6/21 MiLB Gameday: Seadogs in... Another Doubleheader!

[Cuzittt]

Today's Games:

IL:Pawtucket (Matt Barnes) @ Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (Shane Greene) [7:05pm]
EL: Portland (Brian Johnson/Robby Scott) vs. Altoona (Joely Rodriguez/Matt Benedict) [5:05pm]
CL:Salem (Joe Gunkel) @ Winston-Salem (Francellis Montas) [7:05pm]
SAL: Greenville (Trey Ball) vs. Savannah (TBD) [7:05pm]
NYPL: Lowell (Randy Perez) vs. Tri-City (Troy Scribner) [5:05pm]
GCL: GCL Sox vs GCL Twins [10:00am]
DSL: DSL Sox vs. DSL Mets 1 [10:30am]

Notes:


Scoreboard:

Boston Red Sox Minor League Scores

Media:

MiLB TV
MiLB Radio

Local Media:

Pawsox:

Providence Journal
Pawtucket Times

Seadogs: Portland Press Herald

Salem: Roanoke Times

Greenville: Greenville Online

Lowell: Lowell Sun

 

[MyDaughterLovesTomGordon]

Headed to the Sea Dogs today for the first game at least. Might stick around for the second if the weather stays nice. 
 
Hopefully this isn't my last chance to see Marrero. He's been tearing it up and there's talk he next on the bus on the Bucket. 

 

[Plympton91]

Interesting that Robby Scott is getting a start. Unheralded and undrafted out of Florida State but has done nothing but get people out.

Francellis Montas is the other real prospect they gave up for Peavy.

 

[LondonSox]

So David Chester has a cheeky 9rbis today
3-5 hr 2b 1b 9...9.... Rbis

Who can name which team he is playing for in the system?

 

[Cuzittt]

GCL Sox win 5-4.

Boxscore

Jeffry Fernandez went 4 innings, allowing a run on 2 hits (1 HR) and a walk. Pat Goetze went 3 innings, allowing 3 runs on 5 hits; striking out 2. Keivin Heras went 2 innings, giving up 3 hits and striking out 3.

Derek Miller went 2/5. Jose Vinicio went 1/2 with 3 walks. Javier Guerra, Darwin Pena and Alex McKeon each went 1/4; Guerra with a double. Joseph Monge went 1/5 with a double. Jordon Austin went 0/3 with a walk. Hector Lorenzana went 0/4. Victor Acosta went 0/5.

 

[Cuzittt]

So David Chester has a cheeky 9rbis today
3-5 hr 2b 1b 9...9.... Rbis

Who can name which team he is playing for in the system?

I would be exempt on that one, I suppose.

 

[Cuzittt]

Lowell gets thumped, 11-0.

Boxscore

Randy Perez went 5 innings, allowing 4 runs on 7 hits, 3 walks, a HBP and a WP; striking out 2. Enfember Martinez went 1 2/3 innings, giving up a hit, 2 walks and a WP; striking out one. Carlos Pinales went 1 1/3 innings, allowing 4 runs on 4 hits and a walk. First Baseman Nick Moore allowing 3 runs (1 earned) on 2 hits and a walk in his inning of work.

Mauricio Dubon went 2/4 with a double. Raymel Flores went 1/3. Deiner Lopez went 0/2 with a walk. Danny Bethea, Nick Moore and Mike Meyers each went 0/3. Franklin Guzman, Nick Longhi and Andres Torres each went 0/4.

 

[Cuzittt]

Portland wins game one, 5-1.

Boxscore

Brian Johnson pitched a complete game (7 innings), allowing a run on 6 hits (1 HR) and a WP; striking out 4.

Derrik Gibson and David Chester each went 2/3; Chester with a double, Gibson with a SB. Deven Marrero went 1/2 with a walk. Heiker Meneses went 1/2 with a SB. Blake Swihart and Jonathan Roof each went 1/3. Sean Coyle and Keury de la Cruz each went 0/2 with a walk. Matt Spring went 0/3.

 

[Cuzittt]

DSL Sox walk off with a 3-2 victory.

Boxscore

Ritzi Mendoza went 5 innings, allowing a run on 8 hits and 2 walks. Algenis Martinez went 4 innings, allowing a run on 3 hits, a walk and a WP.

Juan Barriento went 1/3 with a walk. Luis Yovera went 1/3 with a HBP. Roldani Baldwin went 1/4 with a double. Luis Alexander Basabe went 0/2 with 2 walks. Luis Alejandro Basabe went 0/3 with a walk. Carlos Tovar and Rafael Devers went 0/3 with a HBP. Isaias Lucena and Yoan Aybar each went 0/4.

 

[Cuzittt]

Portland wins game 2, 3-2.

