Cup of Coffee: Bats quiet across the system

Brandon Workman (Kelly O'Connor)

5/3 Cup of Coffee: It was a quiet night at the plate for batters across the system, with losses for Pawtucket, Portland and Greenville, while Salem claimed victory in a pitcher's duel.

Pawtucket let up 5 runs early in the game but couldn't catch back up in a 5-3 road loss to the Toledo Mud Huns (DET). Righty Ross Ohlendorf started on the mound for the PawSox and got into trouble early. Ohlendorf, who was credited with the loss, gave up 2 runs in first off of a Toledo homer, 2 more in the second, and a single run in the third. He pitched 3 innings with 6 hits, 5 runs, 5 errors, and 3 walks. Chorye Spoone came on in the fourth and pitched for three innings of scoreless baseball. Spoone threw for only 1 hit, no runs, and two walks. Mark Melancon took the mound to end the game for Pawtucket, and pitched 2 more scoreless innings. Melancon had no hits, no walks, and 3 strikeouts. PawSox batting was quiet for most of the game, scoring their only runs of the night in the fifth inning. They picked up their first tally when Nate Spears blasted a solo home run. The next 2 runs came when Tony Thomas and Pedro Ciraco scored on a Daniel Nava triple. Five Pawtucket batters recorded hits, while Nava and Che-Hsuan Lin had multiples.

It was a back-and-forth battle for Portland and the Trenton Thunder (NYY) in a 4-3 loss at Hadlock Field. Portland drew first blood in the second inning when Reynaldo Rodriguez crossed the plate on a Dan Butler double. They scored again in the third when Juan Carlos Linares drove in Jeremy Hazelbacker. The Thunder were held scoreless until the fourth when Sea Dogs starter Chris Balcom-Miller gave up 2 runs. Portland answered in the fifth, regaining the lead when Rodriguez homered. Balcom-Miller pitched 5 innings for the Sea Dogs, throwing for 5 hits, 2 runs, and 1 walk. He was replaced in the sixth by Brock Huntzinger, who pitched 2 scoreless innings with no hits and 1 walk. Charle Rosario took the mound in the eighth, and let up 1 run off a wild pitch, and 1 more in the ninth. Rosario recorded 3 hits, 2 runs, 2 walks, and was credited with the loss. Every man in the Portland lineup had a hit, and Kolbrin Vitek, Oscar Tejada, and Rodriguez each had 2.

Salem emerged victorious in a 2-1 pitcher's duel against the Wilmington Blue Rocks (KAN). The Red Sox recorded their only 2 runs of the game in the first inning when Xander Bogaerts doubled, driving in Jackie Bradley and Travis Shaw. Wilmington answered by putting up one run against Salem pitcher Brandon Workman in the second. Workman had a great outing, picking up his second win of the season while allowing 3 hits, 1 run, no walks, and 6 strikeouts in 6 innings pitched. He was replaced in the seventh by Andrew Jones who pitched 2 innings for 2 hits, no runs, and no walks. The last Salem pitcher was Ruben Flores, who came on in the ninth and closed out the game with no hits, no runs, and no walks. The Red Sox and the Blue Rocks batters each recorded only 5 runs in a game that highlighted great pitching for both sides.

Sloppy fielding was the key factor in a 4-2 loss to the Lexington Legends (HOU) at Fluor Field. Lexington got their first runs in the second off of a Keury De La Cruz fielding error and a wild pitch by Greenville starter Madison Younginer. The Legends scored again in the fourth when Zachary Johnson scored on how own triple thanks to throwing error by Drive shortstop Jose Vinicio. Younginer pitched 5 innings with 3 hits, 3 runs, and 1 walk while picking up his third loss of the season. He was replaced in the sixth by Scott Swinson, who gave up 1 run that inning but remained scoreless through the rest of the game. Swinson pitched 4 innings of relief, recording 3 hits, 1 run, and 1 walk. The Drive picked up their first run of the game in the fifth inning when Vinicio popped a sacrifice fly to score Henry Ramos. They got one more tally in the seventh when Vinicio retaliated and scored on a triple of his own because of a Lexington fielding error. Six Salem batters recorded hits on the night, and they left 8 men on base throughout the course of the game.

Player of the Night: Brandon Workman, who helped Salem to keep the Blue Rocks at bay with his impressive pitching. He pitched 6 innings, 5 of which were scoreless, with only 3 hits, 1 run, and no walks. His record improved to 2-0.

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