Sox and Dash in the race again for Southern Division 2nd half
The Salem Red Sox will return from a seven day road trip Monday when they start a six day homestand at Salem Memorial Ballpark.
The Myrtle Beach Pelicans will be in for three games, followed by a three game visit from the Lynchburg Hillcats beginning July 29. Monday through Friday games begin at 7:05 pm and the Saturday game is a 6:05 start.
Tim Federowicz has the bat head on the ball in Saturday's win over Winston-Salem. Photo by Carter Turner
Salem is on the road this week with stops in Potomac and Lynchburg. The Sox opened the road trip with a 13-0 loss in Potomac Monday, putting the Sox two games behind Winston-Salem in the Carolina League’s second half Southern Division race. Salem had pulled to within a game of the Dash after taking three of four games from Winston-Salem at Memorial Ballpark last week.
On Saturday, the Sox were outhit, 23-12, yet still found a way to survive a furious Dash comeback and prevail 10-9 in the series finale at Lewis-Gale Field. After trailing 3-0 in the first inning, the Sox soared to a 10-4 lead after six, only to have Winston rally and almost catch the Sox.
With one out in the top of the ninth, the Dash had runners at first and third, trailing by one. But Cesar Cabral, who had already given up five hits in just over an inning of relief, induced a 1-6-3 game-ending double play from Seth Loman to cap the contest and give the Red Sox their ninth win in their last 13 games.
Alex Hassan led the way for Salem with a season-high four hits, and Mitch Dening and Peter Hissey each added two more, but the offensive prowess from Winston’s lineup continuously left fans shaking their heads. Loman and Kyle Shelton each had four hits, while Jon Gilmore, Luis Sierra, and Mike Richard each tallied three for the visitors, who bettered their 21-hit total they mustered against the Sox back on May 8. But 13 runners left on, including the bases loaded in both the seventh and the eighth, prevented the Dash from completing the comeback.
It’s ironic that in a game with 23 hits, six of Winston’s nine runs were unearned. The Dash took advantage of two critical Oscar Tejeda errors, one in the first inning that led to three runs and another in the eighth that eventually became four runs. Yet with the tying run at second base in the ninth, Tejeda unleashed a super-human athletic dive to corral a screaming ground-ball up the middle, transforming the potential game-tying single to center to a simple infield hit for Jon Gilmore. A batter later, Loman chopped into the twin-killer to end it. It was the fourth double-play of the game turned by the Red Sox
Miguel Gonzalez picked up the win for Salem with five solid innings, recovering from the three unearned tallies in the first to not allow another run in the remainder of his outing. He allowed nine hits, yet did not walk anyone and struck out two to improve to 3-2 on the season. Joe Serafin suffered the loss, giving up runs in four of his five innings pitched to fall to 0-2. After falling behind 3-0, the Sox plated two in the first, two in the second to take a 4-3 lead, then one more each in the fourth and the fifth to surge ahead 6-3.
With the advantage trimmed to two after Winston’s run in the top of the sixth, Salem batted around and scored four times in the bottom of the sixth, with all the runs charged to reliever Drew O’Neil. Hassan’s third RBI of the game made it 10-4 in favor of the Sox, and it appeared that the rout was on.
Winston continued to swing, however, connecting on 11 of their 23 hits in the final three innings. The Dash scored one in the seventh but left the bases loaded, then scored four times in the eighth, all with two outs, all after Tejeda’s pivotal throwing error. With the score 10-9 after Sierra’s two-run single, the Dash loaded the bases again, but Cabral struck out Richard to leave them loaded.
Cabral earned his third save, for despite two inherited runners scoring, none were charged to him. The Sox threatened to add insurance in the last of the eighth, but with two runners aboard, Jon Hee lined to second to end the threat. Salem left 10 runners on in the ballgame, as Salem’s 1-2-3 bottom of the seventh was the only time either team went down in order in the three hour and 26 minute contest.
Saturday night goes down as the longest nine-inning game of 2010 for the Salem Red Sox.
Will Middlebrooks jacked a first-inning solo homer for the Red Sox, his eighth of the year and fourth of July. Hassan also went deep with a solo shot in the second and finished a triple shy of the cycle.
