Sox affiliates sweep opening day

4/9 Cup of Coffee: A pair of players making their debut in the Red Sox organization powered Pawtucket to an 11-3 win over Syracuse. With the game tied 1-1 after 2, Darnell McDonald hit a two-run double before Tug Hullet's two-run shot to right made it 5-1. McDonald added a two-run homer of his own in the fifth and an RBI single in a four-run sixth. Boof Bonser made the start on a rehab assignment, giving up 3 runs on 6 hits. He struck out 4. Joe Nelson, Alan Embree, Chad Paronto, and Robert Manuel combined for 4.2 innings of scoreless relief. Josh Reddick went 0 for 4 with 3 strikeouts.

Portland brought the big bats up from Fort Myers as well, topping Reading 10-5. Ryan Kalish opened the game with a leadoff home run, but Reading staked themselves to a 3-1 lead. The Seadogs put up a five spot in the bottom of the fifth, capped by a three-run Luis Exposito home run. Nate Spears homered in the sixth to make it 7-1 before Che-Hsuan Lin added a three-run shot of his own in the seventh to extend the lead to 10-1. Starting pitcher Felix Doubront went six strong and retired the last 14 batters he faced, allowing 3 runs (2 earned) on 3 hits and striking out two. Eammon Portice struck out two in two relief innings. Jose Iglesias went 2 for 4 with a double and a stolen base in his professional debut.

Salem led Potomac 1-0 in the second before the game was suspended due to rain. They'll resume tomorrow at 5:30, followed by the regularly scheduled game.

Greenville notched their first win of the season as well, with starting pitcher Yieper Castillo impressing in a 5-3 win over Delmarva. He allowed 2 runs on 5 hits, striking out 7 in 4.2 innings. Reymond Fuentes tied the game at 1 with an RBI single in the fourth, but Delmarva scored to make it 2-1 in the top of the fifth. The Drive pulled ahead for good with 3 runs in the bottom of the sixth before Derek Gibson singled in Dan Butler in the eighth to cap the scoring for the Drive. Pete Ruiz earned the win, going 2.2 innings in relief.

Player of the Night: Veteran outfielder Darnell McDonald had a stellar opening game for the PawSox, going 4 for 5 with a home run, double, and 5 RBI. He also scored twice.

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