HARTFORD, Conn. – The Eastern League is experimenting with new extra inning rules this season and the New Hampshire Fisher Cats got their first chance to experience those rules on Friday during their 4-3 victory over the Hartford Yard Goats.
Each team held the other scoreless over nine of the game’s first ten innings.
New Hampshire got two runs the third, first from a fielder’s choice that let Bo Bichette cross the plate, followed by a Lourdes Gurriel Jr. line drive that brought home Jonathan Davis.
Hartford evened the game up an inning later with a pair of home runs, first from Brendan Rodgers and then from Sam Hilliard.
After Hilliard’s blast, both teams combined for just four more hits until the eleventh inning.
Per the new rules, Davis began the 11th on second base for New Hampshire, with the first career sacrifice bunt of Vladimir Guerrero Jr. sending Davis to third and a Gurriel Jr. triple bringing Davis home.
Gurriel Jr. would also come home before the end of the inning thanks to a Cavan Biggio double.
In the bottom of the 11th, Hartford’s Yonathan Daza started on second and Rodgers would get his second RBI of the contest, but New Hampshire’s Conor Fisk retired the next two batters for his first Eastern League save.
Bichette, Biggio and Gurriel Jr. accounted for seven of New Hampshire’s eight hits while Rodgers and Hillard each had multi-hit games for the Yard Goats.
Zach Jackson (1-0) was credited with the win for his work in the ninth and tenth. Jason Garcia (0-1) earned the loss for Hartford.
Game three of the four-game set is scheduled for tomorrow night at 6:05 in Hartford. Righthanders Nick Tepesch (0-0, 0.00 ERA) and Jesus Tinoco (0-0, 0.00 ERA) take the mound for New Hampshire and Hartford respectively.