July 5, 2013 at 7:00 AM
Cup of Coffee: Denney singles, steals home in professional debut
7/5 Cup of Coffee: While most other professions had the day off, the Red Sox affiliates had a full slate. Garin Cecchini continued his remarkable start with the Sea Dogs, Mike Augliera (pictured) was locked in, and Ty Buttrey continued to improve for the Spinners. Highly touted third-round pick Jon Denney made his professional debut, hitting a single and stealing home.
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There were no fireworks for the PawSox yesterday, as they fell to the Rochester Red Wings (MIN), 6-2. Chris Hernandez gave up four runs in 5 2/3 innings, as his ERA climbed to an even 5.00 on the season. Chris Carpenter did not fare much better, allowing two runs in 1 1/3 innings of relief. Pedro Beato pitched a scoreless eighth to keep his strong season going.
Dan Butler did his best to keep Pawtucket in the game, going 3 for 4 with a double and a home run. Bryce Brentz went 2 for 4 with a double, and Drew Sutton went 2 for 3 with a walk. Xander Bogaerts had a quiet night, going 0 for 3 with a walk, and Will Middlebrooks went 1 for 4.
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The Sea Dogs allowed two runs in the ninth, falling to the New Britain Rock Cats (MIN), 6-4. Portland jumped out to an early lead, scoring four times in the first. Tony Thomas roped a two-run double, and after a run scored on an error, J.C. Linares hit an RBI single to cap the scoring. That would be all the scoring the Sea Dogs would do, as they let the lead slip away. Garin Cecchini continued his hot start in Double-A, going 1 for 2 with two walks to push his on-base percentage over .500.
Charlie Haeger was cruising until the fifth, when he allowed a three-run home run, and then the Rock Cats tied it on a home run in the sixth. Haeger allowed four runs in 5 2/3 innings, walking three and striking out three. Chris Balcom-Miller pitched 2 1/3 innings of scoreless relief, but Rafael Perez gave up two runs on four hits in the ninth to take the loss.
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Mike Augliera was outstanding, tossing eight shutout innings and Salem beat the Carolina Mudcats (CLE), 3-0. Augliera has been inconsistent this season, but he was dialed in yesterday. He allowed four hits without walking a batter in his eight innings, adding seven strikeouts. He also had an 11-to-3 G/F ratio, inducing weak contact from the Mudcats all game. Robby Scott finished off the shutout with a scoreless ninth inning.
Salem scored a run in the first on a Keury De La Cruz double, and then tacked on two more in the third on a Brandon Jacobs double. Jacobs went 1 for 2 with a walk and was hit by a pitch, and Deven Marrero went 1 for 3 with two runs scored, while also being hit by a pitch.
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The Greenville game was postponed due to rain. The game will be made up as part of a doubleheader on Saturday.
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Ty Buttrey picked up his second win of the season, leading the Spinners to a 4-2 victory over the Tri-City ValleyCats (HOU). Buttrey went the first five innings, allowing two runs on six hits, while walking and striking out one. Taylor Grover followed him with two shutout innings, and Greg Larson notched his third save of the season.
Reed Gragnani led the Spinners offense, going 4 for 4 with a double and an RBI. Cleuluis Rondon added two hits, including a two-run triple that proved to be the game-winner. Manuel Margot was finally slowed down, going 0 for 3 with a walk.
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The GCL Red Sox lost a back-and-forth game with the GCL Orioles (BAL), losing 6-5. In his first professional at-bat, Jon Denney hit an RBI single, and stole home later in the inning as part of a double steal. Denney went 1 for 3 with a walk, batting seventh and serving as the designated hitter. The Red Sox only had three hits on the day, but did manage to draw nine walks. Wendell Rijo and Danny Bethea each went 0 for 2, but drew three walks apiece.
Dioscar Romero was roughed up, allowing three runs on five hits in 2 2/3 innings. Luis Ortega picked up the loss, as he allowed a run-scoring single in the bottom of the eighth that proved to be the difference. He allowed two runs in 3 1/3 innings in the game.
The Red Sox and Orioles also finished a suspended game on Thursday, with the Red Sox squeaking by with a 4-3 victory. Joseph Monge went 2 for 4 with a double and a stolen base in his first game in Boston's system. The double came with two outs in the bottom of the seventh, knocking in Jordon Austin for the go-ahead run. Joe Gunkel also made his debut, pitching a scoreless inning of relief, while recording a strikeout.
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The DSL Red Sox game was suspended in the third inning due to rain.
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Player of the Day: Mike Augliera's eight shutout innings led Salem, as he turned in the best start of his professional career. The fifth-round pick of the 2012 draft now has a 4.25 ERA in 91 2/3 innings, allowing more than a hit per frame, while striking out only 5.7 batters per nine innings. While he has not had dominant results, he has shown an ability to log a large number of innings, as this was the third time this season Augliera has pitched into the eighth inning.
Photo Credit: Mike Augliera by Kelly O'Connor
Jim Crowell is a Staff Writer for SoxProspects.com.