Baysox top Flying Squirrels in series opener

Joey Bart and Heliot Ramos each made their Double-A debut on Friday, but the Richmond Flying Squirrels lost, 4-1, to the Bowie Baysox at The Diamond.

Bart and Ramos, the top two prospects in the San Francisco Giants organization according to MLB Pipeline, combined to go 0-for-7 with a walk and a stolen base.

It was the eighth consecutive home loss for Richmond (42-73, 19-29).

Bowie (62-53, 32-15) cracked the scoreboard in the second inning against Brandon Lawson (Loss, 5-7). After Carlos Perez led off the frame with a single, Anderson Feliz drove an RBI double to deep left-center field. Feliz tried to score later in the inning on a pop-out by Ryan Ripken, but Ryan Howard threw out Feliz at home plate for an inning-ending double play.

The Baysox added to their lead in the third. With Cedric Mullins on second base and one out, Feliz doubled down the left-field line to put Bowie up, 2-0.

The Flying Squirrels cut the deficit in half in the bottom of the third when Zach Houchins blasted a solo home run to center field against Tyler Herb (Win, 2-2). It was Houchins’ eighth home run of the season.

Bowie tacked on two runs in the fifth. Mullins singled after Mason McCoy drew a leadoff walk, putting runners on the corners with one out. After Feliz brought home a run with an infield single, Carlos Perez plated Bowie’s final run with an RBI groundout.

Lawson completed six innings for the sixth consecutive start, allowing four runs (three earned) on eight hits.

Herb allowed one run on two hits in seven innings before Francisco Jimenez and Cristian Alvarado (Save, 6) held Richmond scoreless over the final two frames.

The Flying Squirrels continue their series with the Bowie Baysox on Saturday with a scheduled double-header. First pitch of Game One is scheduled for 5:05 p.m., and coverage begins with the Flying Squirrels Pregame Warmup at 4:35 p.m. on Sports Radio 910 the Fan and 105.1 FM.

As part of the 10 memorable past promotions series, the Flying Squirrels host their second “What If” Night and will play as the Richmond HushPuppies, a wild-card entrant to the franchise’s “name the team” contest in 2009, in Game Two of Saturday’s double-header.

Fans have a chance to own a piece of history by bidding on a game-worn, Richmond HushPuppies jersey. Proceeds from the HushPuppies jersey auction benefit Flying Squirrels Charities and its mission to renovate youth baseball fields in the city of Richmond.

The Flying Squirrels celebrate pop stars through the years on Saturday along with a themed In-Your-Face Fireworks show from up close and inside the fences after the game, presented By Wawa & FOX.

For tickets or more information, call 804-359-3866 (FUNN), visit SquirrelsBaseball.com/Tickets or stop by the Flying Squirrels box office.