July 8, 2026 at 7:00 AM
Cup of Coffee: King hits for the cycle; Ingrassia strikes out ten
7/8 Cup of Coffee: It was a damp day for the Red Sox affiliates, as the WooSox, Sea Dogs, and FCL Sox were all rained out while the DSL Blue squad's attempt at a doubleheader was spoiled by the rain. Jojo Ingrassia (pictured) turned in a phenomenal performance and Ronny Hernandez reached base four times to lead the Drive to a win, while Skylar King hit for the cycle in a high-scoring win for the RidgeYaks.
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Rochester Red Wings (WAS) @ Worcester Red Sox (postponed)
The opener of the WooSox series against Rochester was postponed due to rain and will made up as part of a doubleheader today.
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Portland Sea Dogs @ New Hampshire Fisher Cats (TOR) (postponed)
The Sea Dogs were also impacted by the stormy weather in the Northeast on Tuesday, as their series opener in New Hampshire was rained out and will be made up in a doubleheader today.
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After a pair of scoreless innings to start the game, Yoeilin Cespedes put Greenville on the board with a three-run blast in the third inning and the Drive never looked back. Antonio Anderson added two more runs on a single in the fourth inning. First baseman Ronny Hernandez had a monster game, going 3 for 3 with a solo home run in the eighth inning, a double, and a walk. Justin Gonzales was 2 for 4 with a run scored and a walk.
Jojo Ingrassia was electric on the mound for the Drive, holding a perfect game through 5 2/3 innings. While Ingrassia allowed a hit and a two-run homer to the next two hitters he faced and then was pulled from the game, it was a phenomenal performance as he struck out ten batters and generated 22 swings and misses without allowing a walk. Griffin Kilander followed him with 3 1/3 shutout innings of relief, striking out three while allowing a hit and a walk.
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Leadoff hitter Skylar King got the RidgeYaks off to a quick start with a home run on the second pitch of the game. That early home run was just the start of a memorable night for King, as he recorded a triple in the second inning, a double in the fifth, and a single in the eighth inning as King went on to hit for the cycle. After recording only one hit through his first five games since a promotion to Salem, Franklin Primera tripled that number on Tuesday night as he went 3 for 5 with a walk. Kleyver Salazar was 3 for 4 with two walks, two runs, and two RBI. Adonys Guzman was 2 for 4 with a two-run homer and a walk.
Leighton Finley tossed the first 3 1/3 innings for Salem and, while he escaped with just one run scored on one hit, he struggled with his control as he walked six batters. Nicolas De La Cruz surrendered two runs (one earned) in 1 1/3 innings and Jay Allmer gave up two runs in an inning. Wuilliams Rodriguez struck out four in three scoreless innings of relief and Givian Sirvania closed the game down with a scoreless 1/3 of an inning.
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FCL Red Sox @ FCL Pirates (canceled)
The FCL Sox game on Tuesday afternoon was canceled due to rain.
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The DSL Blue team rode a five-run rally in the third inning to the win on Tuesday afternoon. Dilan Mata highlighted that big inning with a bases-clearing double. Esterlin Casanova and Maikol Tovar also drove in a run apiece in the inning with a single and walk, respectively. Christopher Silvestre turned in his best outing of the season on the mound, punching out four batters in three scoreless frames. Hicter Ruiz allowed just one unearned run in 3 2/3 frames of relief, striking out three while allowing two hits and a walk.
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The DSL Red team played a partial doubleheader against the Padres Brown on Tuesday, starting by resuming a suspended game from June 25. The Red Sox Red began the day leading 9-3 in the second inning and went on to score eight more runs in an impressive offensive performance. Joskairo Ramirez was 3 for 4 with a triple, a walk, and four RBI. First baseman Lester Suarez swatted two doubles and went 2 for 3 with a walk, three runs scored, and four RBI. Adrian Valdez drove in three runs and went 2 for 4 with a walk. Oscar Vaamonde picked up in the bottom of the second and tossed four innings, allowing two runs with four strikeouts and four walks. Wascar Berroa threw two scoreless innings of relief.
After picking up a suspended game earlier in the afternoon, the Red Sox Red got four innings into the second game of their doubleheader before it was suspended as well. Lester Suarez went 2 for 2 and ripped an RBI double in the first inning. Axell Herrera was 1 for 2 and drove in a run with a first-inning single. Dawvris Brito had a double and a pair of walks. Robert Moreno was excellent on the mound, throwing four shutout innings and striking out three.
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Player of the Day: Returning to his birthplace of Columbia, SC to begin a series against the Fireflies, Skylar King put on a show for his hometown crowd. King hit for the cycle in reverse order of difficulty, as he opened the game with a home run and did not record a single until the eighth inning as part of a 4-for-6 game where he also scored two runs and drove in three. After his outstanding performance, King is now hitting .231/.321/.409 with 10 home runs with Salem this season. King was drafted in the 15th round out of West Virginia last year.
Photo Credit: Skylar King by Kelly O'Connor