Cup of Coffee: Jedixson Paez shines, Mayer goes 2 for 5

8/31 Cup of Coffee:  A pair of doubleheaders in the Dominican Summer League gives us five games yesterday. The 26-15 FCL Red Sox unleashed a fourteen-hit offensive and got a solid performance out of one of the players to be named later acquired in the Andrew Benintendi trade. Meanwhile, one DSL squad split two close games in their doubleheader while the other just could not get its offense going.

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FCL Red Sox 9, FCL Pirates 6

Luis De La Rosa picked up his first win of the season with a five-inning effort in which he allowed two earned runs on four hits while walking two and striking out three. The 19-year-old righty dropped his ERA to 4.08 in August after giving up just two runs over 14 innings and holding opponents to a .149 OBA. On the offensive side of things, Marcelo Mayer went 2 for 5 with his 10th RBI of the season. First baseman Darel Belen hit a pair of doubles, and Brainer Bonaci hit a double of his own and stole his 11th base of the season. Outfielder Miguel Ugueto also went 2 for 5 with an RBI and a stolen base in the seven-inning win.

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Cup of Coffee: Gonzalez debuts in Salem, Yorke homers again

8/30 Cup of Coffee: The debut of Wilkelman Gonzalez in Salem was a success as the 19-year-old got a win in a rain-shortened game. Jay Groome continued to put up impressive strikeout-to-walk numbers in Greenville, and he was supported by home runs from Nick Yorke, Joe Davis, and Brandon Howlett. Both Ryan Brasier and Danny Santana had strong games for Portland, but it was the power displayed by Tanner Nishioka (pictured) who stole the show with two home runs. 

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Buffalo Bisons (TOR) 9, Worcester Red Sox 5

Raynel Espinal was scheduled to start, but Alex Claudio got the nod instead. Claudio allowed four runs in 2 2/3, and his ERA is now up to 7.71 in seven innings with the WooSox. Durbin Feltman kept Worcester in the game with 2 1/3 scoreless frames, but Eduard Bazardo and Jose Adames were tagged for two runs apiece. Bazardo was making his first rehab appearance in Triple-A after pitching four innings in the FCL. 

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Cup of Coffee: Four hits for Cannon; Portland notches 20 hits

8/29 Cup of Coffee: It was a productive night across the system, as the full-season affiliates went 3-1, while the FCL team was suspended in the eighth due to rain. Portland had the most successful evening, pounding out 20 hits including four for Cameron Cannon, who doubled twice in the effort. Greenville pitched a shutout against Hickory behind a four-inning relief appearance by Casey Cobb. Jack Lopez, who tripled in the eighth to bring home the deciding run for Worcester, had two hits in a game that was back-and-forth at the end. As for Salem, the Red Sox were leading headed into the eighth but gave up a tally to send the game to extra innings, where their pitching staff struggled.

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Worcester Red Sox 7, Buffalo Bison (TOR) 6

The Red Sox scored a run on a Jack Lopez triple in the eighth to take home the victory on Saturday. Lopez was one of five hitters with two base knocks on the evening, while he and Jeter Downs added two RBI each. Connor Seabold earned the start and did not go deep, pitching only 4 1/3 innings and surrendering four runs on six hits. Stephen Gonsalves picked him up, delivering 1 2/3 frames of one-hit, shutout relief. Brandon Brennan and Kaleb Ort had scoreless eighth and ninth innings, respectively, to close out the victory.

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Cup of Coffee: Crawford nearly perfect; Mayer shines in FCL

8/28 Cup of Coffee: It was an evening to remember for Worcester starter Kutter Crawford (pictured) as he was perfect through five innings on his way to the win. Marcelo Mayer had a pair of hits, including his first career triple, as the FCL Sox split their doubleheader. Gilberto Jimenez and Ceddanne Rafaela set the table for Salem's win, while Christian Koss had a big night despite a Greenville loss. Miguel Bleis homered as the DSL teams split their contests.

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Worcester Red Sox 4, Buffalo Bisons (TOR) 1

Kutter Crawford turned in a nearly flawless performance to lead Worcester to its fifth consecutive victory. Crawford retired the first 15 batters he faced before Cullen Large spoiled the no-hit bid with a leadoff single in the sixth inning. Large would come in to score on an error, the only blemish in Crawford's line. The right-hander needed just 75 pitches to complete six innings, throwing 53 of them for strikes, as he struck out eight of the 20 batters he faced without issuing a walk. The bullpen continued where Crawford left off, with Seth Blair firing two hitless frames and Alex Claudio tossing a scoreless ninth for the save. 

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Cup of Coffee: Shugart, Koss lead Drive to win

8/27 Cup of Coffee: The Drive saw a complete performance, with Chase Shugart (pictured) leading the way on the mound. Christian Koss and Elih Marrero also had big games for Greenville. Nick Yorke stayed hot as well. Worcester also saw a big offensive night, led by Yairo Munoz and Johan Mieses. Marcelo Mayer also reached three times for the FCL Sox.

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Worcester Red Sox 8, Buffalo Bisons (TOR) 4

Johan Mieses had a big game at the plate, going 2 for 5 with a pair of long balls, giving him six with Worcester and 17 combined in 2021. He drove in four runs. Yairo Munoz also had a big game, going 3 for 5 with his 16th double and an RBI. Joey Meneses added two hits including a double and two RBI. Jeter Downs also reached twice with a double and a walk. Daniel Gossett had a shaky outing, allowing four runs (two earned) over three innings with three walks and two strikeouts. The bullpen was dominant though, as John Schreiber tossed three scoreless innings following Gossett. Durbin Feltman, Brandon Brennan, and Kaleb Ort each added a shutout inning, with Brennan punching out two. 

