Rizzo Blasts Two Homers in 10-7 Red Sox Win
April 11, 2010 - Carolina League (CarL1)
Salem Red Sox News Release
Woodbridge, VA (April 11, 2010) - Behind a 3-4-5 combination that went 11-14 with 8 runs scored, the Salem Red Sox left Pfitzner Stadium on Sunday afternoon with a 10-7 victory and a 3-1 start to the new season. Anthony Rizzo and Ryan Lavarnway each went 4-5, while Will Middlebrooks went 3-4 on a day when the Sox erupted for 16 hits as a team. Rizzo avenged his slow offensive start (1-13 through three games) by belting two solo homers, and shortstop Ryan Dent also unloaded a three-run homer for Salem.
The Red Sox improved to 3-0 when scoring first, taking a 4-0 lead before Potomac had a chance to hit. Although Nationals starter Pat Lehman retired the first two Salem hitters consecutively, Rizzo elongated the first inning with a solo shot to left-center. Following singles from Lavarnway and Middlebrooks, Dent crushed a fastball high off the left-center field scoreboard to make it four-zip.
Red Sox starter Alex Wilson tossed a perfect first inning, but encountered turbulence through the remainder of his outing. The Nationals scrapped single runs in each of the second and third innings, then plated three more in the fourth to take a 5-4 lead. Tim Pahuta jacked a solo homer for the Nats, and Steve Lombardozzi connected on an RBI triple off Wilson before the Sox righthander was chased with two outs in the fourth.
In a quick response, Rizzo connected on his second round-tripper in the top of the fifth to tie the game at five. With two outs and the bases empty, Rizzo launched a towering solo shot beyond the secondary wall that flanks the right-field fence. With two singles in addition to his two home runs, Rizzo raised his average over 200 points on the day, from .077 to .278.
Potomac retook the lead with a pair of runs in the bottom half of the fifth, but their lead would once again be short-lived. Salem loaded the bases in the top of the sixth when Middlebrooks led off with a double and two more Sox drew walks. With one out and the bags packed, David Mailman, hitless to that point on the season, crushed a 3-2 offering to the right-center field gap, resulting in a three-run triple and an 8-7 Salem lead. Believe it or not, it may not have been Mailman's biggest play of the day.
Down by just one, Potomac loaded the bases in the bottom of the seventh, and with two outs, Michael Lee was relieved by Kyle Fernandes. Jose Lozada attacked Fernandes' first pitch, launching a soaring line drive to deep right field. Though it appeared destined to drop in the gap for extra bases, Mailman's sprint resulted in a running basket catch to take the air out of Pfitzner Stadium and strand the bases loaded.
Salem added a pair of insurance runs in the top of the ninth to make it 10-7, and Blake Maxwell averted a jam in the last of the ninth, inducing a 6-4-3 game-ending double play after the Nats had loaded the bases with one away.
Lee earned the win in relief, tossing three innings, allowing two runs on three hits. Fernandes retired all four batters he faced over an inning and a third, and Maxwell closed it out with a scoreless ninth to earn his first save of the year. Justin Phillabaum, who yielded Mailman's three run triple, suffered the loss for Potomac.
Following a Monday off-day, the Red Sox will head up Route 460 for a three-game series against the Lynchburg Hillcats, now an affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. Opening day starter Stolmy Pimentel, whose outing was cut short to one scoreless inning because of rain, is expected to start for Salem opposite Lynchburg righthander Lance Janke. First pitch is scheduled for 6:05 at City Stadium.
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Carolina League Stories from April 11, 2010
- Late Offensive Surge Cements First Win - Wilmington Blue Rocks
- Rizzo Blasts Two Homers in 10-7 Red Sox Win - Salem Red Sox
- Bats Wake Up As Dash Downs Kinston 5-1 - Winston-Salem Dash
- Rally Lifts Frederick To Series Split - Frederick Keys
- Puckett Homers, But Hillcats Fall In Series Finale - Lynchburg Hillcats
- K-Tribe Falls 5-1, Splits Series With Winston-Salem - Kinston Indians
- Lynchburg Hillcats Game Notes - Lynchburg Hillcats
- K-Tribe Notes For Sunday - Kinston Indians
- Potomac Nationals Game Notes - Potomac Nationals
- Extra Inning Onslaught Leads To Doubleheader Split - Frederick Keys
- Hillcats split doubleheader - Lynchburg Hillcats
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