August 14, 2011 at 6:00 AM
Salem gives up four in ninth, loses in 13th
8/14 Cup of Coffee: Greenville's game was suspended on Saturday while the other Sox affiliates went 2-4 on a day which included a late collapse by Salem and a slugfest for Lowell.
A late rally was not enough for Pawtucket as the PawSox fell to the Gwinnett Braves (ATL), 4-2. Trailing 1-0 in the second, a ground ball double play off the bat of Luis Exposito allowed Lars Anderson to score from third and tie the game. The Braves would rally for two in the fourth and another in the sixth off of Kyle Weiland, who finished his outing with 5.1 innings pitched and allowed 4 runs on 7 hits with 3 walks and 4 strikeouts. With Gwinnett still leading 4-1 in the ninth, Exposito knocked in a run with a two-out single and put runners at the corners for Jose Iglesias. Iglesias grounded out to end the game, however, and the Braves held on for a victory.
Backed by a 15-hit offensive outburst, Portland doubled up the Erie Seawolves (DET), 8-4. With the exception of Daniel Butler, every member of the Sea Dogs starting nine collected a hit. Portland scored seven runs in the first four innings to pull away early. After a wild pitch scored Ryan Khoury, Matt Spring hit a solo home run to make it 2-0 in the first. The speed of Jeremy Hazelbaker accounted for the next Portland run, as the speedster stole third for his 27th theft of the season (39 including games with Salem), then promptly scooted home after the throw sailed into left. After RBIs from Ronald Bermudez and Hazelbaker made it 5-0 after three, Portland made it 7-0 on back-to-back RBI doubles from Alex Hassan and Will Middlebrooks. Starter Alex Wilson was unable to earn the win, however, after giving up three runs in the fifth and was taken out before he could complete the inning. He went 4.2 innings and gave up 3 runs on 7 hits with 2 walks and 6 strikeouts. Kyle Fernandes replaced Wilson and improved his record to 2-4 on the season after 3.1 innings of 1-hit ball. Blake Maxwell pitched the ninth and gave up a run.
What looked to be an easy win for Salem turned into a marathon affair which lasted 13 innings and resulted in a 9-7 loss to the Kinston Indians (CLE). The Red Sox led 7-1 after four innings, thanks in part to a four-run first which included back-to-back home runs from Bryce Brentz and Miles Head. Shannon Wilkerson added a run in the third with a sacrice fly, while Peter Hissey and Brentz both knocked in runs in the fourth. Chris Hernandez tossed 6.1 innings for Salem, giving up 3 runs (2 earned) on 4 hits with 1 strikeout. With the Red Sox leading 7-3 in the ninth, a combination of Michael Gleason and William Latimer gave up four runs to tie it. The game was scoreless through the first three extra frames, but two runs in the top of the 13th for the Indians gave Kinston the victory.
Greenville's game with the Savannah Sand Gnats (NYM) was suspended in the top of the fifth inning. The Drive lead 1-0, but with the series coming to a close, no continuation has been announced yet.
In Lowell's contest with the Jamestown Jammers (FLA), the two teams combined for 23 hits, but the Spinners were knocked off, 8-6. The game was scoreless through two innings, but the Jammers scored in every subsequent frame, creating a deep hole for Lowell. Madison Younginer was saddled with the loss after allowing 5 runs (4 earned) in 5.0 innings pitched with 2 walks and 2 strikeouts. With the score 2-0 in the top of the fifth, Travis Shaw hit an RBI single to cut the lead in half. But the Jammers responded with three of their own in the bottom of the inning and extended the lead to 5-1. Shaw came up again in the sixth and drove in two with another single to make it a 5-3 ballgame. After single runs in the sixth and seventh for Jamestown, Seth Schwindenhammer knocked in three with a bases-loaded double to cut the lead to one. The Jammers picked up some insurance with a run in the eighth and shut the door in the ninth to seal the Spinners' fate.
A three-run first inning helped catapult the GCL Red Sox to a 4-3 victory over the GCL Twins (MIN). Cody Koback doubled home a run and Nick Moore launched a two-run homer to give the Red Sox the early 3-0 lead. This should have been enough to earn Sergio Gomez, who threw 5.0 innings of 4-hit, shutout ball, the win. But the Twins got to Reynolds Parthemore for a run and Yunior Ortega for two, and just like that the game was tied. With the score still knotted 3-3 in the ninth, Dreily Guerrero singled to center for the go-ahead run while Jadd Schmeltzer tossed a hitless ninth for his fourth save of the season.
It was a tough day at the ballpark for the DSL Red Sox, who were shut out by the DSL Dodgers (LAD), 7-0. The game was scoreless through four, but the Dodgers got to Sully Bonnelly for a pair of runs in the fifth. Bonnelly finished his outing with 5.0 innings pitched and 2 runs allowed on 2 hits with 2 walks and 1 strikeout. Edwin Osorio struggled in his outing out of the bullpen, yielding the other 5 Dodgers runs in his 3.2 innings of work.
Player of the Night: Will Middlebrooks, who went 3 for 5 with a double and 2 RBI in Salem's 8-4 victory over Erie.