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Scout Chatter: Blaze Jordan, Brainer Bonaci, Eddinson Paulino and Karson Simas

The Red Sox Florida Coast League and Dominican Summer League teams are in full swing and it's time for another Scout Chatter with reports we've received on those affiliates. The data we’ve collected will be up on the News Page for your reading pleasure before we use it to update player page scouting reports, so forgive any inconsistencies until that point. Today, we focus on the infielders from the Red Sox Florida Coast League team. 

Red Sox 2020 third-round pick Blaze Jordan has done exactly what the Red Sox hoped he would when they drafted him, earning a quick promotion to Salem. In 76 plate appearances over 19 games in the FCL, he hit .362/.408/.667 with 12 extra-base hits, including 4 home runs, and had a 17.1% strikeout rate and 7.9% walk rate. While the overall stat line is very impressive, scout feedback from Fort Myers has been more cautious. Likely to move from third base to first base based on reports on his defense, Jordan is going to have to hit at every level. His raw power is obvious, and he performed exactly how you would want, but his approach is still a work in progress and he needs to develop a plan at the plate. Too often, he was reaching for pitches and getting himself out, and would get caught off balance. Given his offensive potential when he stays back and drives the ball, it would serve him well to take those pitches, rather than cheat himself out of an at-bat. He is still very young though, not turning 19 until December, and he has plenty of time to develop.

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Cup of Coffee: Munoz powers WooSox; Yorke goes deep for Drive

8/26 Cup of Coffee: Red Sox affiliates won three of four on Wednesday, with some familiar names leading the way. Yairo Munoz (pictured) may have seen his hitting streak end last week, but his production continued with a two-homer game to power Worcester. Greenville was helped out with another multi-hit game for Nick Yorke that featured the 19-year-old's first High-A home run. A big inning led by a Ceddanne Rafaela blast led Salem, while Portland fell despite a strong evening by Cameron Cannon.

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Worcester Red Sox 9, Buffalo Bisons (TOR) 4

The Worcester lineup brought a power surge to Western New York, delivering a 15-hit attack that included five home runs. Yairo Munoz and Joey Meneses both went deep twice for the WooSox. Munoz hit a solo homer in the first and another in the fourth as part of a 4-for-5 game that also included three RBI and three runs scored. Meneses joined Munoz going deep in the first, then hit another solo blast in the eighth. Connor Wong had Worcester's other round-tripper, going back to back with Meneses in the first. Wong added a double, raising his slugging average to .507 since the start of July. Jonathan Arauz had a three-hit night, while Jeter Downs and Josh Ockimey picked up a double apiece.

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Cup of Coffee: Duran returns to Worcester; Yorke debuts for Greenville

8/25 Cup of Coffee: Jarren Duran's return to Worcester and Nick Yorke's debut with Greenville highlighted an up-and-down night on the farm. Duran and Yorke each had extra-base hits, while left-hander Chris Murphy set a career-high in strikeouts in a choppy outing for Portland. Jay Groome got off to a very rough start but was able to recover nicely over his final three innings. In Greenville Elih Marrero (pictured) had one of the best at-bats of the year, and in Florida, Luis De La Rosa had a solid return to the mound. 

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Worcester Red Sox 4, Buffalo Bisons (TOR) 2

In his first game back with the WooSox, Jarren Duran went 1 for 4 with a double, walk, and a stolen base. Connor Wong, Johan Mieses, and Delino DeShields all had two hits, with Mieses lacing a double and DeShields adding a triple and a walk. Two fielding errors by first baseman Franchy Cordero led to a pair of unearned runs for Raynel Espinal. Espinal was otherwise solid, walking two and striking out four without allowing an earned run. Stephen Gonsalves worked around three walks to notch two shutout innings, and Kaleb Ort got the save with a scoreless ninth. 

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Podcast Ep. #223: Yorke moving up

Another week, another promotion, but this one's a biggie, as 2020 first-round pick Nick Yorke has raked his way up to Greenville. Chris and Ian have thoughts on the long-awaited bump upward for the second baseman, as well as the re-appearance of Blaze Jordan, further roster machinations in Boston, and other news. Plus, Ian got some reports on Worcester pitchers Connor Seabold and Kutter Crawford, the guys discuss the newest midseason top 100 list from MLB.com, and of course, your emails!

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Minor Notes: Site redesign; Mayer named No. 9 prospect by MLBPipeline

Here are this week's Minor Notes:

• The not-so-minor news is the redesign of the site! Founder Mike Andrews has worked hard on the new design, updating the original layout of the site from 2003. The homepage and some of the other highly-frequented pages have the updated layout, while the remainder of the site will get the same treatment in the coming weeks.

• Chris Hatfield and Ian Cundall also checked in for Episode No. 222 of the SoxProspects.com Podcast. The two checked levels and discussed the prospect status of Tanner Houck and Jarren Duran, a pair of top-five guys in the system that have spent parts of the season in Boston and should soon graduate from prospect status.

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Cup of Coffee: Mayer goes yard again, Ramirez dominates

8/24 Cup of Coffee: There were four games played on a relatively question Monday; a doubleheader in the Florida Complex League, and a game for both Dominican Summer League affiliates. The FCL Red Sox swept the doubleheader, collectively scoring 15 runs while allowing just one to their opponent. Meanwhile, the DSL Red Sox Red took a close victory, while the Red Sox Blue let an early lead go to waste.

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FCL Red Sox 11, FCL Braves 1 (Game 1)

Marcelo Mayer homered in his first at bat, his second in as many games. When all was said and done, the 18-year-old uber-prospect had scored three times, walked twice, and stolen his first professional base. Danny Diaz gave the Red Sox some separation in the top of the third with a three-run double before Bryan Gonzalez really put the game out of reach in the fifth inning with a three-run homer. Wilkelman Gonzalez was an effective starting pitcher, putting together five one-run innings in which he allowed five hits, and one walk while striking out five batters.

