July 27, 2012 at 7:18 AM
Cup of Coffee: Garcia, De La Cruz, and Renfroe lead Greenville two-bagger barrage
7/27 Cup of Coffee: Greenville mashed eight doubles to come through with the only win of the evening on a tough night in the system. Salem fell in extra innings, while the DSL Red Sox dropped their contest in a walk-off. Pawtucket missed their chance to impress a wider audience, as Lowell missed theirs to climb out of the New York-Penn League cellar.
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With the major league club off, Pawtucket was showcased on NESN. Unfortunately, the attention came on an evening where they could not get much going, dropping a 5-1 contest to the Indianapolis Indians (PIT). The offense generated only six hits, two of which came off the bat of Jonathan Hee, who doubled and scored the PawSox only run. A scary moment came in the fifth when Alex Hassan fouled a ball off his leg in the knee area, falling to the ground immediately, and had to leave the game. As of this writing, there was no update on his status. Tony Pena, Jr. took the loss for Pawtucket, falling to 1-9 on the year. He allowed four runs (three earned) on eight hits in his 5.1 innings, striking out three and walking one. Chris Carpenter impressed once again out of the bullpen, throwing a perfect ninth inning that included two strikeouts.
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The game between Portland and the Binghamton Mets (NYM) was postponed by rain. A make up will be played today as part of a doubleheader.
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Salem came out on the wrong side of an extra-inning thriller, as the Red Sox fell 5-3 to the Myrtle Beach Pelicans (TEX) in 12. Brandon Workman again turned in a solid start, giving up three runs (one earned) on six hits in 6.1 innings. He struck out six, without walking a batter. The lack of walks have turned into a trend for Workman - he has walked only four in five starts in the month of July, and nineteen in his eighteen starts on the season. Charle Rosario tossed 3.2 scoreless innings out of the bullpen, and Andrew Jones held the Pelicans at bay for his first 2.0, until they got to him for two runs in the 12th. He took the loss to fall to 4-2 on the year. The Salem offense was limited to seven hits - each singles - though they did walk four times and reach on three additional hit batsmen. Michael Almanzar, whose streak of reaching base in 16 consecutive plate appearances came to an end on Wednesday, got on three more times, going 1 for 4 with a walk and an HBP. He is riding an 11-game hitting streak.
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Nine of Greenville's 10 hits were for extra bases in a 10-3 victory over the Asheville Tourists (COL). The team pounded out eight doubles, including two apiece for Keury De La Cruz and David Renfroe, giving them 25 and 26 on the season, respectively. Jose Garcia (pictured) also doubled, and added in a two-run homer. Henry Ramos, Nick Natoli, and Cody Koback rounded out the Greenville doubles machine. Luis Diaz picked up the win in a solid start for the Drive, giving up a pair of runs in his 6.0 innings of work while notching five strikeouts and walking one.
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In a match-up of the two teams with the worst record in the New York-Penn League, Lowell was unable to climb out of the basement, falling 8-5 to the Williamsport Crosscutters (PHI). Raynel Velette struggled with his control for the Spinners. In 4.1 innings, he walked five and threw a pair of wild pitches, giving up three runs on a night where he allowed only two hits. Velette also struck out five. Yunior Ortega took the loss in relief, falling to 1-2 on the year. He allowed five runs (two earned) in 4.2 innings, and also allowed all three runners he inherited to score. Mookie Betts paced the Spinners offense with three hits, and Matt Marquis had a 2 for 3 night that included a double, triple and a walk.
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The GCL Red Sox dropped a 6-2 decision to the GCL Orioles. Frank Montas got the start, and despite continuing to light up the radar gun, he was hit hard for the third consecutive outing. The hard-throwing 19-year-old gave up four runs (three earned) on six hits in 3.0 innings, striking out three and walking one, falling to 0-4 on the season. Carlos Pinales came on in the fourth and kept the game close, giving up only two runs in his 5.0 innings of work, striking out three without walking a batter. Jeremias Pineda was again the star on offense, going 2 for 4 to extend his hitting streak to 13 games. In doing so, he raised his average to .396, tops in the Gulf Coast League.
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After getting out to a 6-4 lead, the DSL Red Sox couldn't hold on, and lost 7-6 in a walk-off to the DSL Rangers. Starter Edwar Garcia had his run of solid starts snapped, as he couldn't escape the third inning. The tall right-hander allowed four runs on four hits in 2.1 innings, walking two and striking out one. Luis Ramos followed with 2.2 scoreless innings as the Red Sox took the lead, but Jervis Torrealba was unable to hold on, giving up a pair of runs in the sixth and the sacrifice fly in the ninth that sealed the loss. Manuel Margot had another big night on offense, going 3 for 5 with a run scored and stealing his 20th base of the year. After a tough start to July, Margot is back to being the force he was in June, batting .429 during his current five-game hitting streak. Andres Garcia went 2 for 5 with a double and three runs.
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Player of the Day: Leading the offensive explosion in Greenville, Jose Garcia doubled, homered and drove in three runs. Despite his diminutive stature, the second baseman is displaying solid power recently, with eight extra-base hits and a .427 slugging percentage on the month.
Photo Credit: Jose Garcia by Kelly O'Connor