September 2, 2016 at 7:00 AM
Cup of Coffee: Johnson, Stankiewicz bounce back, DSL 2 eliminated
9/2 Cup of Coffee: The playoff run for the second DSL team came to a halt in a gut-wrenching loss. Brian Johnson bounced back nicely from a rough outing his last time to get back on track for Pawtucket. Similarly, Teddy Stankiewicz (pictured) posted his best start in a month for Portland. Salem concluded its wild game that was suspended on Wednesday.
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The bats could not get going on Thursday as the PawSox wasted a nice bounce-back start from Brian Johnson. After getting tagged for seven runs in his last outing, Johnson allowed just one run on four hits, while walking three and striking out three. William Cuevas took the loss, despite only having one unearned run score in his 2 1/3 innings of relief. The PawSox managed only four hits, none of which were for extra bases. Chris Dominguez drove in Pawtucket's only run on a sacrifice fly.
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Portland rode a stellar start from Teddy Stankiewicz to a shutout victory over Reading. Stankiewicz scattered four hits in six innings of shutout ball, striking out eight and walking none. It was Stankiewicz's best start since his complete-game shutout back on Aug. 1. Jake Romanski led the way on offense, going 3 for 4 with a pair of RBI. Ryan Court added his fourth home run of the season, hitting a solo shot in the sixth. Mauricio Dubon was held hitless in four at-bats
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The drama continued from Wednesday night's game after Salem erased a 7-0 deficit and scored four times in the ninth to tie it before rain suspended play. Simon Mercedes allowed the go-ahead run in the top of the eleventh, but Mike Meyers delivered in the bottom of the inning. The outfielder laced a walk-off, two-run single, scoring Jose Sermo and Rafael Devers.
Salem fell in the game scheduled for Thursday, falling behind late. Jordan Procyshen cut the Dash lead to one with a solo home run in the seventh, but an errant throw by Rafael Devers led to four unearned runs, putting the game out of reach. Trey Ball lasted five innings, allowing three runs on nine hits. He struck out two and walked two.
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Derek Miller and Roldani Baldwin provided six of Greenville's seven hits on Thursday, each going 3 for 4. No one could drive them in, however, as the Drive left 11 runners on base. Greenville had a chance to take the lead in the seventh, but Nick Lovullo was gunned down at the plate. Dedgar Jimenez authored a solid start, going six innings. He allowed two runs on seven hits while striking seven and walking none.
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Lowell Spinners vs. Connecticut Tigers - PPD.
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Playing a doubleheader on the final day of the regular season needing to win both games to clinch the division, the Red Sox took game one. The Sox jumped out to an early first-inning lead on a bases-loaded walk by Jagger Rusconi and a two-run single by Imeldo Diaz. 14th-round draft pick Robby Sexton hurled three innings of shutout ball, striking out four, before yielding to Denyi Reyes. The 19-year-old Dominican finished out the final four innings in dominant fashion, giving up just a lone hit and a walk, while striking out five.
A frustrating regular season finale saw the Red Sox leave nine runners on base, and the shutout loss ensured a one-game playoff against the GCL Twins, after the clubs tied for first in the South Division. Kyle Hart took the loss, giving up three runs on six hits in three innings of work while striking out five and walking none. Santiago Espinal went 2 for 3.
Following the one-game playoff against the Twins, the victor will move on to face the GCL Cardinals in another one-game semi-final. The winner of that game will advance to a best-of-three championship series. The Red Sox are two-time defending GCL champs and begin their title defense Friday at 10 a.m.
Following the one-game playoff against the Twins, the victor will move on to face the GCL Cardinals in another one-game semi-final. The winner of that game will advance to a best-of-three championship series. The Red Sox are two-time defending GCL champs and begin their title defense Friday at 10 a.m.
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The bullpen could not hold on, as the first DSL squad will go to a deciding Game 3 in the DSL semifinals. Eddy Reynoso came up clutch twice, driving in the go-ahead run in the sixth and the tying run in the eighth. But each time, the bullpen relinquished the lead. Ritzi Mendoza was excellent in the start, going five innings, allowing one run on two hits. He walked two and struck out seven. The six through nine batters were held hitless. The winner-take-all Game 3 will be played at 10:30 a.m. on Friday.
The second DSL team's season came to a heartbreaking end, falling in extra innings of the DSL semifinals. An error led to the eventual winning run in the top of the 11th with Joan Martinez taking the tough loss in his fourth inning of relief. Yeison Coca and Juan Hernandez each went 1 for 5 with a double.
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Player of the Night: After reaching an unsightly ERA of 5.24 on July 27, Teddy Stankiewicz has been steadily lowering that stat since then to 4.71. It was a season-high in strikeouts for the 6-foot-4 Texan in Thursday's game. It was the third start this year in which Stankiewicz did not allow a run.
Photo Credit: Teddy Stankiewicz by Kelly O'Connor.