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Cup of Coffee: Decker hits two home runs; Jordan hits a grand slam

8/23 Cup of Coffee: The rain led to a cancellation in Worcester, a suspended game in Portland, and an early completion in Rome. Salem was the only affiliate to get a full game in, and it used home runs from Nick Decker (pictured) and Blaze Jordan to support a strong pitching effort from Chih-Jung Liu and Wyatt Olds. In Greenville, Brandon Howlett and Christian Koss sparked the offense. 

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Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (NYY) @ Worcester Red Sox, Canceled (rain) 

Sunday's game was canceled as Tropical Storm Henri hit the region. Scranton/Wilkes-Barre is not returning to Worcester this season, so the game will not be made up. 

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Binghamton Rumble Ponies (NYM) @ Portland Sea Dogs, Suspended (rain)

The outer bands of Henri stretched all the way into Maine, and this game was ultimately suspended in the top of the fourth. The game was tied 3-3, with Roldani Baldwin lacing a three-run double. 

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Cup of Coffee: Mayer notches first home run, Worcester pitches shutout

8/22 Cup of Coffee: It was a day for the pitchers across the system, provided you weren't in Salem or Fort Myers. Outside of the two slugfests, no game featured more than six runs and no team tallied more than four on their own. Connor Seabold (pictured) headlined Worcester's shutout win, making arguably his most impressive outing since joining the organization, punching out nine with just two baserunners across seven innings. Offensively, Marcelo Mayer carried the mantle, hitting 2 for 5 with his first professional home run and four RBI as well. The FCL team burst out for 11 runs on 16 hits, taking up much of the system's offensive output, though Salem gave them a run for their money. The Red Sox had 11 runs on 14 hits, though two of those tallies did come in the 10th inning. Nick Yorke was the star there, going 3 for 6 with five RBI and two home runs.

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Worcester Red Sox 2, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (NYY) 0

Worcester shut out Scranton on Saturday behind an exceptional outing from Connor Seabold. He scattered one hit and a walk over seven innings of dominant work, registering nine strikeouts as well. While Worcester only got four hits, Jack Lopez' two-run double in the sixth was enough to give his team the win. John Schreiber pitched the final two innings in relief without allowing a hit. He also struck out two batters

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Cup of Coffee: Casas, Santos lead first-place Sea Dogs

8/21 Cup of Coffee: It was a full schedule on Friday, with seven affiliates on the slate to play nine games. However, two of the games in the Dominican Summer League were suspended and a third was postponed due to rain. Stateside, Portland turned in a strong showing, as Victor Santos continues to impress on the mound while Triston Casas (pictured) kept on his post-Olympics hot streak. Yusniel Padron-Artiles turned in a strong start in the nightcap of Greenville's twinbill, helping the Drive salvage a split. Worcester managed to break through in the eighth inning after Scranton threatened a second consecutive no hitter at Polar Park, while Salem prevailed with a three-run rally in a wild 10th inning.

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Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (NYY) 14, Worcester Red Sox 2

The WooSox did not get no-hit, Durbin Feltman had another good inning, and it was fireworks night. This was essentially the full list of bright spots from Friday's shellacking at the hands of their Triple-A North rivals. After being held hitless in the nightcap of Thursday's doubleheader, a trio of Scranton pitchers did not surrender a hit until a Chad De La Guerra single with one out in the eighth. In total, the WooSox lineup went 16 1/3 innings over parts of three games without collecting a base hit. Kutter Crawford pitched better than his line score, surrendering seven runs on six hits in 3 2/3 innings. Crawford struck out six and walked a pair. Feltman fired a perfect ninth, his fourth consecutive scoreless outing. He struck out one and threw all seven of his pitches for strikes.

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Cup of Coffee: Jordan homers in Salem debut

8/20 Cup of Coffee: The bats were alive for Salem, as they belted three home runs, including one off the bat of Blaze Jordan, who was making his first appearance for Salem. Connor Wong (pictured) had a huge hit in Worcester's win in their first game, but the second one didn't turn out as well, getting no-hit. Shane Drohan also pitched a very nice game for Salem. 

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Worcester Red Sox 5, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (NYY) 3 (Game 1)

Daniel Gossett started this one off well for Worcester, firing two shutout innings with three strikeouts and no free passes. Ryan Brasier followed with a clean inning that included one strikeout. Stephen Gonsalves had a mixed bag in his three innings, allowing three runs, but also striking out six batters.  Kaleb Ort picked up save number 13 with a scoreless seventh. Connor Wong had the big blow on offense, roping a three-run double in the third. The catcher also added a single. Joey Meneses and Josh Ockimey also added doubles. In his second rehab game, Christian Arroyo played second base and went 0 for 2 with a walk. 

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Podcast Ep. #222 - Into the Dog Days

It's mid-August and the high-energy anticipation and examination of the draft, trade deadline, and signing deadline are all behind us! Chris and Ian got on the horn for our first Checking Levels that includes the complexes. Who is performing? Who is disappointing? The guys looked at both as well as how the weather might be the biggest story at the complexes so far - and what that tells us about a post-realignment world. Plus, we examine the status of Jarren Duran and Tanner Houck in Boston, more promotions, whether the system is improving as much as Baseball America says it is, and of course, your emails!

