May 30, 2021 at 7:00 AM
Cup of Coffee: Winckowski punches out nine; Cordero homers for Worcester
5/30 Cup of Coffee: The Red Sox system had a solid day, with only Greenville taking a loss, resulting in a 3-1 Saturday. This came despite some slow offense, including just 10 hits through a doubleheader for Worcester, while none of the affiliates scored more than four runs in a game. Despite the low run totals, there were still some shows of power, as Franchy Cordero, Johan Mieses and Josh Ockimey each went deep for their teams. The performance of the day on the mound came by way of Portland's Josh Winckowski (pictured, right), who fired seven one-hit, shutout innings with nine strikeouts. He retired the final 10 Yard Goats that he faced.
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Brandon Workman earned his first save for the Triple-A club in his return to the Boston organization as Worcester won the first game of its doubleheader in Pennsylvania with a two-run seventh inning to break the tie late on a Josh Ockimey two-run home run. Franchy Cordero also went yard, opening the scoring for the visitors in the fourth with a two-run shot of his own. Cordero had two of the five Red Sox hits and has started off his time in the minors on a high note, hitting .333 through his first set of games. Raynel Espinal threw the first six innings, surrendering six hits and a pair of runs, with five strikeouts and two walks. Workman closed it out with a trio of punchouts in a clean seventh.
Second verse, same as the first. Worcester again scored late to take a 4-2 lead and held on for the win. This time, it was the sixth inning favored by visiting hitters, as Michael Gettys worked a bases-loaded walk to get the Red Sox on the board, while Jack Lopez added a sacrifice fly to tie the proceedings. It was Jett Bandy who delivered the game-winning knock with a two-run single. Worcester registered five hits in this one as well, two of which were off Bandy's bat. Daniel Gossett earned the win with a five-inning start as the IronPigs put up six hits on the right-hander, pushing two runs across the plate. Kaleb Ort had another strong outing, striking out three in a no-hit sixth, while Kevin McCarthy made it interesting in the seventh, as he loaded the bases with three hits but escaped with no runs scored.
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Josh Winckowski fired seven one-hit innings with nine strikeouts, leading Portland to victory at Hadlock Field on Saturday. Jeisson Rosario, Joey Meneses and Grant Williams each added multi-hit performances as well. Johan Mieses got the offense going early for Portland, as he hit his 11th home run of the young season in the first inning, putting the home side ahead, 2-0. A third run came off his bat in the seventh when he reached on a fielder's choice. Joan Martinez was only able to record one out in the eighth and both of the batters he walked would end up scoring. Matthew Kent closed out the eighth inning and ceded the game to Jose Adames, who would allow a third run to score, but held on for the save.
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Rome spoiled what would have been a perfect day for the Red Sox system, as the Braves took home a 6-2 victory. The Greenville offense mustered only five hits, with both of their runs coming in the eighth. Tyreque Reed broke the shutout with a single, while Tyler Dearden continued his strong start to the season with a sacrifice fly, but it would not be enough offense. Brian Van Belle pitched the first four innings for Greenville and had a tough outing. He allowed six hits and four runs to cross the plate. While he did not walk a batter, he was able to muster only two strikeouts. Yusniel Padron-Artiles followed for a trio of frames and was able to overcome traffic on the bases in the form of four hits, with only an unearned run crossing the plate. Alex Scherff was responsible for the final run, as he pitched the eighth.
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Myrtle Beach Pelicans (CHC) @ Salem Red Sox, PPD (Weather)
The contest was postponed to due inclement weather in Virginia. It will be made up May 30 as part of a doubleheader.
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Player of the Day: With the lack of offense throughout the system on Saturday, Josh Winckowski stood out in a big way on the mound. The No. 27 prospect in the system, who came from the Mets in the trade that brought Franchy Cordero to Boston and sent Andrew Benintendi to Kansas City, lowered his ERA to 1.33 in his first season in Boston with his six shutout innings in Portland on Saturday. He has struck out 26 batters in 27 innings of work so far in 2021. He also helped lower his WHIP to 0.89 as he retired the final 10 Yard Goats he faced on the day.
Photo Credit: Josh Winckowski by Kelly O'Connor