Boxscore

Robby Scott went 4 innings, allowing a run on 4 hits (1 HR); striking out 3. Michael Olmsted went 2 innings, walking one, hitting one and striking out 2. Noe Ramirez went an inning, allowing an unearned run on 2 hits.

Deven Marrero went 2/2 with a SF and a SB. Blake Swihart went 2/3 with a HR and a SB. David Chester went 1/2 with a HBP. Derrik Gibson, Sean Coyle, Keury de la Cruz, Michael Brenly, Bo Greenwell and Heiker Meneses each went 0/3.

 

[Cuzittt]

Salem wins 13-4.

Boxscore

Joe Gunkel went 5 1/3 innings, allowing 3 runs on 3 hits and 2 walks; striking out 3. Pat Light went 2 1/3 innings, allowing a run on 3 hits, 3 walks and a WP; striking out 5. Dayan Diaz faced 4 batters and got 4 outs.

Mike Miller went 3/5. Matty Johnson went 2/3 with 2 walks and a CS. Reed Gragnani went 2/4 with a walk. Matt Gedman went 2/4 with a SF. Jantzen Witte and Ryan Dent each went 1/4 with a triple; Dent with a walk, a SB and a CS, Witte with a SF. Kevin Heller and Aneury Tavarez each went 1/5. Jordan Weems went 0/4 with a walk.

 

[Cuzittt]

Drive lose 7-6 in 11.

Boxscore

Trey Ball went 4 innings, allowing 4 runs on 7 hits and a walk; striking out 2. Jonathan Aro went 4 innings, allowing 2 runs on 6 hits and a walk; striking out 3. Taylor Grover went 3 innings, allowing a run on 2 hits, a walk and a WP; striking out 5.

Forrestt Allday went 3/5 with a HBP, a PO/CS and a regular CS. Jake Romanski went 3/5 with a double and a SB. Kendrick Perkins went 2/4 with a walk. Manuel Margot went 2/5. Tzu-Wei Lin went 2/6 with a PO/CS. Tim Roberson went 1/3 with 2 walks before being replaced by Aneudis Peralta who walked in his only PA. Wendell Rijo and Jimmy Rider each went 1/5; Rijo with a SB. Carlos Asuaje went 1/6 with a double.

 

[Cuzittt]

Pawsox downed 4-0.

Boxscore

Matt Barnes went 5 innings, allowing 4 runs on 8 hits and a walk; striking out 2. Dalier Hinojosa went 2 innings, walking one and striking out 3. John Ely went an inning, giving up a hit and a walk; striking out 2.

Dan Butler went 2/4 with a double. Garin Cechhini went 1/2 after replacing Will Middlebrooks who went 0/2 with a walk. Christian Vazquez went 1/3 with a walk. Mookie Betts went 1/4 with a walk and a SB. Carlos Rivero went 1/4. Justin Henry went 0/2 with 2 walks. Travis Shaw went 0/3 with a walk. Alex Hassan and Corey Brown each went 0/4.

Channeling Boston, The Pawsox went 0/11 with runners in scoring position.

 

[mabrowndog]

So David Chester has a cheeky 9rbis today
3-5 hr 2b 1b 9...9.... Rbis

Who can name which team he is playing for in the system?

 
The Sox had to buy new bathroom scales when he was drafted. 6'5", 270. Big-ass boy.

 

[soxhop411]

 
The Sox had to buy new bathroom scales when he was drafted. 6'5", 270. Big-ass boy.

Do you think he has any future with the sox due to his power shown in the minors?

 

[mabrowndog]

Do you think he has any future with the sox due to his power shown in the minors?

 
If he has a future, it will be based on his plate patience and ability to get on base, pretty unusual for a guy his size. But even that is going to be tested as he climbs the ladder -- as it is even now at AA (just 1 BB and 3 HBP in 35 PA).
 
He's still got a lot of holes in his swing, especially on low/away breaking stuff, which is NOT unusual for a guy his size (or most power hitters for that matter). And he's getting long in the tooth (turned 25 in March), and tall, thick-bodied power hitters don't generally bloom late at the MLB level.

 

[Cuzittt]

STORIES

PAWSOX

Game Story

Four Scranton pitchers combined on a six-hitter while the Pawtucket offense stranded 11 men on base as the RailRiders blanked the PawSox, 4-0, Saturday night at PNC Field to even the four-game series at one win apiece.

Pawtucket (38-39) stranded eight baserunners at either second or third base by hitting 0-for-11 with runners in scoring position. Scranton (35-39), which won for just the third time in its last 11 games, scored four runs in the first four innings against PawSox starter Matt Barnes (2-5).

RailRiders starter Bryan Mitchell, just called up from Double-A Trenton before the game and making his Triple-A debut, pitched four shaky but scoreless innings. Mitchell worked around three hits and four walks but stranding seven men on base.

