Cup of Coffee: Arias and Romero homer; Cohen goes five scoreless for Salem
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8/29 Cup of Coffee: Boston's affiliates went 2-2 on Wednesday. Worcester won its third straight behind multi-hit efforts from Vaughn Grissom and Enmanuel Valdez and five scoreless innings from the bullpen. Mikey Romero clubbed his first Double-A homer as Portland dropped its fourth straight. Blake Wehunt struck out seven as Greenville was shut out in Bowling Green. Franklin Arias and Luis Cohen (pictured) headlined Salem's win over Delmarva.
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Quinn Priester was inconsistent in his fifth start with Worcester. The righty allowed four earned runs on six hits (including a solo homer), zero walks, one hit batsman, and four strikeouts over four innings. He threw 71 pitches (49 strikes) and induced 15 swings-and-misses. Brian Van Belle, Zach Penrod, the rehabbing Liam Hendriks, and Luis Guerrero combined for eight punchouts across five scoreless frames of relief. At the plate, Vaughn Grissom and Enmanuel Valdez paced the WooSox lineup with two hits each. Grissom went 2 for 3 with three RBIs, one walk, and one stolen base while Valez ripped a pair of singles. Kristian Campbell reached base thrice, going 1 for 3 with two walks, three runs scored, and one stolen base. Roman Anthony and Kyle Teel both scored runs as well.
With the win, their third straight and 12th in their last 14 games, the WooSox improved to 30-22 in the second half. They remain five games back of the Columbus Clippers (35-17) for first place in the International League.
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Isaac Coffey took the loss in his start for Portland, allowing two earned runs on three hits (including two solo homers), two walks, one hit batsman, and six strikeouts over five innings. He threw 93 pitches (55 strikes) and elicited 10 swings-and-misses. Brendan Cellucci scattered three walks and three strikeouts across two scoreless frames before Alex Hoppe gave up an unearned run in the eighth. Offensively, Mikey Romero provided some thump by crushing his first Double-A home run for his only hit of the night. Jhostynxon Garcia tripled while Tyler McDonough went 2 for 4,
With the loss, their fourth straight and sixth in their last eight games, the Sea Dogs dropped to 33-19 in the second half. They now lead the Somerset Patriots (30-20) by just two games for first place in the Eastern League Northeast.
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Blake Wehunt took the loss in his start for Greenville, yielding one earned run on one hit, two walks, one hit batsman, and seven strikeouts over five innings. The righty threw 77 pitches (52 strikes) and induced 11 swings-and-misses. Max Carlson allowed an additional run to cross the plate in the seventh while Zach Fogell retired all three batters he faced in a scoreless eighth inning. On the flip side, the Drive out-hit the Hot Rods two to one as a team but were still shut out. Bryan Gonzalez and Will Turner both singled.
With the loss, their second straight to open the series, the Drive (33-23 in the second half) now trail the Hot Rods (35-18) by 3 1/2 games for first place in the South Atlantic League South.
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Luis Cohen picked up the win in his start for Salem. The righty scattered three hits and two walks while striking out five over five scoreless innings. He threw 67 pitched (41 strikes) and elicited eight swings-and-misses. Royman Blanco and Denis Reguilo combined for four innings of two-run ball out of the bullpen. Marvin Alcantara led the way offensively by going 3 for 5 with one double and two runs scored. Andy Lugo went 2 for 3 with one double, two RBIs, one walk, and one run scored. Karim Ayubi went 2 for 4 with an RBI single. Franklin Arias drew a bases-loaded walk and cranked a two-run home run for his lone hit of the night.
With the win, the Red Sox snapped a three-game losing streak and improved to 31-25 in the second half. They currently trail the Fredericksburg Nationals (34-22) by three games for first place in the Carolina League North.
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Player of the Day: Luis Cohen gets the nod for putting the finishing touches on an impressive month of August. In five appearances (four starts) for Salem, the 21-year-old hurler went 2-0 with a 1.19 ERA (0.97 WHIP) and 18 strikeouts to eight walks over 22 2/3 innings. Opposing hitters batted just .182 against him.
Photo Credit: Luis Cohen by Kelly O'Connor