O-Tigers top heavy in 8-3 win

Kaiser and Sullivan, the first two hitters in the O-Tigers lineup, combined to go 5-for-7 and scored six runs in an 8-3 New York-Penn League victory over the Tri-City ValleyCats in front of 708 fans at Damaschke Field.

"As the leadoff, I feel it’s my job to get on base," said Kaiser, who finished 2-for-3, walked twice and scored four runs. "We’re a good 1-2 combination. Playing every day, if you get on a hot streak, you get rolling. I’m seeing it well and I think Mike is too."

Kaiser upped his average to .370 and Sullivan to .324.

"It’s a big advantage with the top two (in the lineup) on base," said Sullivan, who drove in a run with a single in the second inning and a triple in the sixth. "I went through a stretch where I was tense and you can’t play like that. I tried to relax and play loose.

"I’m a strong believer that hitting is contagious," he continued. "When you see others getting on in front of you, you want to hit and that’s how rallies get started."

The O-Tigers, winners of four straight, finished with a 14-7 advantage in hits. Devin Thomas contributed three hits for Oneonta, which left 11 runners on base.

"When your one and two hitters get on base eight out of 10 times, that really sets the tone for the offense and the rest of the game," Oneonta manager Andy Barkett said. "They were getting hits, walking and playing team baseball. It takes the pressure off a young pitcher and those guys were great tonight."

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Alfredo Figaro (1-2) earned the victory for Oneonta, allowing three runs on seven hits over five innings. He walked one and struck out two. Jose Fragoso pitched three hitless innings, striking out three and walking one. Adriano Santos pitched the ninth, walking one.

Oneonta heads to Tri-City for a 7 p.m. game Saturday before returning home to start a six-game homestand that starts with a three-game set against Vermont at 6 p.m. Sunday.

The Tigers took a 2-0 lead in the first. Kaiser and Sullivan walked and Justin Henry followed with a single to right to load the bases off losing pitcher Brian Espersen. Cory Middleton then walked to score Kaiser and Thomas singled to center to score Sullivan.

Oneonta went back at it in the second when Jorge Patino doubled and Kaiser singled to put runners on the corners. Sullivan’s single to center scored Patino and moved Kaiser to second. After Henry flew out to right for the first out, Middleton walked to load the bases.

Thomas followed with a single to left off reliever Bryan Hallberg, scoring Kaiser. Hallberg then got Chris Carlson to ground into a 6-4-3 double play to end the inning.

"We had chances to put this game out of reach and didn’t take advantage of them," Barkett said. "We had chances for a bigger job offensively. But, they are swinging the bats well now."

Tri-City got a run in the third inning on Russell Dixon’s RBI single and another in the fourth on an RBI groundout from Cat Everett to make it 4-2.

In the fourth inning, Middleton singled home Kaiser to give Oneonta a 5-2 lead, but Tri-City answered in the fifth, when Charlie Gamble scored on a wild pitch by Figaro. It made the score 5-3.

Oneonta scored its final runs in the sixth. Kaiser singled to right and scored when Sullivan tripled to center. Justin Henry followed with a walk. Hallberg was relieved by Robert Leonhardt, and Sullivan scored and Henry moved to second on a passed ball by Tri-City catcher Kevin Carkeek.

Middleton then hit a hard shot at shortstop Craig Corrado, who threw to first, but Gamble dropped the ball, allowing Henry to score to make it 8-3.

The O-Tigers (7-4) took over the top spot in the Stedler Division, a half-game ahead of Lowell and Vermont.

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P.J. Harmer can be reached at mailto:pharmer@thedailystar.com">pharmer@thedailystar.com or 607-432-1000, ext. 229.