August 1, 2016 at 7:00 AM
Cup of Coffee: Benintendi, Moncada combine for seven hits
8/1 Cup of Coffee: The Pawtucket pitching staff combined to throw a one-hit shutout, but Andrew Benintendi (pictured) and Yoan Moncada stole the show with monster days at the dish. It was a rough day for the rest of the farm, as Salem and Greenville lost while Lowell was postponed.
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Justin Haley started for the PawSox and was brilliant for six innings. He did not allow a run and gave up just one hit. He walked three and struck out four. Casey Janssen came on and fired two perfect innings before Heath Hembree tossed a perfect inning of his own in the ninth. Janssen has a 2.70 ERA in five appearances for Pawtucket.
Jantzen Witte had a nice day, going 2 for 3 with a double and an RBI. Ryan LaMarre and Chris Marrero each went 1 for 3 with a walk.
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Andrew Benintendi went off in this one, going 4 for 5 with a pair of two-run blasts, two doubles, and five RBI. He now has eight long balls with the Sea Dogs this year and raised his line with Portland to .295/.357/.515. Yoan Moncada also had a big day, notching a 3-for-4 performance. The leadoff man fell a homer shy of the cycle, walked, and scored four times. His Portland line stands at .289/.368/.563. Mauricio Dubon belted his first long ball of 2016 as part of a 2-for-5 effort. He's batting .313 with Portland.
Keith Couch walked four and gave up four hits in six innings, but was able to limit the scoring to just one run. He punched out five and lowered his Portland ERA to 3.40. Taylor Grover pitched two scoreless innings in relief with three strikeouts and no walks. Ben Taylor lowered his ERA with the Sea Dogs to 2.18 with a perfect ninth inning.
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Anyelo Leclerc wasn't too sharp yesterday, allowing seven hits, including two home runs, and three earned runs over four innings. He struck out four and walked two. Yankory Pimentel was good in relief, tossing three shutout innings on four hits, a walk, and three strikeouts. Mario Alcantara got the final six outs for Salem without allowing a run.
The only Red Sox run came on a bases loaded walk by Jayce Ray to score Joseph Monge. Ray and Jose Sermo each went 1 for 3 with a walk and Monge was 2 for 4.
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Greenville fought back from a 6-0 deficit in the seventh, but it wasn't enough. Dedgar Jimenez started for the Drive and lasted 6 2/3 innings, allowing five runs (four earned) on seven hits. He struck out six and walked one. Jeffry Fernandez came on in relief and finished the game for Greenville. He allowed an unearned run and struck out three in 2 1/3 innings.
Austin Rei had a big day at the plate by going 2 for 4 with his sixth home run and a double. Kyri Washington and Roldani Baldwin also went 2 for 4, with Washington swiping his sixth bag.
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Lowell Spinners at Tri-City ValleyCats (HOU) (PPD)
The Spinners were postponed due to rain. They will play a doubleheader tomorrow beginning at 4:30 p.m.
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Player of the Night: Andrew Benintendi made this an easy choice. The 22-year old had 12 total bases in five trips to the plate. For 2016, with Salem and Portland, the number two prospect is batting .312/.378/.532 with nine homers, 31 doubles, 12 triples, 16 stolen bases, and a strikeout-to-walk ratio of one-to-one (39-39).
Photo Credit: Andrew Benintendi by Kelly O'Connor