May 8, 2018 at 7:00 AM
Cup of Coffee: De Jesus saves farm from sweep
5/8 Cup of Coffee: It took two errors and two unearned runs in the top of the seventh inning in the Drive's 3-2 victory over the Grasshoppers to help the farm avoid a full case of the Monday's on Monday. Cole Sturgeon, Jerry Downs, and CJ Chatham all got hits to keep their averages well above .300 to start the season while Enmanuel De Jesus (pictured) picked up the lone win of the night.
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The PawSox couldn't muster much against Lehigh starter Cole Irvin as Mike Ohlman (2 for 3) was the only player with multiple hits for Pawtucket while Jordan Betts drove in the lone run with a solo home run in the seventh inning. Josh Smith picked up the loss for the PawSox, pitching four innings while allowing 8 hits, 3 runs and striking out 3. It was Smith's first decision of the season in his three starts.
Betts continues to hit well since his promotion to Pawtucket on April 23. In 13 games with the Triple-A club, Betts has 13 hits and 3 home runs to go along with 11 RBI.
Betts continues to hit well since his promotion to Pawtucket on April 23. In 13 games with the Triple-A club, Betts has 13 hits and 3 home runs to go along with 11 RBI.
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It was another rough showing for the Sea Dogs as one of the Blue Jays top-10 prospects, Sean Reid-Foley, shut them down with eight strikeouts in five innings of work to improve his record to a perfect 5-0 to start the season.
Cole Sturgeon picked up two of the four hits off of Reid-Foley, both singles. A two-run home run from Conrad Gregor, his first homer of the year, was Reid-Foley's lone mistake in a stellar outing. Kevin McAvoy took the loss, giving up 4 hits, 6 runs (5 earned) in 4 innings of work to raise his ERA to 6.26. Jake Cosart didn't fare too well in relief, allowing 4 runs in 2 innings.
The Sea Dogs have lost six straight and 12 of their last 13 contests.
Cole Sturgeon picked up two of the four hits off of Reid-Foley, both singles. A two-run home run from Conrad Gregor, his first homer of the year, was Reid-Foley's lone mistake in a stellar outing. Kevin McAvoy took the loss, giving up 4 hits, 6 runs (5 earned) in 4 innings of work to raise his ERA to 6.26. Jake Cosart didn't fare too well in relief, allowing 4 runs in 2 innings.
The Sea Dogs have lost six straight and 12 of their last 13 contests.
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Despite striking out 9, 2017 first round draft pick Tanner Houck struggled in 5 1/3 innings of work, allowing five hits, five runs, and two walks to pick up his fourth loss. Houck labored with his command, throwing just 59 of his 94 pitches for strikes. The 6-foot-5 right-hander also uncorked a wild pitch in the second inning before giving up a three-run home run.
Although Santiago Espinal, Brett Netzer, and Jerry Downs all had two-hit performances, the Red Sox left nine runners on base and were 1 for 6 with runners in scoring position. Downs smacked his third homer of the year.
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Greenville Drive 3, Greensboro Grasshoppers (MIA) 2
The first four Greenville batters reached base in the top of the seventh en route to a three-run inning that helped the Drive narrowly edge the Grasshoppers. Victor Acosta hit his third home run of the season to leadoff the inning before the Drive received back-to-back singles from CJ Chatham and Marino Campana. Zach Sterry then reached on an error by the Greensboro third baseman, allowing Chatham to score. Two batters later, Ricardo Cubillan walked to load the bases before another Grasshoppers error allowed Campana to cross the plate for the game-winning run.
Enmanuel De Jesus picked up the win in relief, tossing four innings of no-hit ball while issuing just one walk against 4 strikeouts.
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Player of the Night: In our summation of Enmanuel De Jesus, he is "still young, but [has a] fringy arsenal with some projection remaining. Long way to go developmentally and stuff will need to take a step forward." On Monday, De Jesus took a step in the right direction by dominating in his 4 innings of relief to garner his first win for the Drive since 2016. In three appearances this season, including one start, the 6-foot-3 left-hander has 16 strikeouts in 13 innings of work and sports a 2.08 ERA. He was near perfect on Monday and helped Greenville preserve the comeback win.
Photo Credit: Enmanuel De Jesus by Kelly O'Connor
Although Santiago Espinal, Brett Netzer, and Jerry Downs all had two-hit performances, the Red Sox left nine runners on base and were 1 for 6 with runners in scoring position. Downs smacked his third homer of the year.
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Greenville Drive 3, Greensboro Grasshoppers (MIA) 2
The first four Greenville batters reached base in the top of the seventh en route to a three-run inning that helped the Drive narrowly edge the Grasshoppers. Victor Acosta hit his third home run of the season to leadoff the inning before the Drive received back-to-back singles from CJ Chatham and Marino Campana. Zach Sterry then reached on an error by the Greensboro third baseman, allowing Chatham to score. Two batters later, Ricardo Cubillan walked to load the bases before another Grasshoppers error allowed Campana to cross the plate for the game-winning run.
Enmanuel De Jesus picked up the win in relief, tossing four innings of no-hit ball while issuing just one walk against 4 strikeouts.
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Player of the Night: In our summation of Enmanuel De Jesus, he is "still young, but [has a] fringy arsenal with some projection remaining. Long way to go developmentally and stuff will need to take a step forward." On Monday, De Jesus took a step in the right direction by dominating in his 4 innings of relief to garner his first win for the Drive since 2016. In three appearances this season, including one start, the 6-foot-3 left-hander has 16 strikeouts in 13 innings of work and sports a 2.08 ERA. He was near perfect on Monday and helped Greenville preserve the comeback win.
Photo Credit: Enmanuel De Jesus by Kelly O'Connor