Cup of Coffee: Salem, Greenville get double-digit runs in wins

5/26 Cup of Coffee: Salem and Greenville each reached double-digits in the runs column Friday night in big wins. Meanwhile in Portland, a foggy night suspended the Sea Dogs game against New Britain.

The PawSox battled with the Toledo Mud Hens (DET), but couldn't stop a late surge in a 5-4 loss. Pawtucket drew first blood in the first inning when Pedro Ciriaco doubled to reach base and scored on a Darnell McDonald sacrifice fly. Toledo answered by putting up two runs of their own with a two run homer against pitcher Justin Germano. Toledo's 2-1 lead stood until the bottom of the sixth inning when Nate Spears got a single, stole second base, and was driven in by a Jose Iglesias single. Germano came out of the game after the seventh, having pitched 7.0 innings with 4 hits, 2 runs, and no walks. The Paw Sox took the lead in the seventh, when Ciriaco laced an RBI single, driving in Mauro Gomez and Alex Hassan. Alex Wilson took the mound in the eighth, but got into trouble when he returned in the ninth. The first Toledo batter in the ninth reached on an Iglesias fielding error. Wilson struck out the next batter, but then allowed two singles to load the bases. He was taken out of the game and replaced by Garrett Mock. The next batter grounded out but drove in the first of Wilson's runs, followed by a double that knocked in two more. Wilson pitched 1.1 innings with 3 hits, 3 runs, and no walks. Mock pitched 0.2 innings for 1 hit, no runs, and 1 walk. With the Mud Hens having taken a 5-4 lead, the PawSox were unable to answer in the bottom of the ninth. The PawSox had 6 hits on the night, 3 of which belong to Ciriaco, who went 3 for 5 with a run and 2 RBI.

Portland's game against the New Britain Rock Cats (MIN) was suspended after four innings due to fog at Hadlock Field. The Rock Cats currently lead 1-0, and the game will be completed today at 1:00 PM as part of a double-header.

Salem went up against the Frederick Keys (BAL) and came away with a dominant 13-2 win. The Keys started out the game with two runs against Salem starter Drake Britton. They would be silent for the rest of the game though as Red Sox pitchers had a dominant night, giving up just 6 hits in the whole game. Britton pitched 5.0 innings with 4 hits, 2 runs, and 1 walk. He was replaced in the sixth by Keith Couch who had an excellent outing over 3 innings with just 2 hits, no runs, and no walks. Andrew Jones took the mound in the ninth and allowed no hits, no walks, and struck out 2 to end the game. On the offensive side, the Red Sox took the lead with 5 runs in the top of the second and never looked back. Xander Bogaerts started things out with a solo home run, followed by Christian Vazquez reaching on a fielding error and a Carson Blair walk. A pair of singles from James Kang and Felix Sanchez drove in Vazquez and Blair. A wild pitch helped Kang cross the plate, followed by a sacrifice fly from Jackie Bradley to drive in Sanchez. Salem added 4 more runs to their lead in the fourth inning when Matty Johnson doubled to drive in Kang and Bradley, followed by a Drew Hedman double that scored Johnson, and a Michael Almanzar single that drove in Hedman. Almanzar blasted a 2 run homer in the sixth to add to Salem's growing lead. In the seventh, Vazquez crossed the plate when Bradley drew a walk with the bases loaded. Johnson was then hit by a pitch, causing Kang to score. In total, the Red Sox had 13 runs on 12 hits. Every member of the lineup had a hit except Bradley.

Keury De La Cruz (Kelly O'Connor)

The Drive held off a late rally by the Charleston Riverdogs (NYY) and came off with a 12-6 road win. Charleston kicked things off with a run in the first inning against Greenville starter Miguel Pena. The Drive answered with 5 runs in the top of the second when they batted through the order. David Renfroe led off with a single, followed by three consecutive walks from Boss Moanaroa, Henry Ramos, and Lucas LeBlanc to load the bases and drive in Renfroe. Jordan Weems singled to drive in Moanaroa and keep the bases loaded. Bryan Johns drew the fourth walk of the inning, forcing Ramos to score. Keury De La Cruz singled to drive in LeBlanc, and after a pitching change, Garin Cecchini lofted a sacrifce fly to help Weems cross the plate. In his second appearance of the inning, Renfroe grounded out to end the inning. The Drive increased their lead in the top of the fourth when De La Cruz blasted a three run homer. They put up another run in the fifth thanks to a LeBlanc homer. The Riverdogs answered with a run in the bottom of the fifth. In the top of the sixth, Moanaroa reached base on a walk, advanced to second on a balk, and then was driven in on a Ramos single. Pena was taken off the mound after the fifth inning and replaced by Charle Rosario. Pena pitched 5 innings with 6 hits, 2 runs, 1 walk, and 9 strikeouts. Rosario got through two innings with no problems, but ran into trouble in the eighth. Two runs had already scored and there were two men on base and no outs when Rosario was replaced by Tyler Wilson. A ground out and a single drove in two more runs for the Riverdogs, but Wilson was able to end the inning without causing any more damage. Wilson pitched 1.0 inning allowing 1 hit, no runs, and a walk. Greenville put up two more runs in the ninth when Ramos homered and Weems was driven in when Johns grounded out. In total, the Drive put up 12 hits with three home runs. 

Player of the Night: Keury De La Cruz, who blasted a three run homer in Greenville's win over Charleston. De La Cruz went 2 for 5 with 4 RBI and a run.

Tweet