First inning of the Portland game:

- Argenis Diaz doubles (8) on a bunt ground ball to third baseman Scott Campbell.

...what?

First inning of the Portland game:

- Argenis Diaz doubles (8) on a bunt ground ball to third baseman Scott Campbell.

...what?

•HIGHLIGHTS: The PawSox set a franchise record for wins in a season with 84. “I’m actually very excited about it,” said PawSox manager Ron Johnson. “When you think of this franchise and how long it, and the quality of people have been here, it’s really quite an honor.” The 2003 PawSox posted an 83-61 record and then lost in the Governors’ Cup final to Durham . . . Last night’s PawSox starter, Edgar Martinez, improved to 8-3 with six scoreless innings and allowed only four hits, with two walks and five strikeouts. . . Pawtucket’s bullpen finished the job. Reliever Hunter Jones worked two innings and surrendered one unearned run while Bo Vaughn recorded his first Triple-A save.

•KEY OF THE GAME: Joe Thurston crushed a two-run homer in the bottom of the third inning to propel the PawSox to victory. For Thurston, who was named the club’s MVP prior to the game, it was his 11th homer of the season and his league-leading 158th hit. A close second for the key play of the game goes to PawSox center fielder Sean Danielson. With Pawtucket holding a two-run lead in the top of the seventh, the IronPigs had one out and runners on second and third when leadoff hitter Brandon Wilson hit a soft liner to center. Danielson closed on the ball, snared it and threw a strike to the plate to keep the runner 90 feet away from scoring.

Joe Thurston has meant a tremendous amount to the Red Sox organization this season.

The PawSox’ infielder/outfielder has been a leader both on and off the field for the prospects in the organization. On the field, the 28-year-old has been tremendous with a .315 average to go along with his league-leading 158 hits. In fact, before last night’s game at McCoy Stadium, he was honored in a pregame ceremony as the club’s MVP.

His two-run homer in the bottom of the third inning proved to be the game-winner as Pawtucket defeated the Lehigh Valley IronPigs, 2-1.

His importance to the Red Sox, however, could be the blood running through his veins.

It just so happens that Thurston is the second cousin of the reigning Cy Young Award winner CC Sabathia.

The left-hander will be this offseason’s biggest free agent and will no doubt gain a lot of attention by the Yankees, possibly the Red Sox, along with a lot of other clubs from both leagues. Sabathia, who was a midseason acquisition for the Brewers from the Indians, is guiding Milwaukee toward a postseason run.

What happens after this season remains to be seen.

Other than Sabathia himself, Thurston may be the guy who has the inside track.

The two talk quite often and were teammates from Little League through high school in California.

“I know he wants to be a little closer to home,” said Thurston, referring to the clubs in the Bay Area. “But if the money’s right, he’ll sacrifice.”

It is not the way they wanted to do it, but the champagne flowed nonetheless.

The Portland Sea Dogs reached the Eastern League playoffs for the fourth straight year despite losing 5-4 Sunday to the New Hampshire Fisher Cats at Hadlock Field.

The Sea Dogs (74-65) secured second place and the final playoff spot in the Northern Division when Binghamton (73-68) lost 9-6 at New Britain, leaving the Mets two games behind Portland with only one game left in the regular season.

"Who cares (about the loss)?" said infielder Iggy Suarez, who led his teammates to the courtyard outside the clubhouse where the champagne celebration began. "As soon as I saw that Binghamton score, I knew we were in."

After today's regular-season finale against New Hampshire, the Sea Dogs will play first-place Trenton in the best-of-five division series. The first two games are scheduled Wednesday and Thursday at Trenton. Games 3 and, if necessary, 4, are Friday and Saturday at Hadlock Field. If Game 5 is needed, the teams go back to Trenton on Sunday.

The winner faces the Southern Division winner – either Akron or Bowie – the following week in a best-of-five championship series.

The Sea Dogs may be limping into the playoffs. Catcher John Otness appeared to have suffered a separated shoulder during a collision at home plate with Eric Neilson in the seventh inning. Otness left and was in a brace after the game.

Pitcher Dave Gassner also was hurt on the play. He was backing up the throw and was hit on the elbow by the Fisher Cats' on-deck batter. Gassner also left the game and will be examined today.

The Sea Dogs are already without relievers Daniel Bard (sore back) and Miguel Ascencio (promoted to Triple-A Pawtucket), and more roster moves are expected today.

Portland pitchers showed little control Sunday, walking 10 and hitting two batters. Of the five New Hampshire runners that scored, four either walked or were hit by a pitch, and two runs were forced in by walks.

Sometimes one swing of the bat can determined a ballgame. That was the case in San Jose Sunday night when the JetHawks beat the San Jose Giants 6-3 in what many feel may be a preview of the Championship series in the California League.

In the second inning Kris Negron doubled to left, Daniel Nava followed with a walk to put two aboard for Mike Jones. Jones delivered the big shot for Lancaster, the first baseman hit his sixth homerun with Lancaster putting the JetHawks up 3-0.

San Jose finally got on the board in the eighth, after a walk put Ford aboard, three straight ground balls brought him home to score. The JetHawks added three more runs of their own in the ninth. Zak Farkes opened the frame with a single. Aaron Reza followed with his second hit of the ballgame and Reid Engel stroked a single to right scoring them both. Kris Negron reached when he was hit by a pitch with one out. Daniel Nava plated him with his first hit of the night.

Hickory issued 11 walks, seven hits and hit four batters in seeing the Greenville Drive take game two of their series, 9-2, Sunday.

On Fan Appreciation Night at L.P. Frans Stadium, the Crawdads (21-47, 51-87) hung tough for the first five innings with the Drive (30-38, 70-68), only trailing 3-2 going into the sixth. But Greenville would score once in the sixth, use a David Mailman three-run home run for insurance in the seventh and then tack on a Carlos Fernandez two-run single in the ninth for bonus runs.

The on-base parade began early for the Drive, as Hickory starter Rafael De Los Santos walked seven batters and hit three in four innings of work. The seven free passes set a season high for Crawdads pitchers and the team allowed 11 total, falling two shy of the franchise mark for most given out in one game (13 -- April 27, 2007 at Greensboro).

Before Mailman and Fernandez struck late, Greenville had scored twice on bases loaded wild pitches, once on an RBI groundout and once on an RBI single.

De Los Santos would still only allow three runs in his four innings but would get saddled with the loss, dropping to 3-10 on the season.

The Lowell Spinners could not take advantage of numerous scoring opportunities, leaving 11 runners on base in a 5-0 defeat to the Oneonta Tigers on Sunday night in front of 5,030 fans during Kids’ Batting Helmet Giveaway Night, sponsored by Sovereign Bank.

Oneonta (29-38) scored all the runs they would need in the top of the third as shortstop Eric Harryman deposited a homerun over the right field fence.

The Tigers added one run in the seventh and tacked on three more in the ninth off Spinner reliever Scott Lonergan, who is on a rehab assignment from the Lancaster JetHawks.

Lowell (38-30) could not get anything started all night, although the team did put runners on base in every inning except one.

Yeiper Castillo (3-6, 3.93) battled through five innings, keeping the team in the game with six strikeouts. Stephen Fife allowed a run in two innings of middle relief while Lonergan struggled in the ninth.