Jordan Brown hit a two-run home run, and Todd Linden had a bases-clearing double yesterday as Buffalo overwhelmed visiting Richmond in the first game of a four-game series.

A sellout crowd of 11,360 nearly filled The Diamond on July 5. The next day, one Richmond Brave poked his head out of the dugout about 45 minutes before the game, observed small clusters of fans here and there in the stands and noted the attendance was back to normal.

The Richmond Braves are one of several teams in the International League experiencing a decline in average attendance this season. Yet the league expects to set an attendance record. How to explain? IL President Randy Mobley said there have been significantly fewer rainouts this season than in 2007. With more games being played, the 14-team league has had higher total attendance.

Jim Bowden misses the slush machine from RFK Stadium. He's the team's GM and he's entitled to his cravings, but methinks he's being a tad picky here. Yeah, Nationals Park is without frozen goop in the homies' clubhouse. So stipulated. But it also lacks RFK's stale odors, cramped conditions and, umm, rodentia. On balance, it's a tradeoff Bowden and the Nats probably can live with.