May 22, 2022 at 7:00 AM
Cup of Coffee: Lugo goes off, Salem hits three home runs in win
5/22 Cup of Coffee: It was a big offensive night in the system, led by Greenville shortstop Matthew Lugo (pictured), who roped three extra-base hits. Nick Northcut hit another home run, and Salem had three players go deep. Dylan Spacke started off a great pitching performance for Portland, as they shut out Harrisburg. Worcester led a big comeback but ultimately fell short.
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Worcester rallied late with four in the seventh and two in the eighth to tie it after being down 6-0, but the WooSox couldn't finish it. Yolmer Sanchez had the big blow in the seventh, a one-out grand slam. Jonathan Arauz and Connor Wong also had big nights at the plate, each going 3 for 5 with three singles. Brian Keller only lasted three innings, giving up two runs on six hits, but he did punch out five without issuing a free pass. Geoff Hartlieb struggled, surrendering four runs in two innings. Eduard Bazardo, Philips Valdez, and Michael Feliz were all great out of the bullpen, each tossing a hitless inning without allowing a run. Valdez struck out a pair.
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Five Sea Dogs combined for the shutout, led by starter Dylan Spacke. He allowed just four hits and no walks while fanning four. Up next was Zach Bryant, who tossed 1 2/3 hitless frames before Frank German got the final out of the sixth. Jacob Wallace had an interesting outing with three walks in his lone inning, but he did not allow a run or a hit. Oddanier Mosqueda dominated to close it off with two scoreless innings and four strikeouts with no walks. Devlin Granberg led the way on offense, going 3 for 4 with a double and two runs scored. Pedro Castellanos also doubled twice and knocked in a pair.
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This one was all about offense, as Matthew Lugo took charge for Greenville by going 3 for 4 with two doubles, a triple, three RBI, and three runs. Lugo now has a .960 OPS with 21 extra-base hits on the year. Nick Northcut belted his 15th home run of the year, and Nick Decker swatted his third long ball of the year as well. Tyler McDonough had two hits and picked up his eighth stolen base out of the leadoff spot, while Alex Binelas knocked in four with a two-run single and a pair of sacrifice flies.
Wyatt Olds had a rough outing, allowing seven runs in just three innings. Jordan DiValerio and Casey Cobb combined to allow another eight runs over five innings. Cody Scroggins was the only pitcher in the entire game to not allow a run, as he tossed a clean ninth inning.
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Niko Kavadas kicked off a great offensive night for Salem with a three-run shot with two outs in the first inning. The first baseman added a triple and drove in four runs. Tyler Miller had a huge game, going 3 for 5 with his fourth home run of the year and two RBI. Phillip Sikes also blasted his first home run of the season. Wikelman Gonzalez gave up three runs, but all of them were unearned. He struck out six and only walked one. Osvaldo De La Rosa picked up the win with three strikeouts in his 2 2/3 innings, Jhonny Felix tossed 1 1/3 scoreless frames, and Marceo Campbell finished it off with two hitless innings and three strikeouts.
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Player of the Day: Matthew Lugo has multiple hits in three of his last four games, and he has at least one extra-base hit in each of his last four games. After a solid .701 OPS last year with Salem, Lugo has broken out in a big way this year for the Drive. He's hitting .318/.377/.583 with 28 RBI this year.
Photo Credit: Matthew Lugo by Kelly O'Connor