August 17, 2018 at 7:00 AM
Cup of Coffee: Enmanuel De Jesus strikes out 10, Ivan De Jesus Jr. drives in 5
8/17 Cup of Coffee: There were several good pitching performances on the farm on Thursday, with Enmanuel De Jesus's (pictured) 10 strikeouts standing out above strong outings from Josh D. Smith, Daniel McGrath, and Denyi Reyes. Brandon Phillips and Pedro Castellanos stayed hot, and Ivan De Jesus Jr. drove in five runs for Pawtucket.
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Seven one-run innings from Josh D. Smith and a grand slam from Ivan De Jesus Jr. highlighted Pawtucket's victory. Smith only allowed two hits and walked two while striking out five. Brandon Workman followed with a scoreless eighth, striking out two. The PawSox put up six runs in the first led by the grand slam as well as RBI singles from Brandon Phillips and Sam Travis. Phillips and Rusney Castillo each went 3 for 4, while Sam Travis went 2 for 4. Phillips is now hitting .359 over his last 15 games.
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Some great pitching from Daniel McGrath and a home run from Chad De La Guerra led the Sea Dogs to their sixth win in the last seven games. McGrath went the first six innings and held the Thunder to one run on three hits, walking two and striking out four. Adam Lau shut the door in the ninth with a scoreless inning to pick up his second save. De La Guerra's solo shot in the sixth was his only hit of the day, while Danny Mars went 2 for 4 with a double and two stolen bases. Michael Chavis reached base three times, going 1 for 2 with two walks and a run scored.
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Denyi Reyes had another outstanding start, allowing two runs on four hits over seven innings as he improved to 2-1 through three games with Salem. He struck out six without walking a batter. While he is not posting a sub-2 ERA like he did in Greenville, the 21-year-old Reyes has stepped right in to Salem's rotation and allowed only five runs over his first 17 2/3 innings. Brett Netzer had two doubles as part of a 2-for-5 night, and C.J. Chatham went 2 for 4 and drove in a run.
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10 strikeouts from Enmanuel De Jesus tied his season high, and Zach Sterry launched a go-ahead two-run home run in the sixth inning. De Jesus went seven innings and allowed two runs on five hits, and Marcos Lantigua finished it off with two scoreless innings. Pedro Castellanos went 2 for 4 with an RBI and he is now hitting .429 over his last 10 games.
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Not much went right for the Spinners on Thursday night as the IronBirds put up five runs in the first inning and never looked back. Thad Ward had a rare clunker, giving up six runs while recording only five outs as his ERA ballooned from 1.82 to 3.76. Alex Demchak, who was signed to a minor league deal on Wednesday, made his debut and fired a scoreless inning, and Kris Jackson kept his ERA at 0.00 after 12 innings with the Spinners after a scoreless eighth. The only offensive performance of note was Korby Batesole who went 2 for 4 with a double and a triple.
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Austin Maddox started his rehab assignment with a scoreless inning, though he did allow three hits. Maddox had not pitched since June 2 and is currently on the 60-day disabled list with a shoulder injury. Mark Montgomery followed Maddox, and he allowed one run in his first appearance since May 29. The Red Sox signed Montgomery in July to a minor-league deal that runs through the 2019 season. Montgomery was on the shelf with an elbow injury.
On offense, Juan Carlos Abreu had multiple hits for the 15th time in only 39 games, going 2 for 4 with a run scored. Jecorrah Arnold also went 2 for 4 with a run scored, and Brandon Howlett went 1 for 3 with a double and an RBI.
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The Red Sox had four more hits than the Athletics but failed to capitalize. The top five batters in the order combined to go 9 for 17 with a walk, but the bottom of the order went 1 for 13. Leonel Jimenez went 3 for 4 with an RBI, Gilberto Jimenez went 2 for 4 and scored two runs, and Fabian Andrade went 2 for 4 with a double. Armando Acosta was the only pitcher that was able to keep the Athletics off the board as he allowed only one baserunner.
Every player had at least one hit for the Red Sox, led by Kleiber Rodriguez who went 3 for 4 with a double, walk, and a stolen base. Gregori Custodio was on base four times via two singles and two walks, and Nelfy Abreu went 2 for 4 with a walk and an RBI. Bryan Lucas allowed only an unearned run over the first three innings, while Robinson Parra got the win despite being rocked for seven runs on six hits and four walks over four innings.
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Player of the Night: While he allowed one more run than Josh D. Smith, Enmanuel De Jesus had double the amount of strikeouts. His 10 strikeouts gives him 106 on the year, good for ninth in the system. The 21-year-old is currently ranked No. 48 in the SoxProspects.com rankings after entering the year outside the top 60.
Photo Credit: Enmanuel De Jesus by Kelly O'Connor