Game 3: Bluefish 4-2

	Eric Ackerman 5-2, 4.35 ERA		Rafael Bergstrom 0-4, 5.90 ERA

The Barnstormers are looking for a three-game sweep of Bridgeport. If they pull it off, they’ll be 3-0 for the second time in franchise history. They also did it in 2006. The offense, much hyped before opening day, has lived up to billing so far. The Barnstormers have scored 17 runs on 23 hits in 14 innings. They have a .465 team on-base and .689 slugging. That’ll get you some wins.

This is the beginning of Ackerman’s foray into being a full-time starter in the Atlantic League. Although his ERA in that role is 6.64, most of those appearances came in 2006, before he refined his slider and changeup. We’ll see if his deeper repertoire of pitches translates into long-term success.

Bergstrom became the first player from the fledgling Israel Baseball League to earn a pro contract in the U.S. in August. His numbers in the IBL were impressive, but he struggled during his six appearances with the Bluefish last season.

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Lineup musings:

*One of the reasons Barnstormin’ was optimistic about 1B Ian Bladergroen’s chances of success in Lancaster was the way he finished 2007. He batted .309 with 24 extra-base hits during his final 50 games with the Road Warriors.

*Another reason to be optimistic about the offense: nine strikeouts and nine walks in two games.

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Links:

*Game 2 story

*Game 2 box score

*The fan blog has video from Game 2.

*The York Gladstones are 0-2. They’re using a spot starter in the third game of the season. That’s never a good sign.

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Lineups …

(0-2)	(2-0)
Adam Greenberg, CF	Jarred Ball, LF
Bobby Darula, LF	Danny Gonzalez, SS
Jesse Hoorelbeke, 3B	Matt LeCroy, DH
Calvin Pickering, DH	Brian Stavisky, RF
Luis Lopez, 2B	Ian Bladergroen, 1B
Jake Daubert, 1B	Jutt Hileman, CF
Ryan Bear, RF	Manny Mejia, C
Alex Prieto, SS	Lloyd Turner, 2B
Brian Munhall, C	John Nelson, 3B

Scoring summary …

Bluefish	000	000	202	4	7	1
Barnstormers	000	011	000	2	6	0

FINAL: Bluefish 4, Barnstormers 2

Stormers 5th: Hileman hits solo home run.
Lancaster leads 1-0.

Stormers 6th: Bladergroen’s single scores LeCroy.
Lancaster leads 2-0.

Bluefish 7th: Munhall’s double scores Daubert and Bear.
Game tied at 2.

Bluefish 9th: Prieto’s single scores Lopez and Daubert.
Bridgeport leads 4-2.

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RECORD: 2-1

PLAYER OF THE GAME: Alex Prieto

2-run single snaps a 2-2 tie in the ninth inning. It was his only hit of the game and it was a jamshot through a drawn-in infield, but it was enough to help the Bluefish avoid a season-opening sweep.

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The pitchers:

*The absence of Sendy Rleal and Jose Cabrera showed. This was the first time the bullpen was asked to hold a close lead and it failed. Ricardo Gomez was tagged with the loss. Judd Songster suffered a blown save. Although he acknowledged the absence of his would-be closer and setup man, manager Von Hayes expressed confidence in his relief corps.

“The guys we’re throwing have good stuff,” he said. “That wasn’t what cost us the game. We just needed to play the game fundamentally a little bit better. We’re missing signs, real easy signs. If you’re going to win, you can’t make those kinds of mistakes.”

*The big fundamental error came in the ninth when Gomez committed a balk on a botched sacrifice bunt play. It put the go-ahead run in scoring position and that run eventually came home.

*It was a hit-and-miss outing for Gomez. He retired Calvin Pickering and AL MVP Jesse Hoorelbeke with the score tied at 2 in the eighth, but came unraveled in the ninth – allowing two runs. Despite throwing harder than most relievers in this league, Gomez doesn’t get many swings and misses. That’s a concern. Also, the botched bunt play seemed to unnerve him.

“It may have,” Hayes said. “You’ve still got to suck it up and make your pitches. He came in throwing pretty darn hard. We tried to stretch him out with the possibility of extra innings. The bottom line is that bunt play really hurt.”

*Songster allowed a two-run double to Brian Munhall that erased the Barnstormers’ 2-0 lead in the seventh. That’s when Lancaster lost its stranglehold on the game.

*Eric Ackerman’s first outing went well. The line:

4 IP

2 H

0 ER

0 R

2 BB

4 K

Two of his four strikeouts came against Pickering, a lefty slugger. On one occasion, he fell behind behind 3-1 and threw two consecutive fastballs to get the K. One thing you look at when a reliever converts to starting is how well he fares the second and third time through the lineup.

1st time: 2-for-9 … 2 strikeouts … both hits were singles
2nd time: 0-for-4 … 2 strikeouts … 2 walks … 1 hit batter

The second time through was more of a struggle, so that’s something to keep an eye on going forward. Ackerman was pulled after four innings despite not allowing a run.

*Rob Averette made his first appearance. The righthander, who was signed after a workout during spring training, retired all six batters he faced. It was his first pro appearance since 2006.

*Every reliever worked in this series except lefty Ross Peeples and righty Franklin Mendible. That tells you the pecking order in the pen.

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The hitters:

*Hayes tinkered with the lineup. No Mike Woods. No Vasili Spanos. No Lance Burkhart. John Nelson made his first start at 3B and Jarred Ball made his debut in LF.

*Jutt Hileman launched his first home run. On a cool afternoon when the ball wasn’t traveling particularly well, he put one on the grass hill in straightaway left.

*Ian Bladergroen’s hot start continued. He was 2-for-3 with an RBI single and walk. He’s still riding high at .667.

*Manny Mejia had an inauspicious debut. The former Road Warrior went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts.

*Overall, not a good day for the offense. Although the Barnstormers had 11 baserunners, only two crossed the plate. They left two men on base in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings.

“You can’t get the big hit all the time,” Hayes said. “We got good enough pitching to win.

*The Barnstormers are 2-1 for the second year in a row. They’re off Monday before beginning a six-day road trip on Long Island Tuesday.

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