Cup of Coffee: Rafaela, Yorke, Anthony all homer; Sale rehabs
8/2 Cup of Coffee: It was a big night for rehabbing Red Sox, as Chris Sale started on the mound for Worcester, while Trevor Story homered for the WooSox. Top-five prospects Ceddanne Rafaela, Nick Yorke (pictured), and Roman Anthony continued to show off their power with a home run each. Blaze Jordan also went deep for the Sea Dogs. Angel Bastardo and Rio Gomez had good performances on the mound.
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Chris Sale was back on the mound for his first rehab start after he went on the IL with a shoulder injury in early June. The lefty tossed two innings and threw 40 pitches, allowing just one hit and no runs. He walked a pair but struck out three, and his fastball was hitting 95 MPH. Rio Gomez followed Sale and allowed two runs over three innings, but eight of the nine outs he recorded came on strikeouts, matching a career-high. Ryan Fernandez, Brendan Nail, and Cam Booser each threw a scoreless inning with one strikeout. Trevor Story stayed hot on his rehab assignment, blasting his third home run, and second with Worcester. He also swiped a bag and now has a 1.067 OPS across nine rehab games. Ceddanne Rafaela also stayed hot with his seventh WooSox home run. The outfielder also singled and is now batting .324 with a .630 slugging percentage in 26 games with Worcester. Niko Kavadas added a couple of doubles as well.
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Blaze Jordan crushed a two-run homer in the ninth inning to pull the Sea Dogs within a run, but it was too little, too late. For Jordan, it was his second home run with Portland after hitting 12 with Greenville. Nick Yorke had a big night from the top spot in the order, going 2 for 3 with his 11th home run, a single, a walk, and his seventh stolen base. Isaac Coffey labored through four innings, throwing 92 pitches, but he limited the damage to just two runs. He struck out six, which is the 13th time he has reached that mark this year. Christopher Troye allowed one run in two innings with two strikeouts, and Ryan Zeferjahn struck out a pair in a scoreless frame.
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Roman Anthony was the entire offense last night for the Drive with a solo home run in the fourth inning. He already has 10 home runs in 30 games with Greenville to go along with a 1.078 OPS. Allan Castro and Bryan Gonzalez had the other two hits for Greenville, both singles. Angel Bastardo was good despite taking the loss, surrendering just two runs over 5 1/3 innings. He struck out five and walked only one. Jordan DiValerio did not allowed a run over 2 2/3 innings and Joey Stock stuck out three in a hitless ninth inning.
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The Salem bats were quieted with just three hits and three walks. Luis Ravelo had two of the three hits, including his 13th double of the year. Mikey Romero added a single. Gabriel Jackson took his first loss of the season, allowing four runs on six hits and four walks in just three innings. He struck out three. Luis Talavera gave up one run on just one hit in three innings following Jackson. Michael Valera finished the final two innings without giving up a run and striking out three.
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Marvin Alcantara had a perfect day at the plate, going 2 for 2 with a pair of singles and two walks. He scored twice and drove in a run. Johanfran Garcia singled, walked, and scored, while Claudio Simon roped a pinch-hit double. Christian Koss also continued his rehab and picked up a single. He now has at least one hit in all four of his games with the FCL Sox after missing about a month with a toe sprain. Willian Colmenares went the first two innings on the mound and struggled, surrendering three runs on three hits and three walks. Stijn Van Der Schaaf pitched very well in relief, allowing just a run over three innings. He did not allow a hit and struck out three.
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This game was suspended in the bottom of the fourth inning and will be completed on August 5. Yoeilin Cespedes, Starlyn Nunez, and Cristofher Paniagua are all 2 for 2. Cespedes hit his sixth home run, while Nunez has two doubles and two runs. Paniagua also has a two-bagger. Obed Balderas has pitched all four innings and allowed just one run on five hits with two strikeouts and no walks. The Sox currently lead 4-1.
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This game was called after five due to rain. The Sox had just two hits, as Nathanael German and Claudio Evangelista both singled. Luis Jerez went the first 2 1/3 innings and allowed four runs, although just one was earned. He punched out four and only issued one free pass. Jean Carlos Reyes came on and did not allow a run over 1 2/3 frames.
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Player of the Day: Nick Yorke tallied five total bases in a game for the sixth time this season. He has now homered in back-to-back games as well and now has 30 extra-base hits on the season. Yorke is slashing .273/.352/.454 in 78 games this year.
Photo Credit: Nick Yorke by Kelly O'Connor