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Cup of Coffee: Groome leads Greenville sweep; Yorke has three more hits

8/19 Cup of Coffee: Three former first-round picks were in action Wednesday, and all three continue to turn in strong 2021 campaigns. Jay Groome (pictured) set the tone for Greenville's doubleheader sweep with six strong innings in the opening contest. Triston Casas keeps rolling for Portland, reaching base twice in the Sea Dogs loss. Nick Yorke once again had a multi-hit game out of the Salem leadoff spot, teaming with Gilberto Jimenez to spark that offense. Elsewhere, Connor Wong had a big game on an otherwise dismal night for Worcester. The Dominican Summer League teams got in some rare Wednesday action, playing games that were postponed due to Tropical Storm Grace. 

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Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (NYY) 9, Worcester Red Sox 1

Worcester had a tough test with the Triple-A debut of highly-touted Yankees hurler Clarke Schmidt. Josh Ockimey took Schmidt deep to lead off the second inning, scoring the team's only run in 3 1/3 off the right-hander. The day after his hitting streak came to an end, Yairo Munoz was back in form with an eighth-inning double. Connor Wong collected three of Worcester's six hits. Kyle Hart took the loss, surrendering three runs on three hits in 3 1/3. Ryan Brasier continues to give up a lot of runs during his rehab stint. In the sixth inning, he gave up a two-run homer and has an unsightly 24.55 ERA in four appearances. Braiser is expected to work again on Thursday in what would be his first back-to-back appearances.

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SoxProspects.com Redesign

Hello to all of our readers! This morning we launched a newly-redesigned SoxProspects.com home page. It’s been in the works for a couple months and we’re really excited about it. Please take a look at soxprospects.com when you get a chance. (You may need to refresh your browser). As with any redesign, we expect that some of you will be really jazzed about it off the bat, while some of you will be bummed that we changed the look-and-feel that we’ve all been accustomed to for almost 18 years. Some of the testers felt that way initially but pretty much everyone eventually came around to liking the new design much better. From our perspective, here are some of the benefits of the new design:

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Cup of Coffee: Downs and Yorke homer; Muñoz goes hitless

8/18 Cup of Coffee: Two top-10 prospects hit home runs, and a top-20 starter had one of his best starts as a professional, but it was still a bittersweet day as Yairo Muñoz went hitless for the first time in 35 games. Jeter Downs hit two home runs and Nick Yorke went deep again for Salem. Both Raynel Espinal and Chris Murphy (pictured) were dominant in their starts, and a few 2021 draft picks debuted in the FCL. 

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Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (NYY) 7, Worcester Red Sox 4 (Game One)

In the continuation of a suspended game from July 17, the RailRiders held off a late rally. The game was originally suspended after five innings, which is why you will see statistics for old friends like Marcus Wilson and Marcus Walden in the box score. John Schreiber and Brandon Brennan were let down by their defense, with the two combining to allow all seven runs. Only one of them was earned as the WooSox committed five errors. Jeter Downs did hit a two-run home run off of Corey Kluber, and Johan Mieses went 1 for 1 with a walk. 

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Minor Notes: Munoz sets Red Sox record, Scott & Liu win POTW

 Here are this week's minor league notes: 

• 
  History was made in Worcester this past week. On Saturday, utility man Yairo Munoz (pictured, right) singled in the 8th and went on to score on Joey Menses' grand slam home run. A long single in a game usually is not news, but when it is your 35th consecutive game with a hit, it's big news. The 35 game hit streak broke Dom Dimaggio's 34-game hit streak set way back in 1949. MiLB.com's Benjamin Hill has a video of the record-setting hit.

• Over the 35 games, the 26-year-old hit .396/.424/.542 with 15 stolen bases, three home runs, and 10 doubles over the 144 at-bats. He had six 3-hit games and 10 2-hit games. Consistency was not key as he saw time all over the diamond at eight positions - first base, third base, shortstop, left field, designated hitter, centerfield, rightfield, and second base. The WooSox have not played since Saturday and so on Tuesday, the streak will be back on the line.

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Cup of Coffee: Tropical storms force cancellation of FCL, DSL contests

8/17 Cup of Coffee: All three games Monday were canceled because of two storms affecting the Caribbean. Tropical Storm Fred forced the FCL Red Sox game against the FCL Orioles Orange in Sarasota to be called. Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Grace forced the cancellation of the entire Dominican Summer League schedule for the day. 

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Cup of Coffee: Wu-Yelland bounces back; Davis and Dearden continue to mash

8/16 Cup of Coffee: Some of the hottest hitters in the system stayed that way on Sunday, with Devlin Granberg, Tyler Dearden, and Joe Davis all homering. Connor Seabold was effective for Worcester, though Ryan Brasier had another rocky rehab appearance. Kole Cottam (pictured) and Hudson Potts added home runs for Portland, while Nick Yorke saw his lengthy on-base streak come to an end. And after not being able to get through two innings on Tuesday, Jeremy Wu-Yelland was nearly unhittable on Sunday. 

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Syracuse Mets (NYM) 6, Worcester Red Sox 1

The WooSox had only two hits as they were nearly blanked by the Mets. A solo home run from Jack López in the ninth prevented the shutout. Since coming back from the Olympics on August 11, López is hitting .333/.368/.778 over 18 at-bats, and he also stole two bases on Sunday. The only other hit was a single from Ryan Fitzgerald. Starter Connor Seabold went the first five innings and allowed two runs on three hits, walking one and striking out five. It was another rough outing for Ryan Brasier as he gave up three runs in his lone inning of work. He's up to eight runs allowed while recording only eight outs on his rehab stint. 

