LONG ISLAND, NY – Six. That is the number of games the Blue Crabs have lost at the Duck’s home ballpark, Fairfield Properties Ballpark. After dropping the series, the Crabs tried to at least leave with at least one win and snap the losing streak.
Tony Dibrell, who had fanned 10 Dirty Birds in his last start, was again facing these Long Island Ducks. With the bases loaded and two outs, a ball squeaked away from Isaias Quiroz, and Boog Powell would be the first player to touch the plate. Long Island got another run in the second without recording a hit as Trent Taylor doubled the lead from a Powell sacrifice fly into left.
Dibrell and Ducks starter Robert Stock then made it a pitcher’s duel, with the score remaining 2-0 for Long Island. That all changed when the Crabs broke through in the top of the sixth. Jimmy Kerrigan hit a sharp liner to left for a double to lead it off, then Alex Crosby would single to get the tying run on. The Crabs scored two runs when Philip Caulfield picked up his third of four hits against his former team, and Quiroz tied it with a sacrifice fly.
Then, Ducks Manager, Wally Backman, elected to make a pitching change and brought in Al Alburquerque after a double play to start the seventh. Kerrigan mashed his second double in back-to-back at-bats; Backman then walked Crosby intentionally to get to Hobson. Hobson made him pay. On the very first pitch, Hobson turned on a slider and sent a missile over the right field wall for his 15th home run. Two batters later, Quiroz gave the Crabs some breathing room from his two-run home run.
Joe DeCarlo had a home run to lead off the bottom of the seventh, and the game ended on a 3-6-1 double play to snap the losing streak in Long Island. The Crab’s record now stands at 49-43 and 18-11 in the second half, keeping them in first place.
Tony Dibrell was rewarded with the win, his second since becoming a Blue Crab. Alburquerque suffered his first loss of the season. The Warriors from Waldorf will stay in the big apple and face off with the Staten Island FerryHawks for three games in two days. Tomorrow’s game is at 12:00 PM; Ian Kahaloa is the next in the rotation for the Crabs; it will be his 18th start. The live stream of the game will be featured on FloSports.