May 23, 2012 at 8:57 AM
Cup of Coffee: Pawtucket and Salem cruise, Cecchini not enough to save Greenville
5/23 Cup of Coffee: Pawtucket and Salem prevailed in close contests while Portland was washed away by rain and Greenville's attempted comeback fell short.
Garin Cecchini (Kelly O'Connor) |
Portland's contest against the New Hampshire Fisher Cats was postponed due to rain. The teams will play a doubleheader this evening beginning at 6:05 PM.
Stellar pitching and a two run seventh inning pushed Salem past the Winston-Salem Dash (CHW), 3-1. Miguel Celestino pitched admirably in his 6.0 inning of work, allowing 1 run on 3 hits and 3 walks, striking out 5. Jeremiah Bayer received the victory for his 2.0 inning of perfect relief, punching out 3. Michael Olmsted pitched a flawless ninth inning to pick up his tenth save of the season. Down 1-0 in the fourth, Christian Vazquez laced an RBI single to tie the game, 1-1. The game remained knotted until the bottom of the seventh, when a Felix Sanchez RBI ground out and a Sean Coyle RBI triple gave Salem a 3-1 advantage. Winston-Salem was held without a base runner after the fifth inning as Salem hurlers locked down the victory.
Despite a 15-hit attack and a late comeback, Greenville was unable to overcome the offensive power of the Asheville Tourists (COL), falling 11-9. Yeiper Castillo received his first loss of the season as he was torched for 8 runs on 6 hits and 5 walks in just 3.2 innings. Tyler Wilson relieved Castillo and allowed 2 runs (1 earned) on 3 hits and 4 walks in 1.2 innings pitched. Tyler Lockwood added 2.2 innings of relief, allowing 1 run on 3 hits while striking out 2. Garin Cecchini gave the Drive a quick 2-0 advantage as he blasted a two run home run in the first inning. A Jose Vinicio sacrifice fly in the second expanded the Greenville lead to 3-0. After Asheville plated a run in the bottom of the second, Greenville plated two runs in the top of the third on a Henry Ramos RBI double and Drew Turocy sacrifice fly to take a 5-1 lead. The Tourists responded right back with two runs of their own in the bottom half of the inning to cut the Drive's lead to 5-3. Keury De La Cruz's RBI single in the top of the fourth gave the Drive a 6-3 advantage. Greenville's lead did not last long, as Asheville brought home five in the bottom of the fourth to claim their first lead of the game, 8-6. Trailing 11-6 in the bottom of the ninth, the Drive rallied for three runs on RBI singles by Vinicio and Jose Garcia. The rally lost steam after a two out pitching change and Greenville was handed their second straight loss. Every member of the Drive's starting lineup had at least one hit, with Cecchini reaching base 5 times, smacking a home run, a single and walking three times.
Player of the Night: Garin Cecchini, who's went 2 for 2 with a two-run home run, a single, two runs scored and three walks in Greenville's 11-9 loss to Asheville.