the Mets.

HOT TEJADA: INF RUBEN TEJADA also had a big day at the plate yesterday. The shortstop was 2-3 at the plate with a bases-loaded triple in the fifth inning. It was Tejada’s first triple as a Bison. Last season, he average .280 with one home run and 16RBI in 65 games with the Herd.

SAME OL’ O’C: LHP MIKE O’CONNOR picked up right where he left off last season. The southpaw tossed two scoreless innings yesterday with a pair of punchouts. O’Connor led all Bisons pitchers with 51 appearances last season and struck out 70 batters in 70.2 innings of work. Overall, O’Connor was 5-2 with a 2.67ERA and six saves with the Herd a season ago.

METS UPDATE: The Mets (3-3) were shut out by the Phillies by an 11-0 score yesterday. New York was limited to seven hits with INF JOSE REYES collecting a pair of them. Former Bisons LHP JON NIESE fell in defeat after allowing six runs in four innings. New York hosts Washington today for its Home Opener at Citi Field (4:10p.m.).

The sun was shining almost as bright as the Bisons new 80ft HD scoreboard. The brand new field looked in mid-summer form and the new energy-efficient lights did not have to be used on this day.

It will go down as a memorable start to the 2011 season for the Bisons and the 11,709 in attendance at Coca-Cola Field on Thursday. The score, however, will be forgettable.

Syracuse third baseman Seth Bynum drove in five runs and helped Syracuse build an insurmountable lead in an 8-5 victory over Buffalo on Opening Day. Dillon Gee suffered the loss for the Herd as it fell to their Thruway rival.

Syracuse scored four runs in the fourth inning and four more in the fifth off Gee and reliever Jose De La Torre, with Bynum providing the biggest hit in each frame. His three-run homer to left capped the first Chiefs’ rally and a two-run double in the fifth gave Syracuse an 8-1 advantage.

Both hits by Bynum came with two outs in the inning.

The Bisons had a four-run rally of their own in the fifth as the club tried to claw their way back into the game. Zach Lutz single home a run before Ruben Tejada cleared the bases with a two-out, three-run triple.

The Bisons other run came via the long ball as Kirk Nieuwenhuis hit a laser to right field in the fourth inning.

Gee allowed seven runs (five earned) in 4.2 innings of work to fall to 0-1. The Bisons 2010 strikeout king had four punchouts on Thursday.

BISONS NOTES: Fernando Martinez had four hits including a double…Ruben Tejada reached base three times with a single, a triple and a walk…2010 most use reliever, Mike O’Connor tossed two scoreless frames.

FINAL SCORE: Syracuse 8, Buffalo 5

TO SUM IT UP: Seth Bynum drove in five runs, including a 3-run HR(1) that put Syracuse in front 4-0 in the fourth inning against starter Dillon Gee on Buffalo’s Opening Day and the Chiefs never looked back… Four Syracuse relievers combined for 4.1 scoreless innings… Fernando Martinez collected four hits, while Ruben Tejada went 2-4 and had three RBI with a bases-loaded triple. Kirk Nieuwenhuis hit a fourth inning leadoff HR(1) to get the Bisons on the board.

MORE: Bisons recap via bisons.com

WINNER: Cole Kimball(1-0)
LOSER: Dillon Gee (0-1)
SAVE: Josh Wilkie (1)

2B: Bisons: F. Martinez (1)
3B: Bisons: R. Tejada (1)
HR: Bisons: K. Nieuwenhuis (1)

STARTER’S LINE:
SYR: Maya 4.2IP, 8H, 5R, 5ER, 2BB, 2K
BUF: Gee 4.2IP, 4H, 7R, 5ER, 3BB,4K

FUN FACTS: Buffalo is now 14-10 in home openers at Coca-Cola Field… Bisons manager Tim Teufel is 5-3 as an Opening Day manager, dating back to 2003 (did not manager in’06)… Seven out of the eight Bisons position players reached base in some capacity… This was Dillon Gee’s first career Opening Day start… Gee and Chiefs’ starter, Yunesky Maya made their MLB debuts against each other in Washington D.C. last September.

