September 5, 2021 at 7:00 AM
Cup of Coffee: Casas, Groome outstanding as Sox affiliates nearly sweep
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One of several impressive pitching performances throughout the day, Worcester's pitchers shut down Rochester by allowing just four hits and four walks, striking out eight and earning the victory. Connor Seabold went six innings, walking three but allowing just one hit and striking out four. Colten Brewer added two scoreless innings and Eduard Bazardo finished off the shutout to earn the save. Connor Wong, sent back to Worcester from the big-league club just hours earlier, tallied three hits. Chad De La Guerra added two knocks from the top of the lineup.
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After a three-homer day, what would Triston Casas do for an encore? How about two more? Casas sent two more bombs over the wall at Delta Dental Stadium as the Sea Dogs cruised to victory. Consider that Casas had seven home runs on Thursday before his prodigious power outburst and now sits at 12 for the season (which, for him, was shortened by a trip to the Olympics). Kole Cottam also homered for Portland while Hudson Potts joined Casas with a two-hit effort. Jay Groome, making his first start at the AA level, gave up just two hits in a five-inning dominant effort, striking out 10 and walking none. Enmanuel De Jesus added four innings of his own, giving up four hits but just one run over the final four innings.
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Three-hit nights by Christian Koss and Tyler Esplin were the catalysts for Greenville to take command and never relinquish the lead in a 7-0 victory over Asheville. A seventh-inning homer from Wil Dalton all but sealed the win for Greenville, who managed 11 hits and walked five times while giving up just three hits and one walk of their own. Brandon Walter was responsible for the bulk of the success on the mound, giving up just two hits and striking out four in five innings of work. Walter was followed by Brendan Cellucci, Brendan Nail, and Zach Bryant who combined for four innings of near-perfect pitching.
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A seven-run fourth inning propelled Salem to a dominant win over Fredericksburg as the Sox dropped 14 runs in a seven-inning affair. Three-hit efforts by Tyler McDonough and Alex Erro propelled the Sox, as did a 2-for-3 effort by Nick Decker, whose two-run home run in the fifth inning added insult to the previous inning's injury. Brainer Bonaci's first-inning three-run triple gave Salem a lead it would never relinquish. But the bats weren't the only weapons for the Sox as Wyatt Olds, Alexander Montero, and Joey Stock combined to allow just six hits over seven innings. Montero's one hit allowed - a two-run home run in the fourth inning - was the only blemish on the scoreboard for Salem.
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Salem's high-octane offense didn't follow the team to the nightcap during Saturday's doubleheader, but the pitching was once again on fire and the Sox took both games of the doubleheader. Salem took an early lead on a Tyler McDonough home run, allowed an RBI double in the third, then scratched across a walk-off win on a Nick Decker single that brought Angel Maita around to score. Fredericksburg managed only two hits thanks to brilliant pitching performances by Robert Kwiatkowski, Yasel Santana, and Devon Roedahl. McDonough was the only Salem batter with multiple hits.
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Marcelo Mayer started the extra inning on second base and ended up crossing the plate in a walk-off win over the Twins. Mayer was 0 for 4 but his extra-inning free bases put him in position to give the team the win thanks to Phillip Sikes' one-out single. Tyler Miller was the lone Sox player with multiple hits. Juan Montero homered to give his team an early lead in the contest. On the mound, Juan Daniel Encarnacion battled his way through 4 2/3 innings of five-hit, three-run ball, but his bullpen picked him up as Maceo Campbell got Encarnacion out of a jam in the 5th, then Tyler Uberstein and Merfy Andrew combined for three hitless innings to help the FCL Sox get to the victory.
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Both Red Sox affiliates got together for this low-scoring affair, as Red Sox Blue and Red Sox Red combined for just six hits, three walks, and three runs. Blue carried a no-hitter into the final inning before Allan Castro and Axel James hit consecutive two-out hits in the seventh to close the gap before James was thrown out at third to end the game. Jhostynxon Garcia's sacrifice fly in the third and Juan Chacon's solo blast in the fifth were just enough offense for Blue, while Barbaro Pinero (three innings), Irving Medina (one inning), and Carlos Reyes (two innings) dominated with hitless efforts before Robinson Parra got through a dicey final inning to get the save. Cesar Ruiz, Anddy Flores, Michael Valera, and Andres Ortuno were equally stellar in allowing just four hits and two runs (one earned).
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Player of the Day: How can it not be Triston Casas? His fifth home run in two days propelled Portland to a convincing victory and has shown flashes of brilliance that make him one of the most anticipated prospects in recent memory. Casas has a silver medal, top billing in the SoxProspects rankings, and a power surge that is to be seen to be believed. At this point, it's only a matter of what's next in this extraordinary run.
Photo Credit: Jay Groome by Kelly O'Connor