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Cup of Coffee: Yairo Muñoz breaks organizational record; Yorke keeps on-base streak rolling

8/15 Cup of Coffee: There was weather all over the place on Saturday, wiping out the majority of the FCL game, while not one, but two Salem games were delayed due to Mother Nature. However, all of the remaining contests were completed as scheduled and it was not a banner day for the system. Salem was blown out and no-hit in the early half of its doubleheader with Fredericksburg, while Portland's bullpen imploded in the seventh after a tremendous start from Brayan Bello that featured nine strikeouts. In Worcester, a four-run eighth was not enough to complete a comeback, though Yairo Muñoz (pictured) extended his hitting streak to 35 games, breaking a Red Sox organization record that was set by Dom DiMaggio in 1949. Lastly, Greenville was walked off on in Bowling Green. While Nick Yorke's 21-game hitting streak was snapped in the no-hit loss for Salem, he did reach base, doing so for the 37th straight game. He would also walk in the nightcap to make it 38 in a row. 

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Syracuse Mets (NYM) 5, Worcester Red Sox 4

While the Red Sox bullpen kept the game close, Worcester could not pull off a come-from-behind victory despite a four-run eighth. However, Yairo Muñoz set an organizational record with a single in the eighth, earning a hit in his 35th consecutive game, breaking a 72-year-old mark. His was one of five Worcester hits, with two coming off the bat of Jack Lopez. It was tough sledding on the mound for Kutter Crawford, who did not escape the fourth inning and gave up all five Syracuse runs. He did so on seven hits, with an additional two walks against four strikeouts. Four pitchers combined to one-hit the Mets the rest of the way, including two innings from Matt Andriese, who surrendered the knock, and 1 1/3 from Alex Claudio.

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Cup of Coffee: Munoz extends hitting streak to 34, tying record

8/14 Cup of Coffee: It was a historic night down on the farm, as Yairo Munoz (pictured) tied Dimaggio's record hit streak. Not Joe Dimaggio quite yet, but the 34-game hitting streak by Dom Dimaggio in 1949 that has stood for 72 years as the longest at any level in the Red Sox organization was tied by Munoz with his seventh-inning infield single in Polar Park. Munoz's heroics were not enough to stave off a sweep in the doubleheader. Both DSL teams also played twinbills, with the Red team pulling off the sweep while Team Blue was swept in theirs. Portland moved into first place in the Double-A Northeast on the arm of Victor Santos, while Stephen Scott continues to mash for Greenville. 

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Syracuse Mets (NYM) 10, Worcester Red Sox 8 (Game 1)

It was a tough loss to take in the opener, as the WooSox squandered an 8-0 lead, allowing 10 unanswered runs by the Syracuse lineup. Kyle Hart turned in four scoreless frames, giving up just two hits despite not striking out a batter. Eight of the 12 outs he recorded came on ground balls, and he needed just 43 pitches to get through the four frames. Ryan Brasier struggled badly in his second rehab appearance, surrendering five runs in 2/3 of an inning. Kaleb Ort took the loss, giving up four runs in the seventh. The decisive blow against Ort was a three-run go-ahead pinch-hit homer by Josh Reddick in his Syracuse debut. 

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Cup of Coffee: Mayer ropes first double, Hickey debuts

8/13 Cup of Coffee: Portland and Greenville had big offensive nights, highlighted by Stephen Scott (pictured), Jaxx Groshans, and Triston Casas. Nick Yorke also stayed hot, while Marcelo Mayer had a nice game for the FCL Sox, who saw another debut from a 2021 draft pick in Nathan Hickey. Chase Shugart and Angel Bastardo had productive starts for Greenville and the FCL Sox, respectively. Rain also washed out three games. 

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Syracuse Mets (NYM) @ Worcester Red Sox, Postponed (rain)

Kyle Schwarber's Red Sox debut will have to wait, as this one was washed out. It will be made up as part of a doubleheader tomorrow. 

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Cup of Coffee: Liu strikes out 10; Casas returns to lineup

8/12 Cup of Coffee: It was a big day down on the farm, as top prospect Triston Casas made his return from the Tokyo Olympics to a Portland team that could have moved into first place with a sweep of its doubleheader. Instead, the Sea Dogs split their twin bill with Somerset with four games to go in the series. Jay Groome struck out eight in an uneven start for Greenville, while Worcester fell at Polar Park. Nick Yorke keeps rolling for Salem, homering in support of an excellent Chih-Jung Liu (pictured) start.

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Syracuse Mets (NYM) 11, Worcester Red Sox 4

It was a muggy mid-week matinee at Polar Park, perfect for Yairo Muñoz to extend his franchise-record hitting streak to 32 games. Munoz blasted a solo home run in the sixth inning and also added a single, finishing 2 for 4 on the afternoon. Jack Lopez also went deep in his return from Olympic play. Joey Meneses drove in a pair as part of his 2-for-4 effort. Raynel Espinal rolled through the first three innings but ran into trouble in the third, surrendering three runs. Durbin Feltman was a highlight in relief, striking out four of the six batters he faced in two perfect innings. Jose Adames had not allowed an earned run in his first 10 Worcester appearances but was hit hard Wednesday, surrendering five runs on four hits, including a three-run homer, in 2/3 of an inning. 

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Minor Notes: Rankings update, promotions, and minor league acquisitions

Here are this week's minor league notes: 

• July was the busiest month ever at SoxProspects.com, as the site gathered 2.83 million pageviews. A huge thank you to all the readers and forum members who made the new record possible!

• Chris and Ian recorded a pair of podcasts this week. The first covered the Trade Deadline and MLB Draft signing deadline, while the second went in-depth on the site's most recent ranking updates. There were some significant changes to the rankings, including an FCL pitcher jumping all the way from 54 to 20. 

• Ian also wrote up a Scouting Scratch on a trio of Portland Sea Dogs pitchers. Josh Winckowski (pictured), Durbin Feltman, and Denyi Reyes all were covered in the most recent article, with Winckowski's changeup being the most divisive pitch that was written up. 

