August 5, 2018 at 7:00 AM
Cup of Coffee: Cuevas under control; Dalbec debuts with Portland
-----
Pawtucket Red Sox 8, Rochester Red Wings (MIN) 1
William Cuevas pitched outstanding, and Jantzen Witte homered in his return to Pawtucket after spending 66 games with Portland as two separate four-run innings propelled the PawSox to a rout of the Red Wings.
Cuevas went 6 1/3 innings, allowing five hits and one run while striking out seven. He threw 71 of his 105 pitches for strikes. Witte drove in four runs, highlighted by a two-run blast in the second inning. The final four hitters of the PawSox lineup drove in all eight runs, with Mike Ohlman (RBI), Mike Miller (RBI) and Kyle Wren (two RBIs) teaming up with Witte, who batted ninth, as the big boppers from Saturday.
-----
Richmond Flying Squirrels (SFG) 4, Portland Sea Dogs 1 (7 inn.)
In his Portland debut, Bobby Dalbec (pictured, below) hit an RBI single in his first at-bat, in what ended up being the lone run in a loss to Richmond in the first game of a doubleheader. Dalbec finished 2 for 3 in his opening act with Portland after spending his entire season with Salem.
After giving up eight hits and four runs and issuing three walks with no strikeouts, Dedgar Jimenez took the loss, his seventh of the season.
Richmond Flying Squirrels (SFG) 3, Portland Sea Dogs 1 (7 inn.)
In his Portland debut, Bobby Dalbec (pictured, below) hit an RBI single in his first at-bat, in what ended up being the lone run in a loss to Richmond in the first game of a doubleheader. Dalbec finished 2 for 3 in his opening act with Portland after spending his entire season with Salem.
After giving up eight hits and four runs and issuing three walks with no strikeouts, Dedgar Jimenez took the loss, his seventh of the season.
Richmond Flying Squirrels (SFG) 3, Portland Sea Dogs 1 (7 inn.)
Dalbec's second performance didn't go as well as his debut, as the recently promoted slugger went 0 for 3 with two strikeouts. The Sea Dogs' offense sputtered on the whole as well, mustering just four hits in the second game of a doubleheader.
Daniel McGrath pitched well in the spot start, lasting four innings and giving up one run on two hits. He took the loss. Michael Chavis plated the lone run, an RBI double in the sixth inning that scored Danny Mars. Chavis went 1 for 2 with a walk.
Daniel McGrath pitched well in the spot start, lasting four innings and giving up one run on two hits. He took the loss. Michael Chavis plated the lone run, an RBI double in the sixth inning that scored Danny Mars. Chavis went 1 for 2 with a walk.
-----
Salem Red Sox 3, Carolina Mudcats (MIL) 0 (7 inn.)
Darwinzon Hernandez and Daniel Gonzalez teamed up to toss a three-hit shutout, with the latter getting the win in the first game of a doubleheader. Hernandez went the first 4 1/3 innings, allowing three hits while striking out nine. Gonzalez didn't allow a hit in his 2 2/3 innings of relief and struck out four.
Salem mustered only four hits of its own, but Jerry Downs delivered a big two-run blast in the sixth inning to add some insurance while CJ Chatham added the other RBI on a sacrifice fly in the fourth.
Carolina Mudcats (MIL) 3, Salem Red Sox 2 (8 inn.)
A fine performance from Tanner Houck went for naught as Carolina walked off with a win in the eighth inning in Game 2 of a doubleheader. Houck hurled five innings of six-hit ball and allowed two runs while striking out eight. It marked the fifth time in his previous eight starts where the tall right-hander has struck out seven or more batters. Durbin Feltman fired one inning of scoreless relief, walking two and striking out two.
Brett Netzer hit a solo shot in the third, and Chris Madera added the other RBI an inning later. Jagger Rusconi went 0 for 3 with three strikeouts in his debut with Salem.
-----
A whopping 17 hits and a seven-run eighth inning covered up a shaky outing from starting pitcher Hildemaro Requena as Greenville scored 10 unanswered runs to beat the Braves. The Drive hit just one home run, a two-run shot from Isaias Lucena in the seventh, with the rest of its 16 hits being singles. Zach Sterry was the lone Greenville batter not to get a hit, as Kervin Suarez led all hitters with a 4-for-5 performance, scoring two runs and driving in two.
-----
Taylor Ahearn did not start the first leg of the doubleheader off on the right foot, allowing four runs in three innings to take the loss. Lowell registered just three hits, with Lane Milligan, Ramfis Berroa, and Dylan Hardy being the three Spinners to get a base knock.
Lowell Spinners 2, Tri-City ValleyCats (HOU) 1 (8 inn.)
Korby Batesole delivered the game-winning RBI, scoring Alberto Schmidt on an RBI single and Andrew Politi finished the game by fielding a bunt cleaning and getting the out at first with the tying run on third base as the Spinners salvaged a split in a doubleheader with the ValleyCats.
Hardy notched the other RBI in the seventh inning, which helped tie the game and send it into extras.
Lowell Spinners 2, Tri-City ValleyCats (HOU) 1 (8 inn.)
Korby Batesole delivered the game-winning RBI, scoring Alberto Schmidt on an RBI single and Andrew Politi finished the game by fielding a bunt cleaning and getting the out at first with the tying run on third base as the Spinners salvaged a split in a doubleheader with the ValleyCats.
Hardy notched the other RBI in the seventh inning, which helped tie the game and send it into extras.
-----
Two hits and two RBIs from Ricardo Cubillan proved to be the difference in a win over the Twins. The Red Sox used five different pitchers to get the job done, with Connor Berry getting the victory in relief in his first ever minor league appearance. Berry was selected in the 31st round of this year's draft.
-----
Kelvin Sanchez was lights out for the Red Sox, giving up two hits and two runs (one earned) in five innings of work while striking out eight to lower his ERA to 3.65 and improve his record to 4-4 on the season. Angel Maita went 2 for 4, registering the lone extra-base hit, a double in the fourth frame.
-----
-----
The trio of pitchers didn't allow an earned run and the Red Sox offense scored four unanswered runs late to take the win. Bryan Lucas, Carlos Velez, and Richardson Jimenez all combined to give up six hits and two runs, both unearned. The trio also recorded 13 strikeouts, with Velez picking up eight of them. Nelfy Abreu, Andres Gari, Ronaldo Pulgar and Gregori Custodio all had two-hit performances.
-----
Player of the Day: With lots of action across the farm on Saturday, thanks to weather wiping out a few games on Friday, there was lots to chose from when it came to Player of the Day. But a winning pitching performance from Willam Cuevas stuck out more than anything else. The 27-year-old right-hander had possibly his best performance since an eight-inning gem on June 11 against Syracuse. He lowered his ERA to 3.45 and picked up his eighth win of the season thanks to 6 1/3 innings of one-run ball.
Photo Credit: William Cuevas and Bobby Dalbec by Kelly O'Connor
Tommy Cassell is a Contributing Editor for SoxProspects.com. Follow him on Twitter at @tommycassell44.