Motter Homers Twice, Stripers Fall 6-2 in Buffalo

BUFFALO, N.Y. – Taylor Motter went 4-for-4 with a double, two home runs, and two RBIs on Thursday afternoon, but the Gwinnett Stripers (61-69) lost 6-2 to the Buffalo Bisons (68-62) at Sahlen Field. Buffalo broke a 1-1 tie with five runs in the sixth inning.

Decisive Plays: Motter's solo shot (15) off Casey Lawrence gave the Stripers a 1-0 lead in the second inning, but Stevie Berman's solo homer (5) off Ian Anderson tied the game at 1-1 in the fifth. In the sixth, RBI hits by Vinny Capra and Rafael Lantigua gave the Bisons a 3-1 lead and chased Anderson from the game. Later in the sixth, Yoshi Tsutsugo's three-run clout (6) off William Woods put the game out of reach at 6-1. Motter laced a homer off the batter's eye in center in the seventh, but the comeback fell short at 6-2.

Key Contributors: Motter had four of Gwinnett's five hits on the day, with Hendrik Clementina adding a single (1-for-3). For Buffalo, Tsutsugo went 1-for-4 with the homer and three RBIs, and Lantigua went 2-for-4 with an RBI. Nate Pearson (W, 1-0) pitched a scoreless sixth for the win.

Noteworthy: Motter now has three two-homer games with Gwinnett this season, and 12 career multi-homer games. He finished a triple shy of the cycle. With nine strikeouts, the Stripers' pitching staff reached 1,229 for the year, a new single-season Gwinnett record (previous was 1,223 strikeouts by the 2011 staff).

Next Games (Friday, September 8): Gwinnett at Buffalo, Doubleheader at 5:30 p.m. at Sahlen Field. RHP Mike Soroka (0-1, 4.50 ERA) and LHP Kyle Muller (6-6, 2.96 ERA) for the Stripers vs. RHP Jose De Leon (0-0, 0.00 ERA) and RHP Shaun Anderson (3-2, 3.14 ERA) for the Bisons. Radio Broadcast: 5:15 p.m. on 1077TheBreeze.com.

Next Home Game (Tuesday, September 13): Gwinnett vs. Durham, 7:05 p.m. at Coolray Field. Radio Broadcast: 6:50 p.m. on MyCountry993.com. It’s a Family Value Tuesday at Coolray Field. Enjoy $2 hot dogs and $1 select desserts, courtesy of Coolray Heating & Cooling.