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Cup of Coffee: Brasier debuts; Scott homers again

8/11 Cup of Coffee: Some of the system's hottest pitchers were throwing on Tuesday, but the results were mixed. Connor Seabold continued to generate strikeouts but he was a bit too hittable against Syracuse. July Pitcher of the Month Brian Van Belle was roughed up for Greenville, and Jeremy Wu-Yelland did not make it out of the second inning for Salem. The hitting streaks continued for Yairo Muñoz and Nick Yorke, and Stephen Scott (pictured) went deep again for the Drive. 

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Worcester Red Sox 7, Syracuse Mets (NYM) 6

A three-run ninth inning capped off by a walk-off passed ball gave Worcester a surprise victory. Delino DeShields walked and moved to third base on a two-run single from Joey Meneses that tied the game. DeShields then came in to score on a passed ball to win it. Yairo Muñoz's hitting streak moved to 31 games as he went 3 for 5 with a double, and Ryan Fitzgerald went 1 for 4 with a two-run home run.  

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Podcast Ep. #221 - Rankings shake-up

With the minor league season delayed by a month, the August rankings update also served as the official "midsdeason" update, and boy, did this update ever shake things up! In addition to the debuts of the 2021 draftees—including the answer to the question of whether Marcelo Meyer would debut at number 1—we saw an incredible amount of movement as reports came in from all levels, including the complex leagues. Who rose? Who fell? And why? Chris and Ian dished about all of it, in addition to talking about the Red Sox pitching shakeup, the weekly promotions update, and of course, your emails!

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Cup of Coffee: Jhostynxon Garcia rips clutch hit in DSL Sox loss

8/10 Cup of Coffee: It was a quiet Monday down on the farm. Four Rookie-level games were on the docket, but half were postponed by lightning in Florida. The Red Sox Red team in the DSL saw their contest suspended in the third inning. The Blue team managed to get its full contest in, dropping to 12-8 despite the efforts of Jhostynxon Garcia.

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FCL Red Sox @ FCL Rays (postponed)

Neither game of the scheduled doubleheader was able to happen as lightning came through, resulting in the ninth and tenth suspension or postponement of the FCL Sox season. They'll make up one game this afternoon as part a doubleheader, and the other is schedule as part of a twinbill on September 6.

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Cup of Coffee: Yorke homers twice; Bello strikes out 11

8/9 Cup of Coffee: All of the pitching performances gave the affiliates a chance to win on Sunday, with Kutter Crawford, Brayan Bello, Brandon Walter, and Bradley Blalock all having good games. The two offensive stars were Nick Yorke (pictured), who homered twice, and Stephen Scott who doubled and homered. Both players have an OPS well over 1.000 to start August. Matt Andriese started a rehab assignment with Worcester, where Yairo Muñoz saw his hitting streak extend once again. 

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Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (NYY) 4, Worcester Red Sox 3

Despite another strong start from Kutter Crawford, the WooSox stumbled late to lose the series finale. Crawford allowed two runs over five innings, striking out seven without issuing a free pass. He was followed by Matt Andriese who allowed two hits in a scoreless inning in his first rehab appearance. After Kevin McCarthy struck out the side in the seventh, Kaleb Ort gave up two runs in the eighth that proved to be the difference. It was Ort's first blown save this year. 

The WooSox managed only three hits, but of course one of them came from Yairo Muñoz as he extended his hitting streak to 30 games. The other two hits came from Delino DeShields who went 2 for 4 and drove in all three runs. His two-run home run in the sixth put Worcester on the board, and his RBI double in the eighth briefly gave Worcester the lead.

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Cup of Coffee: Munoz extends hitting streak; Davis goes yard

8/8 Cup of Coffee: It was one game short of a clean sweep, as each of the full-season affiliates earned victories and DSL Blue was a winner in the weekly DSL intra-organization battle. Only the FCL squad suffered a loss, doing so in a shortened game. Joe Davis (pictured) was the offensive headliner, going 3 for 5 with a home run, while Tate Matheny had a two-run home run in the ninth that broke a 0-0 tie for Worcester. Portland had a late comeback with a seven-run ninth, punctuated by a Hudson Potts grand slam. Chris Sale performed well in a rehab start, while Victor Santos pitched six one-run innings for Portland.

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Worcester Red Sox 2, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (NYY) 1

It took until the ninth, but a Tate Matheny two-run home run was enough to give the visiting side the win, despite a run in the bottom half. Worcester had plenty of baserunners, notching nine hits, but it took until the team's final at-bat to push through. Yairo Munoz extended his hitting streak to 29 games with a pair of singles, while Jeremy Rivera and Matheny each had two knocks as well. Chris Sale was on the mound in another rehab start, pitching 4 2/3 shutout innings before reaching his 90-pitch limit. He surrendered three hits and walks each, but struck out eight hitters. Brandon Brennan added 1 1/3 shutout frames in relief, while Durbin Feltman did the same across two full innings. Zack Kelly completed the game, earning the save despite allowing the RailRiders' only run.

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Cup of Coffee: Yorke, Munoz each extend their hitting streaks

8/7 Cup of Coffee: Nick Yorke and Yairo Munoz each stayed hot for Salem and Worcester, respectively. Worcester grabbed a second straight extra innings win in the debut of Delino DeShields. Chase Shugart (pictured) was terrific in the Drive's win over Rome. The FCL Red Sox were suspended, and each DSL team received a great starting pitching performance. 

