CarL1 Salem RidgeYaks

Salem Red Sox Game Notes

Published on May 7, 2013 under Carolina League (CarL1)
Salem RidgeYaks News Release


The Salem Red Sox are back at LewisGale Field for a three-game series against the Carolina Mudcats.

First pitch at 7:05.

Refreshed and Ready: After playing 22 games without a scheduled day off, the Red Sox rested on Monday with some momentum after winning back-to-back ballgames in Winston-Salem to finish their recent road trip strong. The Salem Sox return to LewisGale Field on Tuesday evening for their first meeting of the season with the Carolina Mudcats. The Red Sox reside just one back in the loss column (and two games back overall) behind Myrtle Beach, while the Mudcats, Cleveland's Advanced-A affiliate, arrives with the worst record in the league at 11-19, six games out of first. Last year, the Salem Sox went 14-6 against the Mudcats, winning nine of the first 10.

Triple Triumph: The Red Sox recorded two triples in each of their wins on Saturday and Sunday, giving them 15 triples on the season, tops in the league. The other seven teams have combined for 55 triples, an average of 7.9 per squad. Catcher Blake Swihart leads the circuit with five three-baggers, while third-baseman Garin Cecchini is right behind him with four. Swihart's five triples puts him tied for sixth in all of minor league baseball. With exactly 20% of the season gone, Swihart is on pace for 25 triples on the year. The Carolina League record is 17, achieved by two players, most recently Mike Cameron for Prince William in 1994. Salem's David Arrington also registered 17 triples in 1968.

Heat Checks: Salem won on Sunday despite a pair of 0-for-5 performances from its two hottest hitters, Garin Cecchini and Sean Coyle. Both infielders are still ranked in the top ten in Carolina League batting average, with Cecchini's .374 clip pacing the circuit. Cecchini also leads the league with his .466 on-base percentage and 16 extra-base hits, while Coyle's #1 with nine home runs and a .737 slugging percentage (Cechini's .636 slugging rate is second). Sunday snapped Cecchini's 11-game hitting streak, in which he hit .476 (20-for-42), and his 14-game on base streak, in which his OBP was .591 (39 times on base in 14 games).

Catching the Cats: While Carolina arrives in Salem with just a 11-19 record, the Mudcats do own three of the league's top six hitters. Nineteen-year-old shortstop Francisco Lindor is second behind Cecchini with a .366 average, while Jerrud Sabourin is fourth at .330 and Tyler Naquin sits sixth at .310. In fact, Carolina is hitting .271 as a team, tops in the Carolina League after 20% of the season. Despite this offensive prowess, the Mudcats are an appalling 2-8 in one-run games and 5-12 in games decided by three runs or less. Salem will host Carolina for three this week before heading to Zebulon for a three-game series next week.

Kyle's Style: Salem fans will say hello to journeyman righthander Kyle Kaminska on Tuesday night, as the 24-year-old righthander makes his first ever appearance at LewisGale Field, the 10th different ballpark he has had the chance to call home. Kaminska started the year with Double-A Portland, and he spent parts of last season with four different teams in two organizations. Kaminska's Carolina League debut offered a quality start in Wilmington last Wednesday. It was his 140th career appearance and his 70th career start.

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Carolina League Stories from May 7, 2013


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