Cup of Coffee: Romero notches two extra-base hits, Rodriguez is the hero for Greenville

7/19 Cup of Coffee: The full-season affiliates returned from the All-Star break, but the pitching needed to shake off some rust. Trayce Thompson (pictured) was one of the few bright spots in a tough loss for Worcester, and Mikey Romero notched multiple extra-base hits for the Sea Dogs. Yophery Rodriguez was the hero for Greenville, and Andruw Musett went deep in a Salem loss. 

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The Worcester pitching staff struggled through a blowout loss to the RailRiders. Cooper Criswell was hit hard, allowing six runs on eight hits over 4 2/3 innings. Bryan Mata was the only pitcher to keep runs off the board as he struck out two over 1 1/3. Both Austin Adams and Wyatt Olds allowed multiple runs as well. Worcester had a few solid offensive performances, highlighted by Trayce Thompson, who went 1 for 3 with a two-run home run and a walk. Nate Eaton went 2 for 4, and David Hamilton and Jhostynxon Garcia both added a hit and a walk. This was Hamilton's first game in Worcester since being optioned on July 11. 

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Mikey Romero did his best to keep Portland in the game, but Reading pulled away late. Romero went 2 for 5 with a double and a two-run triple. The triple brought the Sea Dogs within one run in the seventh, but Reading answered with two runs in the bottom half of the inning. Marvin Alcantara went 3 for 4, and Ronald Rosario went 2 for 4. Dalton Rogers needed 72 pitches to get through 3 2/3 frames. He struck out three, walked three, and allowed four runs on five hits. Caleb Bolden tossed three innings of one-run ball, and Jorge Juan gave up the final insurance run. 

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A ninth-inning home run from Yophery Rodriguez was the difference on Friday night. Rodriguez broke a 3-3 tie with two outs in the top of the ninth, and he also added a double earlier in the night. The other standout at the plate was Freili Encarnacion, who went 3 for 4 with a double and a stolen base. It was a wild outing for Brandon Clarke, who walked four and struck out five over 2 2/3. He allowed two runs on one hit and also uncorked three wild pitches. Michael Sansone was the piggyback starter, and he served up a solo home run but was otherwise unscathed over 4 1/3. The win went to Isaac Stebens after his two shutout innings. 

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Salem scored three times in the bottom of the ninth, but left the tying run on base. Andruw Musett put Salem on the board with a solo home run in the fourth, and he added an RBI single in the ninth. It would have been a two-run single, but Yohander Linarez was thrown out at home. Justin Gonzales went 2 for 5 with a double, and Kleyver Salazar went 2 for 3 with a walk. On the mound, Devin Futrell allowed two runs (one earned) over 3 2/3 while walking two and striking out one. Calvin Bickerstaff followed with three innings, and he also allowed one earned run and one unearned run. Salem committed two errors behind Futrell and three behind Bickerstaff. 

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The Twins jumped out to a three-run lead in the top of the first and never looked back. Madinson Frias fell to 1-7 after allowing those three runs in his lone inning of work. Gilbel Galvan and Denison Sanchez were solid out of the bullpen, combining to strike out nine and allow only one hit over six innings. Though Sanchez did walk five and allow one run. Anderson Fermin and Justin Barry notched the team's only two hits as they both went 1 for 3. 

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The Red squad's pitching staff allowed only one hit through five innings before the rain came. Christopher Cordero spun three hitless innings with three strikeouts, and Angelo Ladera followed and struck out two in his two innings. Four different players drove in a run, led by Gustavo Antunez and Givian Sirvania, who had RBI doubles. Miguel Welch also drove in a run as he went 1 for 2 with his fourth steal. 

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The rain could not come soon enough for the Blue team in this one, as the Orioles had jumped out to a 15-2 lead after three innings before this one got called. 

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Player of the Day: Yophery Rodriguez provided the heroics, hitting a clutch double and home run in Greenville's victory. After a solid start to the year that saw him post an on-base percentage over .400 in April, Rodriguez struggled in May and June. The 19-year-old combined to hit .179/.285/.272 over the two months, though he did record multiple hits in two of his last three games in June. He has been much better in July, posting an OPS over 1.000 through the first nine games. He is over three years younger than the average player in the South Atlantic League, and a strong finish to the year can help him regain some of the prospect status that he lost during the May and June swoon.