Rochester Tops Pawtucket, 5-1, in Series Finale
August 23, 2018 - International League (IL1)
Pawtucket Red Sox News Release
ROCHESTER, N.Y. - A solid start from Josh A. Smith kept the Pawtucket Red Sox within striking distance and set the stage for an eighth-inning rally, but the Rochester Red Wings fended off the PawSox, 5-1, on Thursday night at Frontier Field.
The PawSox (61-67), who entered Thursday's action with nine wins in their last 14 games, yielded a run in the second and two more in the fourth but mounted a comeback bid in the eighth. Rochester (58-70), however, hung on as the teams split the four games to begin Pawtucket's eight-game road trip.
Smith (L, 5-5) recorded his fourth quality start in his last five outings by tossing six innings of three-run ball with a half-dozen strikeouts. Entering Thursday, Smith had posted the fifth-best ERA in the International League dating back to June 25 over his previous 12 outings (six starts).
In his return from the disabled list (knee contusion), Pawtucket left fielder Kyle Wren went 2-for-4 with a pair of singles. Center fielder Rusney Castillo - a candidate for International League MVP - went 2-for-4 and upped his league-leading average to .329 and his OPS to .801. PawSox leadoff man and shortstop Tzu-Wei Lin (2-for-5) added a multi-hit effort as well.
Rochester "opener" Nick Anderson threw a scoreless inning with two strikeouts to begin the night, and Zack Littell (W, 5-6) followed with 5.2 shutout frames with six strikeouts.
Rochester right fielder Jon Kemmer tagged a solo homer in the bottom of the second inning to hand the Red Wings an early 1-0 lead.
In the fourth, Rochester cleanup man Kennys Vargas ripped an RBI double into right field to double the margin to 2-0. Later in the inning, Kemmer singled to center to score Vargas and make it 3-0.
The PawSox loaded the bases in the top of the eighth inning and designated hitter Josh Ockimey's groundball to first scored Brandon Phillips from third, trimming the gap to 3-1.
The Red Wings grabbed that run right back in the bottom of the eighth on an RBI single from catcher Willians Astudillo and made it 5-1 on another RBI knock moments later.
Following the series in Rochester, the PawSox now head west to Buffalo to crack open a four-game series that begins Friday at 7:05 p.m. Pawtucket right-hander Mike Shawaryn (2-0, 2.49) is scheduled to start. Radio coverage on WHJJ (920 AM and 104.7 FM) and throughout the PawSox Radio Network begins with the pre-game show at 6:35 p.m.
After the eight-game road trip, the PawSox are back home August 28-30 (Tuesday-Thursday) for the penultimate homestand of the season. Good tickets are available, and fans can visit the McCoy Stadium box office, which is open Monday-Friday from 10 a.m. through 5 p.m., and during all home games. Fans can also call (401) 724-7300 or log on to PawSox.com for tickets.
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