CarL1 Salem RidgeYaks

Red Sox Split DH, Walking off in Nightcap

Published on August 31, 2010 under Carolina League (CarL1)
Salem RidgeYaks News Release


It is not often where you have the opportunity to bat twice with the bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the last inning on the same day. Salem outfielder Alex Hassan flew out to right field with the potential winning runs aboard in a 5-3 loss in the series opener, but redeemed himself in the finale, taking a 3-2 pitch for ball four to force in Ronald Bermudez and give Salem a much-needed 3-2 victory in the nightcap. The win snapped a four game losing streak for the Red Sox and prevented them from falling four and a half games behind the Indians. With six days (and eight games) remaining in the regular season, Salem trails Kinston by three and a half games for the final playoff spot in the Carolina League Southern Division.

The Sox dug themselves an early 5-0 deficit in the opener, with the Nats scoring twice in the first on a two-run double from Jamar Walton and thrice more in the second off Salem starter Michael Lee. The Red Sox quickly snagged two back in their half of the second, with Oscar Tejeda tripling in Will Middlebrooks and then scoring on Ryan Dent's ground-out. Reliever Zach Hammes kept the Sox close with four scoreless innings out of the bullpen, but Salem was stymied over the remainder of the five innings thrown by former Avalanche hurler Jimmy Barthmaier. The Red Sox loaded the bases in both the sixth and seventh innings, but went 0-8 with runners in scoring position in the ballgame, scrapping across just one more run to fall 5-3.

In game two, Salem encountered quick adversity again when Derek Norris blasted a solo-homer off Mark Holliman in the first inning. The contest remained 1-zip into the fourth, until Hassan and Tejeda popped back-to-back jacks against Pat Lehman to surge Salem ahead 2-1. The dingers were the eighth for Hassan and the 11th for Tejeda.

Mark Holliman retook the mound for the top of the seventh, having allowed just two hits since Norris' first-inning blast. But Bill Rhinehart crushed a double off the top of the wall in right-center, and after Tyler Moore flew out to shallow center, the Sox pulled the plug on Holliman and Cesar Cabral took over. Pitching for the first time since the disastrous fifth inning on Sunday, Cabral yielded a deep fly to left field from Sean Rooney. Hassan offered a leaping attempt at the wall, but came up empty and the ball fell in for a game-tying double. A pinch-hit single for Jose Lozada put runners on the corners, but Cabral induced a double play from Sean Nicol to keep the game even at two, heading to the bottom of the last.

Jon Hee opened the final frame with a leadoff single and was pinch-run for by Ryan Dent. The speedy shortstop stole second, but on Drew Hedman's pop-fly to shallow center, Dent was doubled off second-base on a bang-bang throw from Chris Curran. With two outs and the bases empty, extras seemed imminent. But Bermudez drew a walk to prolong the inning. Then, Luis Segovia hit a chopper to third, with Robby Jacobson airmailing the throw to second, allowing both runners to be safe. Mitch Dening also drew a walk to load the bases for Hassan, who fell behind in the count 0-2 and fouled off a few tough pitches from Joe Testa before watching a 3-2 toss inch inside to bring home the winning run. For Potomac's lefthander Testa, it was the second time in three days that he was on the mound for a tough walk-off, as he hit Frederick's Pedro Florimon with a pitch on Sunday at Harry Grove Stadium to end that game as well.

The Sox record moved to 70-60 for the full-season, 28-32 in the second half.

Down by three and a half games in the playoff chase, Salem has little margin for error as they host Potomac for game three of a five-game set at Lewis-Gale Field. The action continues at 7:05 on Wednesday, with Miguel Gonzalez starting for the Red Sox opposite Nationals' righthander Marcos Frias.

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Carolina League Stories from August 31, 2010


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