8/31 Cup of Coffee: It was a tough Friday for the affiliates, as just Portland was able to come out with the win. Worcester got plenty of free bases, working seven walks and forcing two errors, but just five singles meant only five runs, wasting
Hunter Dobbins' strong start in which he struck out seven. The final 19 Drive hitters went down in order and only
Miguel Ugueto's single kept them from suffering a perfect game, while Greenville committed three errors along the way in a blowout loss. In the final game to finish on the night, Salem carried a no-hitter into the sixth, four of which were thrown by
Juan Valera, but a 6-0 lead evaporated by the end of the seventh and Delmarva walked it off in 11. The DSL Red Sox lost their first game of the postseason, forcing a winner-take-all Game 3 on Saturday. However, Portland pounded out 11 hits and both
Elih Marrero (pictured) and
Tyler McDonough each had a trio of knocks along the way. Marrero, along with teammate
Mikey Romero and
Brooks Brannon and
Andy Lugo from Salem, drilled homers.
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Worcester couldn't take advantage of two Toledo errors or seven walks, scoring just one run on the evening.
Bobby Dalbec and
Vaughn Grissom made up the multi-hit club, with
Chase Meidroth the only other batter to get into the hit column.
Hunter Dobbins held up his end of the bargain, going five strong innings. He had plenty of traffic, with six hits and four free passes, but he surrendered just two runs, striking out seven along the way.
Liam Hendriks also worked around a hit in his rehab assignment. He, along with
Luis Guerrero,
Wyatt Olds, and
Chase Shugart, each had a shutout inning. Guerrero struck out the side in order.
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Portland went down 2-0 after the second inning but plated six of the final seven tallies to secure another win. Six of the Sea Dogs' 11 hits came off the bats of
Elih Marrero and
Tyler McDonough, each of whom had three. Marrero went yard, as did
Mikey Romero, while McDonough added a double. It was a staff day, with the start going to
David Sandlin. He handled the first two innings, surrendering two runs on four hits. He walked one and didn't strike out any hitters.
Robert Kwiatkowski followed and scattered just a hit over three frames, while
Reidis Sena got his first save of the year, pitching the final 1 2/3 innings. There was just one hit on his ledger, while he struck out a pair.
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It was a night to forget for Greenville, as the Drive recorded just one hit and had three errors.
Miguel Ugueto's two-out single in the second was the only thing that separated Bowling Green from a perfect game.
Ronald Rosario was the only Drive hitter to not go down on strikes. The first three innings went well for
Dalton Rogers, but he couldn't finish the fourth, getting through just 3 2/3 innings. By the time it was all said and done, three runs (two earned) were on his ledger, along with four hits, two walks and three strikeouts. Four more runs, all of which were earned, came across on
Adam Smith, who pitched 3 1/3 frames.
Zach Fogell finished the game, with just one hit allowed in the eighth.
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Juan Valera threw four hitless innings and
Cole Tolbert added another in the fifth, but he hit the leadoff batter in the sixth, then walked another, setting up a four-run frame. Delmarva tied it in the seventh and would complete the comeback in the 11th to walk it off. Valera struck out eight and walked just one and while Tolbert surrendered only the one hit, he walked a quartet and all four runs in the sixth were on his tab. Overall, Salem walked 10 hitters and hit three more. Eight of the nine batters in the lineup got at least one hit, including two each from
Franklin Arias and
Kelvin Diaz.
Brooks Brannon and
Andy Lugo also hit home runs.
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Game 2, Dominican Summer League Championship Series
The Angels forced a winner-take-all Game 3 as the Red Sox lost its first game of the postseason and got just four singles in the process.
Enddy Azocar was 2 for 3 and was one of three hitters with multiple at-bats that didn't go down on strikes, as the Red Sox struck out 11 times and walked just twice. The Angels got a two-out RBI in the first and added a second run on a solo homer in the fifth. Both of those runs went on
Madinson Frias' tab, as he pitched the first 4 2/3 innings. He allowed five hits and did not walk a batter, striking out four.
Jose Martinez had the final 3 1/3 frames, scattering a hit and a walk. He also recorded four punchouts. Game 3 is on Saturday at 10 a.m. ET.
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Player of the Day: It was not the best day down on the farm, but Elih Marrero was a big part of Portland's come-from-behind win. He knocked his fifth home run of the season as part of a three-hit evening and moved his OPS up to a respectable .796 on the season. He derives most of his value from his defensive skillset, which cements his worth as an organizational player, but was able to get it done with the bat on Friday. He's hit .321/.371/.571 in August.
Photo Credit: Elih Marrero by Kelly O'Connor
