Cup of Coffee: Coffey goes yard twice; Mayer knocks three hits
6/15 Cup of Coffee: Friday was the night of big innings, as Worcester and Portland each allowed crooked numbers that sunk their evenings, while Greenville had four in the third and five in the fourth to put away Asheville. The Drive hit four home runs, led by Cutter Coffey (pictured), who had his ninth and 10th big flies this season. Four other players throughout the system also went yard. Matthew Lugo had three hits and Bryan Gonzalez went 4 for 4 for the Drive in their 13-run outburst. On the mound, Jojo Ingrassa had eight strikeouts over five strong innings, while the summer of George continues, as Jason Alexander didn't allow an earned run over his five-frame outing.
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Worcester outhit the Bisons, but Red Sox pitching issued nine walks, which when combined with two errors more than made up the gap. Matthew Lugo knocked three hits, including a two-bagger, while Chase Meidroth had a double and a home run. The start went to Jason Alexander, who didn't allow an earned run over five innings of work. He scattered a pair of hits and walked three but had six strikeouts. All six runs in the eighth went on Sal Romano's tab.
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Though Portland opened the scoring in the top of the first on a Kyle Teel sacrifice fly, Reading scored eight runs in the third and took a commanding win. Marcelo Mayer was 3 for 5, including a double, to raise his batting average to .300, while Kristian Campbell knocked a home run as part of a 2-for-4 night, scoring three runs. They were joined in the multi-hit club by Tyler Miller. Seven of Reading's runs were charged to Juan Daniel Encarnacion, who didn't escape the third, while Jonathan Brand also allowed four runs in the later innings.
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It was the Red Sox affiliate putting up a crooked number for a change in Greenville, as the Drive knocked in four in the third and five more in the fourth to cruise to a victory. Seven of the nine hitters recorded at least one hit, led by Bryan Gonzalez at a perfect 4 for 4 with a double. Four other members of the Greenville lineup had multiple hits, including Cutter Coffey, who hit a pair of home runs. Eduardo Lopez and Ronald Rosario each also went yard. Yordanny Monegro was on the mound, striking out eight Tourists over four innings. He allowed two runs on three hits. Bryce Bonnin and Gabriel Jackson each coughed up a run over two frames of relief.
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The Woodpeckers scratched across a run in the first, but Salem scored five unanswered runs and secured the win. The start went to Jojo Ingrassia and he scattered a run on two hits and a walk over five innings. He punched out eight hitters along the way. Salem had just four hits, two of which were by Nelly Taylor, while Albert Feliz hit a home run.
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The top four hitters in the lineup combined for all five Red Sox hits, as Franklin Arias was 2 for 4 with a double and home run, helping back up a shutout from the pitching staff. Juan Valera contributed with three perfect innings in the starter's role, striking out five. He was followed by Nicolas De La Cruz, who walked three in 1 2/3 frames but held onto the shutout, while Adam Bates handled the rest of the game. Neither team was able to break through until the bottom of the sixth, when the Red Sox struck for all three of their runs.
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The pitching staffs struggled in this one, as the teams combined for 28 hits, but the offenses also left a total of 21 runners on base. Eleven hitters got in the game for Blue and nine of them had hits, led by Ilan Fernandez, who knocked a pair of two-baggers as part of a 3-for-4 day. Five more had multi-hit outings, including the only ranked prospect in the DSL, 45th-ranked Vladimir Asencio. A quartet of arms were assigned two frames each and three of them didn't surrender an earned run. Denison Sanchez, who took the fifth and sixth, struck out three hitters while allowing a trio of hits.
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Red got their scoring done early, as they had a run in four of their first five at-bats but had just two hits the rest of the way. Edwin Brito had three knocks to pace the team, including a double for the squad's only extra-base hit. Yeramain Ruiz pitched the first three innings and permitted just one baserunner, striking out three.
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Player of the Day: A two-homer day will do it just about every night. Cutter Coffey did all he could to bring Greenville to victory, as the Drive broke out for 13 runs and he drove in seven of them with a grand slam in the fourth and a three-run shot in the eighth, which put him up to 10 home runs on the season. The 20-year-old hasn't tapped into power much prior to 2024, with just four big flies in nearly 400 at-bats since his selection in the 2022 draft, but he is an intriguing prospect nonetheless.
Photo Credit: Cutter Coffey by Kelly O'Connor