Figueroa selected as Triple-A All-Star
Bisons notebook
In a summer where there have been few bright spots for the Buffalo Bisons, pitcher Nelson Figueroa has been a constant.
The 35-year old was named to the International League All-Star Team Thursday afternoon.
Figueroa was the scheduled starter for the Bisons' matinee against the Rochester Red Wings at Coca-Cola Field but the game was postponed due to wet grounds and unplayable field conditions.
He will join Bisons manager Ken Oberkfell at the July 15 Triple-A All-Star Game in Portland, Ore., after Oberkfell was named an All-Star coach last month.
"He's very deserving," Oberkfell said. "The numbers have nothing to do with it. He pitched well and is a deserving All-Star. He's in the top 10 in ERA and he's had all quality starts here. I'm happy for [him] and hopefully he's happy to go."
The numbers may have nothing to do with how well Figueroa has pitched, but he was finally rewarded with good numbers during the month of June.
Figueroa went 0-4 in his first seven starts, largely a victim of not getting adequate run support.
His first win came June 2 against Norfolk and kick-started a great month for the right-hander.
In five starts during June he went 3-0 and posted the fourth-best ERA in the International League (1.53). Overall, Figueroa's 2.61 ERA ranks eighth in the league.
"We started to get some offense a little bit, too, which helped," Oberkfell said. "There were a lot of games where [Figueroa] pitched ... and we didn't score any runs for him. He continued to go out and didn't let it bother him. He pitched his game. He knew eventually we'd start hitting for him and we did and he's maintained his level the whole time. I'm happy for him."
Figueroa had already left the ballpark when reporters were informed of the postponement and was unavailable for comment.
With New York Mets pitcher Oliver Perez scheduled to make a major-league rehab start for the Bisons tonight, there is no immediate word as to how the rest of the pitching rotation will be affected by Thursday's postponement.
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The tarp never left the field Thursday afternoon as the grounds crew worked to remove water from the outfield.
While a few showers passed over downtown, the problem was standing water in left and center field. The amount of rain over the past few days made it difficult for the drainage system to handle.
The teams waited 90 minutes before the game was postponed.
"The outfield was real bad," Oberkfell said. "It's tough to see from the stands but we walked out there earlier and there was standing water. They had a blower out there trying to blow it [dry] and we waited almost 45 minutes to go back out there and look at it and it hadn't really gotten any better.
"It's definitely an unplayable outfield, especially left field and even parts of center field. It's a safety issue also but it's more that it was unplayable."
The game will be made up as part of a doubleheader Aug. 10 starting at 5:35 p.m.
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Thursday's postponement will not affect the biggest night of the year at the downtown ballpark, tonight's annual Independence Eve Celebration featuring the postgame Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra concert and fireworks show. That remains a single game beginning at 6:05 p.m. (Radio 1520 AM).
Fewer than 4,000 tickets are available for the game and all seats are $23. The team is selling individual tickets only and no longer selling four-packs for the event.
Due to the high volume of Internet and phone sales requiring will-call pickup, fans are encouraged to utilize the outlet will-call capability available at all Tickets.com outlets at participating Tops Markets.
Fans will need to bring their transaction number to receive their tickets this way. Outlet will-call is available until 1 p.m. After that, all will-call pickups must be done at the ballpark's Swan Street ticket office.
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