July 30, 2021 at 7:00 AM
Cup of Coffee: Northcut, Rafaela lead charge for Salem; Greenville belts seven home runs
7/30 Cup of Coffee: There were tons of standout offensive performances yesterday, mostly from Greenville and Salem. Nick Northcut (pictured) and Cedanne Rafaela combined for six extra-base hits for Salem, while Joe Davis, Cameron Cannon, and Dominic D'Alessandro put up huge numbers for Greenville. Connor Seabold showed some nice flashes for Worcester, who split a doubleheader with Buffalo. The Sea Dogs were rained out for the second time in the past three days.
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Jett Bandy led the way in game one with two home runs and four RBI. They were the first two home runs of the year for the veteran backstop. Tate Matheny also had a big game, roping two doubles and stealing third. Yairo Munoz also extended his hitting streak to 21 games with a two-bagger. The Sox went with a bullpen game in this one, as Austin Brice started it off with a clean inning, giving way to Marcus Walden, who tossed three scoreless frames with three strikeouts. John Schreiber added two scoreless innings of his own with two strikeouts, and Kaleb Ort struck out the side in the seventh.
In his second start since returning from the injured list, Connor Seabold allowed four runs in five innings but had five strikeouts and no walks. Brandon Brennan tossed a scoreless inning following Seabold, but Matt Hall had a rough outing, surrendering four runs in just an inning. The only run for the Sox came from a solo shot by Michael Gettys, his fifth of the year. He also added a double. Jhonny Pereda also went 2 for 3 with a double and Jeter Downs added a double of his own.
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New Hampshire Fisher Cats (TOR) @ Portland Sea Dogs, postponed
Yet another game was washed away. This game will be made up as part of a doubleheader on Saturday.
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The Drive blasted seven home runs on their way to a convincing win. Dominic D'Alessandro led the charge with two home runs and four runs driven in. Joe Davis also had a huge night, going 4 for 6 with a double and a home run. Cameron Cannon continued his nice 2021 season by going 3 for 6 with a double and a home run. He now has 23 doubles this year. The other three long balls came off the bats of Brandon Howlett, Stephen Scott, and Tyler Dearden. Elih Marrero added two doubles. Chris Murphy pitched a solid game, allowing three runs in five innings, recording seven strikeouts and just one walk. Jacob Wallace didn't allow a run in two innings with two strikeouts, and Cody Scroggins got the final four outs without allowing a hit.
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Ceddanne Rafaela went off in this one, going 3 for 5 with two triples and a home run. The 20-year old now has seven triples this year. Nick Northcut also had a monster game, as he went 3 for 5, belting two home runs and a double with three RBI. He now has 10 long balls this year and 19 doubles. Antoni Flores and Nick Decker each went 2 for 5 with a double, while Gilberto Jimenez added a pair of singles and two runs. Jeremy Wu-Yelland had a rocky start, allowing four earned runs in four innings on seven hits. Nate Teller tossed two scoreless innings with a pair of punchouts, and Casey Cobb locked down a three-innings save without allowing a run.
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Blaze Jordan stayed hot for the Sox, picking up a couple singles in four trips to the plate to raise his season batting average to .333. Tyler McDonough started at second base today, making his organizational debut after being selected in the third round out of NC State a few weeks ago. The switch hitter doubled in his first plate appearance as part of a 1-for-3 day. Brainer Bonaci and Bryan Gonzalez each hit a double, and Eduardo Vaughan went 2 for 3. Angel Bastardo had a rough start, giving up three runs in two innings, but the pen picked him up, as Gregori Segovia, Gabriel Jackson, and Cole Milam each tossed a pair of scoreless frames, with Segovia and Milam striking out three each. Merfy Andrew got his third save in a clean ninth.
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DSL Rangers1 (TEX) @ DSL Red Sox Blue, postponed
This game was called due to rain, with a makeup date unknown.
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DSL Red Sox Red @ DSL Marlins (MIA)
Rain also ruined this game, again with an unknown makeup date.
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Player of the Day: There were tons of offensive candidates last night, but Nick Northcut barely edged out everyone with two home runs and a double. The 2018 11th round selection has caught fire in July after a bit of a rough June. He now has an .875 OPS in the month of July, with six doubles and three home runs. The 22-year old has an .813 OPS for the year now after a down 2019.
Photo Credit: Nick Northcut by Kelly O'Connor