July 14, 2011 at 6:20 AM
Chester leads GCL doubleheader sweep
7/14 Cup of Coffee: The Triple-A and Double-A All-Star games highlighted play on Wednesday. Red Sox affiliates in action also provided some excitement as Greenville and Lowell walked off with victories and the GCL Sox swept a doubleheader. Salem and the DSL squad fell in their contests in differing fashions.Offense was at a premium in the Triple-A All Star game, with the International League All-Stars defeating the Pacific Coast League All-Stars, 3-0. Pawtucket’s lone representative Matt Fox did not see game action. The only scoring of the game came on a three run home run in the second inning by Tampa Bay prospect Russ Canzler.
Unlike the Triple-A contest, the Eastern League All-Star game had plenty of offense. The two teams combined for 11 runs on 21 hits with the Western Division All-Stars defeating the Eastern Division All-Stars, 8-3. On offense, Portland’s Chih-Hsien Chiang was 0 for 1, Will Middlebrooks was 1 for 2 with a double and Alex Hassan was 2 for 4 with a double, run scored and an RBI. On the mound, Alex Wilson had a tough evening, pitching 0.1 innings, allowing 4 runs on 5 hits and a walk. Stephen Fife added 0.2 innings, striking out both batters he faced.
Salem pitching was hit early and often as they fell to the Myrtle Beach Pelicans (TEX), 8-3. Making his first start with Salem, Stolmy Pimentel’s nightmare season continued as he tossed 2.0 innings, allowing 4 runs on 5 hits and 3 walks. Anatanaer Batista added 2.0 innings of relief, allowing 4 runs on 6 hits and 2 walks, striking out 3. Chris Martin provided 3.2 innings of scoreless relief out of the bullpen, allowing 3 hits and a walk, striking out 1. The Red Sox lone scoring of the evening took place in the eighth, as they received a three run home run from Jorge Padron.
In a back-and-forth extra inning thriller, Greenville walked off with a win over the Lakewood BlueClaws (PHI), 7-6. Brandon Workman received the start for the Drive, hurling 5.0 innings, allowing 4 runs on 6 hits and 3 walks, striking out 3. Justin Erasmus and Michael Olmsted each added 2.0 innings of scoreless relief, walking 1 and striking out 3. Dennis Neuman picked up the victory, going 2.0 innings, allowing 2 runs on 1 hit while striking out 2. Down 4-0 in the fourth, Greenville plated three on a balk, Xander Bogaerts RBI single and a Drew Dominguez sacrifice fly. Christian Vazquez’s solo home run in the fifth tied the game, 4-4. The game remained scoreless and went into extra innings where Lakewood scored two in the top of the eleventh to take a 6-4 lead. In the bottom half of the inning, the Drive staged a two out rally, scoring three times on a wild pitch and a Michael Almanzar walk off RBI single. Bogaerts was 3 for 5 with a double, RBI and a run scored to lead the Greenville offense.
Lowell walked off with an eleventh inning victory over the Williamsport Crosscutters (PHI), 5-4. Luis Diaz turned in a stellar start for the Spinners, going 6.0 innings, allowing 1 run on 5 hits while striking out 2. Braden Kapteyn and Kevin Brahney each added a scoreless inning of relief, striking out 2. Michael McCarthy was roughed up in his lone inning of relief, allowing 3 runs (2 earned) on 2 hits, striking out 1. Matty Ott picked up the victory as he was once again outstanding out of the bullpen, tossing 2.0 innings, allowing a hit and a walk while striking out 5. Boss Moanaroa’s solo home run in the fourth inning gave Lowell a quick 1-0 lead. After the Crosscutters tied the game in the sixth, the Spinners crossed home three times in the seventh on an error and a Ryan Dent RBI double. Williamsport fought back in the ninth, taking advantage of a key error to tie the game, 4-4. The game moved into the eleventh, where the Spinners walked off with a win as Matty Johnson scampered home on a wild pitch. Johnson was 3 for 5 with 2 runs scored in his return to Lowell.
In game one of a doubleheader, the GCL Sox easily defeated the GCL Rays (TB), 7-1. Francisco Taveras picked up his second win of the season, going 5.0 innings, allowing 1 run on 4 hits while striking out 3. Jadd Schmeltzer added 2.0 innings of scoreless relief, allowing a walk and striking out 1. The Red Sox took a 3-0 lead in the second on a Jesus Loya RBI single and a Jose Colorado RBI double. The GCL squad added singular runs in the third and fourth innings on a Roberto Reyes solo home run and a run scoring double play. A David Chester sacrifice fly in the sixth and a run scoring wild pitch in the seventh completed scoring for the Red Sox.
Game two was a bit tighter, but the Red Sox walked off with a 7-5 victory. Zach Good made his professional debut in the start, going 2.0 innings, allowing 1 run on 1 hit while striking out 3. Alexander Mateo added 3.0 innings of relief, allowing 4 runs on 5 hits, walking 1 and striking out 1. Brenden Shepard picked up his first professional victory, providing 4.0 scoreless innings of relief, allowing 1 hit and striking out 2. The Red Sox got off to a quick start in this one, plating five runs in the first inning on an error, Chester RBI single, Matthew Gedman RBI triple, and a Zach Kapstein RBI single. The Rays eventually battled back and tied the game in the fifth, holding the GCL squad scoreless through the middle innings. Tied 5-5 in the ninth, Chester hit a walk off two run home run to give the Red Sox the doubleheader sweep. Chester led the Red Sox offense, going 3 for 5 with 2 runs scored, a home run and 3 RBI.
In a close contest, the DSL Red Sox fell to the DSL Royals (KC), 5-4. Pedro Reyes went the first 5.0 innings for the DSL, allowing 3 runs (2 earned) on 5 hits and a walk, striking out 2. German Taveras picked up the loss, tossing 3.2 innings, allowing 2 runs on 2 hits and 4 walks while striking out 2. Carlos Pinales faced one batter and struck him out. The Red Sox got off to a quick start, scoring a run in the first on a David Sopilka RBI double. Down 3-1 in the fifth, Andres Garcia’s RBI double inched the DSL squad closer, 3-2. In the seventh, Ynoel Aguero’s RBI single brought home two runs and gave the Red Sox a 4-3 lead. The Royals took advantage of two Taveras wild pitches and scored two in the eighth to claim a 5-4 victory. Garcia easily led the Red Sox offense by going 4 for 4 with a double and an RBI.
Player of the Night: David Chester, who was a combined 5 for 8 with 2 runs scored, a home run and 4 RBI in the GCL Red Sox doubleheader sweep of the GCL Rays.