June 27, 2019 at 7:00 AM
Cup of Coffee: De La Guerra homers; Campana helps Lowell walk off
Cup of Coffee 6/27: It was an action-packed evening down on the farm, as both Portland and Lowell played doubleheaders, in addition to each of the other affiliates taking the field. The short season teams were much more successful than their full-season counterparts. Lowell walked off with a win in Game 1 of its doubleheader, while in the GCL, Trey Ball delivered a sacrifice fly for the only run of the contest as he tries to rediscover his offensive form. The DSL squads each had three-hit performances from Axel James and Albert Feliz and both emerged as victors. Salem did not record a hit until the eighth inning, while Pawtucket took a loss and Portland split a doubleheader.
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Chris Owings had three hits and the PawSox owned a 2-1 lead in the middle of the sixth, but in the bottom of the seventh, Syracuse scored four times to take the lead and the game with it. Erasmo Ramirez got one out in the seventh, but his otherwise strong start was erased when five straight Met batters reached to tally four runs. Three of those were charged to Dan Runzler, who completed the frame. Tyler Thornburg allowed two hits in a shutout eighth inning. Chad De La Guerra (pictured) also drilled his eighth home run of the season.
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New Hampshire scored five runs in the sixth and added another in the seventh for good measure to pull away from Portland late. Tanner Houck cruised through five innings, allowing just one run, but failed to record an out in the sixth after allowing the first two hitters to reach, both of whom would score. Matthew Gorst came on in relief and after an error, allowed four straight batters safe passage to first base, allowing another three runners to cross home plate. Jake Cosart pitched the seventh, walking four batters, allowing a run to score without a hit. At the plate, Portland notched just three hits.
Three Sea Dogs had multiple hits and CJ Chatham hit a two-run home run to help salvage a split in the doubleheader. Daniel McGrath threw four one-hit innings in the start, though he did walk three batters. Despite allowing two runs, Eduard Bazardo earned the win and Adam Lau earned the save with a shutout seventh inning. Bobby Dalbec, Luke Tendler and Deiner Lopez each had two hits, including a triple for Tendler.
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Salem only notched five singles, but the Red Sox took advantage of three Fayetteville errors to take home the win. Jhonathan Diaz allowed one run on five hits in 5 1/3 innings of work. He walked three and struck out five batters. Hunter Smith struck out four and allowed just two hits in 2 2/3 innings of work and Andrew Schwaab earned the save.
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The Drive were no-hit through seven innings, but Triston Casas singled to lead off the eighth and broke up the no-no. The Drive loaded the bases in the ninth, but were unable to scratch a run across. Chris Machamer allowed six runs on nine hits in his five-inning start. Oddanier Mosqueda allowed an additional two runs on three hits in three innings of work and Logan Browning threw a clean ninth, with two strikeouts.
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Tri-City scraped a run across in the seventh inning to force extras, but on the first pitch of the bottom of the eighth, Marino Campana drilled a single to left to bring home the game-winning run from second base. Alex Erro brought home the first Lowell run on a single up the middle in the second. Jonathan Diaz added two hits as well. Despite walking four batters, Bryan Lucas put his team in a position to win, as he did not allow a run through 4 1/3 innings of work. He also struck out seven hitters. Kris Jackson delivered a clean eighth inning to earn the win.
Hildemaro Requena allowed a single to begin the contest, and that was all the offense that the Spinners allowed, as the only runners to reach base through the rest of the game for the ValleyCats were a pair of errors. Requena handled the first four innings, while Robinson Leyer pitched the fifth. Brendan Nail notched four punchouts as he earned a six-out save. Lowell held a 2-0 lead going into the bottom of the sixth, but broke out for five runs in the frame to put some distance between the two squads. Kervin Suarez cleared the bases with a triple during the inning, as Lowell recorded three of its six hits.
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The Red Sox came out ahead in a pitcher's duel, where the teams combined for just seven hits. Aaron Perry allowed just two hits in his four-inning start, striking out five against a pair of walks. Anyelo Gomez followed him up with a no-hit fifth, and Richardson Jimenez and Yoelvis Guedez posted two frames each. Trey Ball delivered the only RBI on a sacrifice fly in the eighth. Danny Diaz added a pair of hits as well. In his professional debut, Matthew Lugo hit 0 for 4 with two strikeouts.
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The Red Sox pounded out 10 hits to earn a victory, scoring two valuable insurance runs in the eighth inning. Albert Feliz was 3 for 4 with three RBI, including his fifth home run of the season, a solo shot in the sixth, and two doubles. Moises Castellanos earned the start and allowed two runs on three hits in four innings of work. Claudio Ochoa followed it up with three innings of one-run ball, and Isiais Ozoria earned his third save, pitching 2/3 of an inning.
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The Red Sox scored nine runs in the seventh inning to break the game wide open, though the Indians and Brewers prospects shook off the shutout by scoring in the ninth. Jose Navas hit a grand slam and the team recorded five of their 12 hits in the inning. Axel James was 3 for 4 and Naysbel Marcano added two hits, including a home run, and three RBI. Andres Ortuno delivered five two-hit, shutout innings in a start, while Luis Talavera earned the 12-out save.
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Player of the Night: Albert Feliz had hit four home runs through his first 20 professional games, but drilled another on Wednesday and added two doubles along with it to drive in three runs and score two more of his own. He paced the first DSL squad to a second consecutive win against the DSL Athletics. The 17-year-old was signed on July 2 last year for a $400,000 signing bonus and is now in a three-way tie for the DSL lead in home runs.
Photo Credit: Chad De La Guerra by Kelly O'Connor