August 9, 2011 at 5:30 AM
Xander's legend grows as Bogaerts leads Greenville to walk off victory over Lexington
8/9 Cup of Coffee: Salem, Greenville and the DSL Red Sox all squeaked out close victories while Lowell had a rough night in Connecticut. Pawtucket and the GCL Sox saw their action suspended by Mother Nature.
Pawtucket’s matchup against the Charlotte Knights (CHW) was suspended in the second inning due to rain. The PawSox held a 2-1 lead at the time, thanks to a Ryan Lavarnway two run home run in the first inning. The game will be continued this afternoon as part of a doubleheader.
Salem used some late inning heroics to clip the Potomac Nationals (WAS), 2-1. Chris Hernandez tossed 5.0 shutout innings for the Red Sox, allowing 2 hits and 3 walks while striking out 3. Chris Martin picked up the victory for his 4.0 innings of relief, allowing 1 run on 2 hits and a walk, striking out 5. Salem took a quick 1-0 lead in the first as Jorge Padron laced an RBI single that brought home Kolbrin Vitek. With the game tied 1-1 in the ninth, Bryce Brentz lined a two out RBI single that gave the Red Sox a 2-1 advantage. Martin struck out the side in the ninth to nail down the Salem victory. Brentz and Padron each had two hits to lead the Salem offense.
In a back-and-forth battle, Greenville walked off with a 6-5 extra inning victory over the Lexington Legends (HOU). Miguel Celestino received the start for the Drive, hurling 6.0 innings, allowing 5 runs (2 earned) on 7 hits and a walk, striking out 6. Justin Erasmus added 2.0 scoreless innings of relief, allowing 1 hit and striking out 2. Dennis Neuman picked up the victory for his 2.0 flawless innings out of the bullpen, striking out 2. Down 2-0 in the third, Brandon Jacobs lofted a sacrifice fly to cut the Lexington lead in half, 2-1. David Renfroe’s grand slam in the fourth propelled Greenville to a 5-2 lead. The Legends struck back for two in the fifth and one in the sixth to tie the game, 5-5. The game remained tied until the bottom of the tenth inning, where Xander Bogaerts cracked a two out walk-off home run to give Greenville the victory. Bogaerts was the offensive star for the Drive, going 4 for 5 with a home run, RBI and 2 runs scored.
Lowell had a very ugly and forgettable evening as they were mauled by the Connecticut Tigers (DET), 10-0. Madison Younginer dropped to 1-3 on the season for his 4.0 inning performance, allowing 6 runs on 6 hits and 3 walks, striking out 2. Luis Bastardo added 2.1 innings of relief, allowing 3 runs on 3 hits and 2 walks, striking out 5. Matty Ott tossed the final 1.2 innings for Lowell, allowing 1 run on 3 hits while striking out 1. The Spinners mustered one hit the entire game, a Matty Johnson single to lead off the first inning.
The GCL Red Sox game against the GCL Orioles (BAL) was suspended due to rain in the second inning. The Orioles held a 2-0 lead in the contest that will be continued this afternoon.
The DSL Red Sox used some early offense to beat down the DSL Mariners (SEA), 8-6. Sully Bonnelly improved to 3-2 for his 5.0 innings of work, allowing 4 runs on 4 hits and 4 walks while striking out 2. Edwin Osorio added 3.0 innings of relief, allowing an unearned run on 1 hit and 2 walks, striking out 2. Ellis Jimenez picked up his fifth save as he allowed 1 run on 1 hit while striking out 2 in his lone inning out of the bullpen. The Red Sox offense got off to a quick start, scoring 5 runs in the first inning on RBI doubles by Ynoel Aguero, Deiner Lopez, David Sopilka, Alixon Suarez and Anthony Amaya. In the second, Sopilka’s two run home run gave the Red Sox a 7-0 advantage. A key fielding error by the Mariners shortstop in the third provided the Red Sox with the final run of the day. The Mariners chipped away at the Red Sox lead with one in the third, three in the fifth and a run each in the seventh and the ninth, but fell short in their attempt for a comeback. Sopilka was 3 for 5 with a home run, double, two runs scored and 3 RBI to lead the Red Sox offense.
Player of the Night: Xander Bogaerts, who was 4 for 5 with two runs scored and a walk off home run in Greenville’s 6-5 victory over Lexington.