Francisco Rondon (1-0) tossed 2.2 innings in relief of Mitchell and did not allow a run or a hit. Matt Daley worked the next 1.1 innings and recorded three strikeouts, while Robert Coello pitched the ninth and recorded two strikeouts to finish the shutout.

The RailRiders plated a pair of runs on three hits in the second inning to open the scoring, then rallied for two more runs on four more hits against Barnes in the fourth. Corban Joseph’s bases-loaded walk made the score 1-0, then Taylor Dugas’ fielder’s choice groundout brought home the second Scranton run.

SEADOGS

Games Story

Brian Johnson gave up six hits Saturday night, tying his career high with the Sea Dogs. One of the hits was a home run.

That’s all the criticism that can be mustered when it comes to Johnson, who continues to cruise through Double-A with remarkable ease.

Johnson threw a seven-inning complete game to lead the Portland Sea Dogs to a 5-1 win over the Altoona Curve in the first game of a doubleheader at Hadlock Field.

Portland made it a sweep with a 3-2 win in the second game.

Blake Swihart knocked in two runs in each game, including his ninth home run of the season.

Johnson improved to 6-1 with a 1.66 ERA in nine starts. He walked none, striking out four. He worked quickly and efficiently, throwing 72 of 105 pitches for strikes.

“I did well locating the fastball in and out,” Johnson said.

Johnson’s forte is that fastball, sitting around 92 mph, which he located well (46 of 55 for strikes). He added a mix of change-ups and curves, with an occasional cut fastball.

Johnson faced 26 batters, and 20 received a first-pitch strike.

“That’s the key, getting ahead of the count,” said Swihart, his catcher. “He was working both sides of the plate and just mixing it up on them.”

Johnson’s one mistake was a hanging off-speed pitch that Willy Garcia crushed over the left-field wall in the second inning.

“I wanted to go change-up down and left it up and in the middle,” Johnson said. “That’s usually what happens with those.”

Johnson gave up a single after the home run, then retired nine straight batters. Since being promoted from Class A Salem after April, Johnson has become a valuable pitching prospect.

But the list of Red Sox pitching prospects is long. Johnson is likely to finish this season with the Sea Dogs. Ask Johnson about his future and he simply shrugs.

“The only thing I’m worried about is getting my lifting in (Sunday) and my bullpen on Monday,” Johnson said.

Since Johnson hasn’t allowed more than two earned runs in a start, he was in good shape when David Chester’s three-run double game Portland a 3-0 first-inning lead. Chester, a first baseman just called up from Salem, has 10 RBI in seven games with the Sea Dogs.

Swihart’s two-run single in the fifth provided insurance.

SALEM

Game Story

The Salem Sox outlasted two rain delays, created two huge innings offensively, and cruised to their first win of the second half behind the fine pitching of Joe Gunkel. Making his Carolina League debut after an All-Star first half with Greenville, Gunkel worked five and a third innings, allowing three runs on three hits, to pick up the win. It certainly helped that Salem used a six-run fifth to transform a 3-0 deficit into a 6-3 advantage, and the Sox added two in the seventh and five more in the eighth en route to the victory.

Four different Red Sox dove in multiple runs, led by Jantzen Witte, who plated three with a bases loaded triple in the fifth and finished the night with four RBI overall. The three-run three-bagger broke a 3-3 and gave Salem a lead that it would not relinquish. Matt Gedman chipped in with three RBI, while Reed Gragnani and Ryan Dent each drove in a pair.

Mike Miller collected three hits for the Sox, while Matty Johnson, Gragnani, and Gedman each delivered two knocks apiece. Offensively, the Sox went 7-for-15 with runners in scoring position, while simultaneously holding the Dash to just one hit in nine at-bats with men in scoring position.

Perhaps the outcome would have been different if not for the rain. Despite four scoreless innings, Dash starter Frank Montas did not return for the fifth. Departing with a 3-0 lead and handing the baton to Jefferson Olacio, Montas quickly watched as Olacio surrendered six runs (three earned) over two-thirds of an inning, suffering the loss and slipping to 0-3 on the season.

Nate Reed replaced Gunkel in the sixth for the Sox, and Reed proved solid by striking out five and only permitting one run over two and a third innings. Dayan Diaz recorded the final four outs as the Sox created separation late in the game.

DRIVE

Game Story

While suffering a 7-6 loss to the Savannah Sand Gnats on Saturday, the Greenville Drive endured a different kind of walk off.

The Drive scrapped with Savannah to a 6-6 tie through 10 innings. Greenville reliever Taylor Grover entered in the ninth. He faced seven batters through his first two innings and struck out four.