WHAT’S NEXT: Jenrry Mejia (NR) faces Chiefs’ southpaw Ross Detwiler (NR) in the series finale. The Bisons look to split the short two-game set with the Chiefs on Friday night at 5:05 p.m. Buffalo hosts the Pawtucket Red Sox to begin a four-game set on Saturday to cap off the season’s first homestand.

Thursday, April 7, 2011 (3:05 p.m.) – Coca-Cola Field

Buffalo Bisons (0-0, North)
Syracuse Chiefs (0-0, North)

RHP Dillon Gee (NR) vs. RHP Yunesky Maya (NR)

TV: Time Warner Cable SportsNet 13/713 HD
Radio: WWKB AM 1520, bisons.com

TODAY’S GAME: This afternoon, the Bisons begin the 126th season of professional baseball in Buffalo on Opening Day in the first game of a two-game series against the Syracuse Chiefs (3:05 p.m.). Today’s game is also part of a six-game homestand, as the Herd will host Pawtucket, April 9-12.

HOME SWEET HOME: The Bisons are 14-9 in Home Openers at Coca-Cola Field. Last year, Buffalo defeated Pawtucket, 8-2, in its first home game of the year. Overall, the Herd was 42-30 (.583) at home last season, the 5th-best record in the International League. This will be the first time the Bisons host Syracuse for their Home Opener at Coca-Cola Field.

VS. THE CHIEFS: The Chiefs have had the Bisons’ number in recent years. Syracuse has won the last three season series, including a 10-6 record over the Herd in 2010. Prior to that, Buffalo owned the matchup with six season-series victories in a seven-year span from 2000-2007.

GOSH GOLLY, GEE: RHP DILLON GEE gets the Opening Day nod for the Herd. The 24-year old Cleburne, TX-native shattered the Bisons modern era single-season strikeout record with 165 punchouts in 2010. Gee was 13-8 with a 4.96ERA last season, including an 8-3 record at Coca-Cola Field.

IT’S YOU AGAIN: RHP DILLON GEE and Syracuse RHP Yunesky Maya made the major league debut last season…against each other. On September 7 in Washington, Gee’s Mets bested Maya’s Nationals, 4-1. Gee took a no-hitter into the 6th inning in his seven-inning victory (2H, R, ER, 3BB, 4K). Gee also became the first Met pitcher to ever collect an RBI in his first major league at-bat with an RBI-single off Maya.

HERD GETS TEUF: Today’s game will be TIM TEUFEL’S first as manager of the Buffalo Bisons. Teufel is the 16th Herd skipper in the modern era. It will also be Teufel’s first game as a manager at the Triple-A level after seven seasons in the Mets minor league system. The Palm Beach Gardens, FL-native played 11 seasons in the major leagues and was a member of the 1986 New York Mets World Series Championship club.

ABOUT SYRACUSE: The Chiefs’ Opening Day roster contains 16 players who have spent time in Syracuse since the affiliation with the Nationals began in 2009. Eight of those players (Balester, Detwiler, Martin, Mock, Stammen, Wilkie, Bernadina and Bynum) have been on the roster for part of both seasons with the Chiefs as  a Nationals’ farm club. Six of the players (Hyde, Aubrey, Brown, Frazier, McConnell and Valdez) come from other organizations. Of the Opening Day Chiefs, just Cole Kimball, Tom Milone and Chris Marrero were drafted by the Nats and haven’t played in Syracuse.

METS UPDATE: The Mets (3-2) lost to the rival Phillies last night by a 10-7 score. New York fought back from 7-0 down to tie the game before falling in defeat. Former Bison OF ANGEL PAGAN collected his first home run of the season in the loss. Mets and Phillies play the rubber match of their three-game set at 3:05 p.m. today.

See you at the yard tomorrow, 3:05 p.m. for Bisons baseball.