June 26, 2018 at 7:00 AM
Cup of Coffee: Casas departs early; Matheny comes up grand
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Adam Lind blasted a two-run home run in the top of the eighth and scored the winning run in the PawSox come-from-behind win over the Bisons. It was the 34-year-old left-handed hitting journeyman's fourth round-tripper with Pawtucket as Lind drove in all three of the PawSox' runs. Lind plated Ivan De Jesus Jr. with a sacrifice fly in the first inning, as De Jesus also scored on Lind's homer in the eighth. Rusney Castillo extended his hitting streak to nine games with his 92nd hit of the season.
Josh D. Smith gave way to Josh A. Smith, as the latter picked up the win with two innings of relief, giving up one hit and striking two, while the former pitched five innings of four-hit, two-run ball, and struck out five. Ryan Brasier picked up the save, his 11th of the season.
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A seven-run fourth inning helped Portland get out off a 4-0 hole en route to a comeback win over the Fisher Cats. Tate Matheny's grand slam and a two-run shot from Chad De La Guerra provided most of the fireworks while a Danny Mars single to right field accounted for the other RBI of the inning. Jordan Betts, Jeremy Rivera, Guerra, and Mars all had two-hit performances.
Dedgar Jimenez wasn't spectacular but did enough across five innings, giving up five hits and four runs while striking out five.
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A total of 13 hits, yet just three extra-base knocks, powered the Drive past the Braves at State Mutual Stadium. Lorenzo Cedrola had three hits while Ryan Fitzgerald, Tanner Nishioka, Jordan Wren and Samuel Miranda all added two knocks as only two Greenville batters failed to record a hit.
Kutter Crawford (5 IP) and Angel Padron (4 IP) tag-teamed the effort on the hill as the former picked up his second win of the season while the latter recorded his second save.
Kutter Crawford (5 IP) and Angel Padron (4 IP) tag-teamed the effort on the hill as the former picked up his second win of the season while the latter recorded his second save.
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Not to be outdone by the Drive, the Spinners accumulated a total of 14 hits, including a three-run home run from 2018 fourth-round draft pick Kole Cottam (pictured, right) to shake up the Cyclones. The homer marked Cottam's first minor-league jack and gives him eight runs batted in in seven games. Jarren Duran (2018 7th rounder), Devlin Granberg (2018 6th rounder), Tyler Dearden, Xavier LeGrant, and Ramfis Berroa all picked up two hits in the rout.
Eduard Bazardo garnered his first win of the season by going six innings deep and allowing only two hits (no runs) while striking out five to lower his ERA to 3.60.
Eduard Bazardo garnered his first win of the season by going six innings deep and allowing only two hits (no runs) while striking out five to lower his ERA to 3.60.
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GCL Orioles 3, GCL Red Sox 0
Yasel Santana gave up just one run on three hits in five innings of work but his teammates bats fell silent as the Red Sox lost, failing to complete a sweep on the farm. The Red Sox mustered just three hits, with Ricardo Cubillan provided the only extra-base knock, a double in the bottom of the sixth. Logan Browning and Kris Jackson each surrendered a run in their first professional outings.
To make matters worse, 2018 first-round draft pick Triston Casas left the game in the sixth inning after apparently injuring his thumb diving for a ball at third base. Monday marked the first game for Casas at third base as a professional.
Elih Marrero also made his professional debut, going 1 for 4.
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DSL Red Sox1 6, DSL Rays1 4
The Red Sox scored five times in the top of the eighth to rally in a win over the Rays. Denny Daza did most of the damage, going 3 for 5 with two runs. Ceddanne Rafaela had the lone extra-base hit for the Sox, smacking an RBI double in the fateful eighth frame. Kelvin Sanchez threw five innings of one-run baseball but departed before he could earn the win.
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DSL Red Sox2 8, DSL Indians 1
The Red Sox responded to a first-inning homer from the Indians by scoring three runs in the bottom of the first and never looked back. Irvin Villarroel earned the win with a fine five-inning performance, striking out six and allowing just one run on three hits. Angel Maita continues to swing a hot bat, going 2 for 3 with a triple and raising his batting average to .338.
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GCL Orioles 3, GCL Red Sox 0
Yasel Santana gave up just one run on three hits in five innings of work but his teammates bats fell silent as the Red Sox lost, failing to complete a sweep on the farm. The Red Sox mustered just three hits, with Ricardo Cubillan provided the only extra-base knock, a double in the bottom of the sixth. Logan Browning and Kris Jackson each surrendered a run in their first professional outings.
To make matters worse, 2018 first-round draft pick Triston Casas left the game in the sixth inning after apparently injuring his thumb diving for a ball at third base. Monday marked the first game for Casas at third base as a professional.
Elih Marrero also made his professional debut, going 1 for 4.
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DSL Red Sox1 6, DSL Rays1 4
The Red Sox scored five times in the top of the eighth to rally in a win over the Rays. Denny Daza did most of the damage, going 3 for 5 with two runs. Ceddanne Rafaela had the lone extra-base hit for the Sox, smacking an RBI double in the fateful eighth frame. Kelvin Sanchez threw five innings of one-run baseball but departed before he could earn the win.
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DSL Red Sox2 8, DSL Indians 1
The Red Sox responded to a first-inning homer from the Indians by scoring three runs in the bottom of the first and never looked back. Irvin Villarroel earned the win with a fine five-inning performance, striking out six and allowing just one run on three hits. Angel Maita continues to swing a hot bat, going 2 for 3 with a triple and raising his batting average to .338.
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Player of the Day: A grand slam from Tate Matheny was the grand moment in the Sea Dogs' proving who was the better water animal on Monday in a comeback win over the Fisher Cats. Matheny's four-run blast with no outs in the fourth sparked a seven-run inning for Portland as the son of former Major Leaguer Mike Matheny out-dueled MLB boomer babies Bo Bichette and Cavan Biggio, who also hit homers for their respective club.
Photo Credit: Tate Matheny & Kole Cottam by Kelly O'Connor
Tommy Cassell is a Contributing Editor for SoxProspects.com. Follow him on Twitter @tommycassell44.