However, Grover led off the 11th by walking Savannah’s speedy leadoff man Champ Stuart. That walk quickly turned into the game-winning run.

Stuart stole second and advanced to third on a fly ball to left field. He took home on a single from Victor Cruzado.

Greenville could not counter in the bottom of the inning and slipped to 35-37 in front of a crowd of 6,089 fans at Fluor Field.

“That guy is a plus runner. They took advantage of that,” Greenville manager Darren Fenster said of Stuart, who reached base in five of his six at-bats despite recording merely one hit.

While the leadoff man contributed the winning run, Savannah manufactured most of its production from the bottom of its lineup.

Backup catcher Jeff Glenn, who was slotted ninth, was 3-for-5 and drove in four of Savannah’s first six runs. Savannah’s seventh, eighth and ninth hitters produced nine of the Sand Gnats’ 14 hits. They drove in five runs and scored four.

Bracing for Summer

The last few months of a minor league season can be important to the development of a young professional baseball player.

From late June through August, these players – many of whom haven’t played a 140-game schedule before – are not only learning the pro game but also playing through the summer heat.

Drive players are in that situation as the second half of the season gets rolling.

Greenville manager Darren Fenster said it’s important for the Drive to continue working as they have been all season.

“Our focus is going to continue on just the work every single day, (focusing on) the opportunities we have to get better and embracing those every day,” he said.

He said July and August are when players can begin to stand out from the rest.

“This game gets really tough because you’re dealing with fourth and fifth months in the hot summer, and guys start to really drag,” Fenster said. “That’s when the men start to separate from the boys.”

Fenster said he thought the Drive had developed some momentum at the conclusion of the first half when they won four of the last five and split the final 14 games leading to the all-star break.

SPINNERS

Game Story

One night after an exhilarating walk-off win there were no heroics, no big hits and no runs for the Lowell Spinners, who were limited to just three hits en route to an 11-0 loss to the Tri-City ValleyCats Saturday evening at LeLacheur Park.

The win snapped the Spinners' four game winning streak.

Tri-City (5-4) jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the second inning after a lead-off double by Jose Solano. Ravel Santana followed with a line-drive to center field that Franklin Guzman misjudged, turning into a run scoring triple. Jamie Richie followed with a double of his home and the ValleyCats were off.

The ValleyCats would add single runs in the third and fifth inning, but Randy Perez pitched in and out of trouble for the most part. The wheels on the proverbial bus however came flying off in the eighth and ninth innings as the Cats jumped on Carlos Pinales for four eighth inning runs and first baseman Nick Moore moved to the mound for the ninth, with Tri-City adding three additional runs in the ninth.

The Lowell (5-4) bats were quiet with just three hits, two of which came from the bat of Mauricio Dubon. The Spinners had several hard hit balls that the ValleyCats were able to corral, be it a diving catch or a scorching line drive right at a Tri-City defender.

Perez (0-1, 4.50) went the first five, pitching in and out of trouble. He allowed four runs on seven hits and three walks, striking out two. Emfember Martinez followed with 1.2 innings of scoreless relief before Pinales, the Spinners closer, struggled in a 1.1 inning appearance. Moore followed with an inning of relief, allowing the final three runs on two hits and a walk.

 

[MyDaughterLovesTomGordon]

 
If he has a future, it will be based on his plate patience and ability to get on base, pretty unusual for a guy his size. But even that is going to be tested as he climbs the ladder -- as it is even now at AA (just 1 BB and 3 HBP in 35 PA).
 
He's still got a lot of holes in his swing, especially on low/away breaking stuff, which is NOT unusual for a guy his size (or most power hitters for that matter). And he's getting long in the tooth (turned 25 in March), and tall, thick-bodied power hitters don't generally bloom late at the MLB level.

 
I agree with all of this, but seeing him in person yesterday was pretty impressive. Every hitter has a good day now and then, but yesterday was pretty damn good. The bases clearing double in the first of the first game was a laser. 
 
But you're especially right about "long in the tooth" - he looked years older than everyone else on the field. 
 
The kid I really love to watch play at Portland right now is Sean Coyle. He can rake and can play 3b and 2b equally well from what I can tell. Great instincts in the field, super aggressive. With the beard and stature, it's hard not to compare him to Pedroia. 

 

[soxhop411]

 
If he has a future, it will be based on his plate patience and ability to get on base, pretty unusual for a guy his size. But even that is going to be tested as he climbs the ladder -- as it is even now at AA (just 1 BB and 3 HBP in 35 PA).
 
He's still got a lot of holes in his swing, especially on low/away breaking stuff, which is NOT unusual for a guy his size (or most power hitters for that matter). And he's getting long in the tooth (turned 25 in March), and tall, thick-bodied power hitters don't generally bloom late at the MLB level.

Thanks you