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Worcester Red Sox 4, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (NYY) 3 (11 innings)

For the second straight night, the Sox beat the RailRiders in 11 innings. Kyle Hart went the first two innings and did not allow a run. John Schreiber followed him with four shutout frames of his own with five strikeouts and two walks. Marcus Walden gave up two runs in three innings, but struck out four. Matt Hall picked up three massive strikeouts in the 11th, stranding runners on second and third. Yairo Munoz picked up two hits, extending his lengthy hitting streak to 28 games. Delino DeShields made his organizational debut and picked up two hits and a stolen base. Jeremy Rivera, Josh Ockimey, and Joey Meneses each had two hits as well. 

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July Players of the Month: Yairo Muñoz and Brian Van Belle

The minor league season is now into its second half and fourth month, with minor league regular seasons stretching through September in 2021, rather than ending around Labor Day. Teams and players are starting to understand how their years are going to fare, though there is still room for outstanding performances, as Worcester utilityman Yairo Muñoz (pictured) and Greenville right-handed pitcher Brian Van Belle distinguished themselves to earn SoxProspects.com's Player of the Month awards for July. 

Muñoz has been in the organization since March 2020 following his release by St. Louis after leaving Spring Training without explanation. The Red Sox signed him just after camp was shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 26-year-old spent September in Boston, but was outrighted off the 40-man roster in December and was not claimed. He has hit well in 2021 at Triple-A, slashing .306/.336/.439 through the early portion of August, though this has been driven by a scorching July, as he was hitting just .250/.277/.363 after the conclusion of play June 30.

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Cup of Coffee: Mayer debuts, Groome dominates, and Yorke homers

8/6 Cup of Coffee: The highlight of the day was the debut of Marcelo Mayer, though there were plenty of other good performances to go around. Greenville held Rome to one hit behind a dominant start from Jay Groome (pictured). Christian Koss provided all the offense for the Drive as he hit three home runs. Nick Yorke homered for Salem while Chih-Jung Liu had a strong start, and Phillip Sikes and Tyler Miller also debuted in the FCL. 

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Worcester Red Sox 5, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (NYY) 3 (11 innings)

Raynel Espinal pitched well against his old team, striking out nine and walking one over six innings of two-run ball. Kaleb Ort, also a former RailRider, struck out four over two scoreless innings. The win went to Seth Blair, his second of the season. 

Yairo Muñoz's hit streak moved to 27 games as he went 1 for 6. Jhonny Pereda knocked in the go-ahead run in the 11th, and Chad De La Guerra hit a pinch-hit RBI single that would prove to be the winning run. Joey Meneses just got back from Tokyo where was playing for Team Mexico in Olympics. He was promptly promoted to Worcester and debuted for the WooSox on Thursday. He went 1 for 5 with an RBI and three strikeouts. 

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Cup of Coffee: Muñoz sets hit streak record; Seabold dominates

8/5 Cup of Coffee: Despite winning just two of five games, Wednesday saw several important individual performances. Yairo Muñoz made history for Worcester in support of a dealing Connor Seabold (pictured), but the bullpen couldn't hold on in Scranton. The Salem bullpen also struggled, negating a five-hit evening from Gilberto Jimenez. Devlin Granberg starred in a Portland doubleheader split that saw Chris Murphy make his Sea Dogs debut, while Greenville emerged victorious despite Brian Van Belle's scoreless streak coming to a close.

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Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (NYY) 7, Worcester RedSox 3

It was a record-setting night in Scranton, as right fielder Yairo Muñoz ripped a third-inning RBI single, the 26th straight game in which he recorded a base hit. That breaks the Pawtucket/Worcester franchise record of 25 games set by Jacoby Ellsbury back in 2007. Muñoz added another hit, finishing the night 2 for 4. Connor Seabold was outstanding, turning in his strongest start of the season. The righty allowed just one hit in six scoreless innings, striking out 10 and walking one. Unfortunately, a six-run eighth inning by Scranton left Seabold with a no-decision. Ryan Fitzgerald starred at the plate, finishing a homer short of the cycle in a 3-for-4 effort. 

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Podcast Ep. #220: The busiest July ever

Well, that sure was something! One of the most hectic weeks in recent memory, which closed the busiest month in SoxProspects history, led off with another set of promotions in the never-ending promotion season, then exploded into a hectic trade deadline and surprising draft signing deadline. Chris and Ian look at whether the Red Sox did enough to improve the MLB club via trade, and examine what happened with the failure to sign second-round pick Jud Fabian. We close, as always, with your emails!

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Cup of Coffee: Yorke, Jimenez, and Blalock lead Salem

8/4 Cup of Coffee: Tremendous pitching performances from Kutter Crawford, Brandon Walter, and Bradley Blalock (pictured) led three of the affiliates to victory. All three pitchers struck out at least eight, and Brayan Bello was having similar success before scuffling in the sixth inning. Yairo Muñoz is approaching history with his hitting streak, while Nick Yorke is doing his best to prove he is ready for the jump to Greenville. 

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Worcester Red Sox 7, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (NYY) 2

It was the second straight quality start for Kutter Crawford in Worcester. Crawford allowed just one hit and struck out nine over five innings. He walked three and surrendered just one run. This was the first time in 12 games this season that he walked more than two batters. Zack Kelly followed with two innings, striking out four and allowing one run. It was only the fifth time in 23 appearances that Kelly allowed a run. 

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Scouting Scratch: Josh Winckowski, Durbin Feltman and Denyi Reyes

Over the past few weeks, I have traveled to see Portland and Worcester in person. This

is the second of several scouting notebooks breaking down what I’m seeing and hearing

about Red Sox prospects, starting with the Portland pitchers.

