June 17, 2011 at 7:58 AM
Pawtucket and Greenville walk off with victories
6/17 Cup of Coffee: An eventful night of minor league action saw Pawtucket and Greenville celebrate walk off victories while Salem’s bats battered the opposition. Portland was the lone loss amongst the affiliates, dropping a close game in the later innings.A back-and-forth contest broke Pawtucket’s way as they walked off with a 6-5 extra inning victory over the Lehigh Valley IronPigs (PHI). Felix Doubront tossed 5.0 innings in the start, allowing 3 runs (2 earned) on 6 hits and 2 walks while striking out 6. Franklin Morales added 1.2 innings of relief, allowing 2 unearned runs on 1 hit, striking out 1. Jason Rice provided 2.0 innings of scoreless work from the bullpen, allowing just 1 hit and striking out 2. Randy Williams picked up the victory for his 1.0 inning of relief as he walked one and struck out 1. Down 2-0 in the fourth, Pawtucket plated three runs on Hector Luna and Daniel Nava RBI singles as well as a Josh Reddick sacrifice fly. Lehigh Valley tied the game in the fifth and added two runs in the sixth to take a 5-3 lead. In the seventh, Brent Dlugach laced a two out RBI single that brought home two to tie the game 5-5. The game remained scoreless and headed to extra innings where Ryan Lavarnway hit a game winning RBI single in the bottom of the tenth to bring home victory for the PawSox.
In a game Portland lead 3-0, the Erie SeaWolves (DET) roared back to claim a 6-4 victory. Alex Wilson got the start for the Sea Dogs, going 5.0 innings, allowing 4 runs (3 earned) on 5 hits and 3 walks, striking out 5. Eammon Portice received the loss for his 3.0 innings of relief, allowing 2 unearned runs on a hit and a walk while striking out 5. Tony Thomas’ RBI single in the first and Vladimir Frias’ sacrifice fly in the second gave Portland a 2-0 advantage. In the fifth, Alex Hassan smacked a solo home run to give the Sea Dogs a 3-0 lead. Erie, however, plated four runs in the bottom half of the fifth to claim a 4-3 lead. Portland tied the game in the seventh, as Frias came home on a balk. Erie would score the winning runs in the bottom of the eighth thanks to sloppy play from the Sea Dogs. Three Portland errors by Oscar Tejeda, Tim Federowicz and Jon Hee allowed the SeaWolves to push across two runs and claim victory.
Salem’s offense put together 16 hits as they easily beat the Potomac Nationals (WAS), 10-3. Junichi Tazawa made his sixth start since returning from Tommy John surgery, going 3.0 innings, allowing 1 run on 2 hits, striking out 2. Pete Ruiz received the victory for his 5.0 innings of work, allowing 2 runs on 4 hits and 2 walks, striking out 3. Kendal Volz added a scoreless inning of relief, allowing 1 hit and striking out 1. Down 1-0 in the third, Salem received a three run home run from Shannon Wilkerson to take a 3-1 lead. In the sixth, Derrik Gibson laced an RBI single to give the Red Sox a 4-2 lead. Dan Butler’s RBI double in the seventh gave Salem more breathing room at 6-2. Wilkerson smacked an RBI single in the eighth to add to the Salem lead, 7-2. In the ninth, Salem added three more runs on an RBI single by Bryce Brentz, another RBI double by Butler and a sacrifice fly by Wilfred Pichardo. Butler and Gibson each had 3 hits to lead the Salem offense.
Like their Triple-A counterparts, Greenville walked off with a 3-2 victory over the Savannah Sand Gnats (NYM). Manuel Rivera received the start for the Drive and was outstanding in his 6.0 innings, allowing just 3 hits and a walk while striking out 5. Tyler Lockwood added 2.0 innings of relief, allowing 2 runs (1 earned) on 2 hits and a walk. Charle Rosario received the win for his lone inning of work in which he allowed 1 hit and struck out 2. Greenville jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead in the first, thanks to a Henry Ramos RBI single that brought home two. The Drive’s bats remained quiet while Savannah tied the game with singular runs in the seventh and eighth innings. In the bottom of the ninth, Xander Bogaerts laced a one out double and Lucas LeBlanc ripped a game winning RBI single to give Greenville the victory. Bogaerts was 2 for 4 with a double and a run scored to lead the Drive’s offense.
Player of the Night: Dan Butler, who went 3 for 5 with two doubles, a run scored and 3 RBI in Salem’s 10-3 victory over Potomac.