Right-hander Josh Winckowski has been one of the better Red Sox pitchers in the upper minors this year, opening eyes after he was left unprotected in the 2020 Rule 5 draft, then traded to the Mets and ultimately the Red Sox this past offseason. Recently, I got my first look at him in person and came away impressed. Winckowski has a strong, physical frame and looks all of his listed 6-4, 215 pounds. His fastball sat 94-96 mph in the first two innings before settling in at 92-94 mph. He does not try to miss bats with the fastball, but rather uses it to generate weak contact and get quick outs. He has solid control of it and does a good job keeping it out of the middle of the zone.

His slider is Winckowski’s bat-missing pitch. He throws it 82-86 mph and has advanced feel and confidence in it. He will throw it in any count and showed the willingness to throw it to—and ability to get swinging strikes against—hitters from both sides of the plate. The shape of the pitch varies some—sometimes showing more vertical, deep break, others coming in harder with more tilt—and this seems to be a deliberate choice to manipulate the velocity and shape depending on the hitter he is facing.

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Minor Notes: Sox trade Ramirez for Schwarber; Jordan promoted to Salem

Here are this week's minor league notes: 

• It was a busy week in baseball with the trade deadline coming and going, and on Episode 219 of the SoxProspects.com Podcast, Chris and Ian discussed potential moves for the Sox prior to the deadline. They also talked about the draft signing deadline and the situation with Jud Fabian, who they ended up not signing. They also mentioned Connor Seabold's Triple-A debut as well as some other promotions. 

• The headline deal that the Sox ended up making was with the Washington Nationals for Kyle Schwarber. They sent right-handed pitcher Aldo Ramirez (pictured), who was ranked eighth at SoxProspects.com, to Washington. Soxprospects.com's Director of Scouting Ian Cundall dove deep with an analysis of the trade.

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Cup of Coffee: Gonzalez, Jordan continue to shine in FCL

8/3 Cup of Coffee: The FCL Sox were the story of the day, winning for the 15th time in their last 17 games. A pair of the team's hottest led the way, as starter Wilkelman Gonzalez and third baseman Blaze Jordan continue to dominate. The two DSL squads split in their games against the Dodgers affiliates. 

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FCL Red Sox 2, FCL Pirates Gold 1

It was a pitchers' duel in the FCL, with Sox hurlers combining to allow just two hits. Wilkelman Gonzalez allowed one hit and one unearned run across his five innings of work, striking out six and walking three. Across his past four starts, Gonzalez has given up just three earned runs on 10 hits in 20 innings. Luis De La Rosa pitched in a relief role, firing two scoreless frames, striking out two, and walking two. Blaze Jordan wasted no time extending his hitting streak to 10 games with a solo home run in the first inning. The 18-year-old added a single and a stolen base. Brainer Bonaci added a pair of hits, driving in Miguel Ugueto with what proved to be the decisive run.

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Cup of Coffee: Catching prospects shine as Hernández and Groshans homer

8/2 Cup of Coffee: Every affiliate scored at least six runs, with Worcester and Salem also turning in strong pitching performances. Yairo Muñoz saw his hitting streak continue, while Josh Ockimey homered to lead Worcester. Ronaldo Hernández's home run almost completed a comeback for Portland, and Jaxx Groshans' (pictured) offensive fireworks were not enough for Greenville. Salem had an easy victory on the back of Shane Drohan's outing. 

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Worcester Red Sox 8, Buffalo Bisons (TOR) 1

A day after Chris Sale started for them, the WooSox pitching stayed hot in a lopsided victory. John Schreiber did not allow a run over 3 2/3 innings, and Brandon Brennan tossed two shutout innings. Jose Adames walked two and struck out two in his lone inning of work, and Seth Blair closed things out with a scoreless ninth. Adames has yet to allow a run in his first eight games with Worcester. 

The hit streak extended to 24 games for Yairo Muñoz as he went 1 for 4 with a stolen base. Josh Ockimey hit a solo home run, his 12th, while also adding a single and a walk. Jeter Downs went 0 for 2 but walked twice and stole a base, and Ryan Fitzgerald notched his first hit in four games with Worcester. 

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Cup of Coffee: Sale, Downs delight Worcester's record crowd; Encarnacion keeps dealing

8/1 Cup of Coffee: Record crowds, rehabbing big-league stars, and top-tier prospects having top-tier days. Baseball is just better when Boston's team and affiliates are making big things happen, and that was certainly the case on Saturday night. While big-league stalwarts Chris Sale and Marwin Gonzalez made the most of their rehab appearances, the younger generation showed that the future is brighter than ever. There's no better way to put behind a 3-for-47 skid than to hit homers on consecutive days, which is just what Jeter Downs (pictured) did. The impressive hitting streaks continue for Yairo Muñoz and Nick Yorke, and Juan Daniel Encarnacion's microscopic ERA just keeps getting lower.

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Worcester Red Sox 4, Buffalo Bisons (TOR) 2

While the prospect pool is our primary focus, all eyes were on Chris Sale on Saturday -- literally, as the club said Saturday's attendance was a Polar Park record -- as he continued to ramp up his baseball activity in the hopes of joining the big club in the near future. Sale didn't disappoint, tossing five innings of one-run ball, walking just one and striking out seven. Sale threw 81 pitches, scattered five hits, and looked primed for big-league action, whenever that may be. Not lost in the excitement over Sale's start was a second home run by Jeter Downs in as many days. His ninth big fly of the season was one of three tallied by Worcester in the win -- with Marwin Gonzalez and Tate Matheny also clearing the wall for the WooSox. Michael Gettys was 2 for 2 with 2 walks, and Jeremy Rivera added two hits as well. Yairo Muñoz extended his hitting streak to 23 games with a sixth-inning single -- a mark that leaves him two shy of the Worcester/Pawtucket record, held by old friend Jacoby Ellsbury.

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