Durham Bulls (TB) 4, Norfolk Tides 1
The misery for the Tides continued as Nick Additon did not have his best start, giving up three runs on six hits in just four innings of work. That was more than enough for the Bulls, who held Norfolk to just four hits on the day.
The only run for the Tides was an old-school manufactured run in the first. Xavier Avery singled, stole second, advanced to third on a groundout to the right side, and was singled in by Christian Walker.
After today’s loss, Additon moves to 1-9 on the season. Although he did deserve the loss in this one, that record is pretty unfair overall - even after yesterday’s start he has a perfectly reasonable 3.58 ERA on the year. Oliver Drake also got back to doing what he usually does in the minors by striking out five over two scoreless innings.
Altoona Curve (PIT) 5, Bowie Baysox 3
Starter David Hess had a decent outing, allowing three earned runs in 6.1 innings, but he was finally chased in the seventh when a few hits and a pair of ill-timed errors allowed the Curve to turn a 2-1 lead into a 5-1 advantage.
Bowie tried to come back the following inning, when Joey Terdoslavich singled in Tucker Nathans and Henry Urrutia, but that was as close as they’d get. The two unearned runs were the difference, as the final score ended up being 5-3 in favor of Altoona.
The other Bowie run came on an RBI single by Nathans in the third - he was 3-4 on the day. Urrutia and Terdoslavich each had a pair of hits, and Urrutia’s eighth-inning double was the only Baysox extra-base hit on the day.
Salem Red Sox (BOS) 4, Frederick Keys 1
The Keys were held off the board until they were down to their very last out of the game, when Jomar Reyes hit a 2-out solo shot in the ninth to break up the shutout.
The offensively futility wasted a pretty good, albeit short, effort by starter David Richardson. In a spot start, Richardson allowed just one run over four innings, with seven strikeouts. Garrett Cleavinger, last year’s third-round pick, allowed the other three runs (one of which was unearned) in 3.2 innings of work. It wasn’t Cleavinger’s best outing, but he’s still got a 1.68 ERA overall across Delmarva and Frederick this season.
Wynston Sawyer and Jomar Reyes each went 2-4 and had the Keys’ only two extra-base hits. Josh Hart, who is somehow still only 21, went 0-3 in his return from a few weeks on the disabled list. He’s been struggling this season, with a .192/.260/273 batting line in 174 plate appearances.
Delmarva Shorebirds 7, Hagerstown Suns (WAS) 0
The Shorebirds picked up the affiliates’ only win of the day thanks to a dominant start (7.1 IP, 5 H, 8 K, 0 BB, 0 R) by Francisco Jimenez. After a rough start to the year, the 21-year-old Dominican has allowed just a single run in his last 22.2 innings, lowering his ERA from 6.04 to 4.42.
Delmarva did all their damage in just two innings. They had just one hit entering the fifth, but that changed quickly. Ricardo Andujar led off with a walk, and Gerrion Grim followed with an RBI double. After an Ademar Rifaela walk and an Austin Anderson strikeout, Cedric Mullins tripled home a pair of runs.
Ryan Mountcastle and Yermin Mercedes followed with back-to-back singles, chasing the Suns’ starter from the game. That was all they’d get in the fifth, but they added three more runs in the seventh on a pair of RBI doubles by Alex Murphy and Nataneal Delgado, and an RBI single by Ricardo Andujar.
I feel like I mention Yermin Mercedes every time I do one of these, and that’s not going to change today. After going 2-5 yesterday he’s now hitting .349/.395/.452 on the year.
Lowell Spinners (BOS) 3, Aberdeen Ironbirds 1
Aberdeen starter Alex Wells had another nice game, allowing just one earned run (two runs total) on four hits in 6+ innings. The 19-year-old Australian now has a 1.48 ERA in his first four career starts on this continent - not too bad.
The Ironbirds scored their only run in the second, when Guillermo Salas singled in Jaylen Ferguson. Aberdeen managed only five hits on the day.
Today’s match-ups:
Norfolk @ Gwinnett, 7:05 PM (David Hale)
Bowie vs. Trenton, 6:35 PM (Matthew Grimes)
Frederick @ Lynchburg, 6:30 PM (Cory Jones)
Delmarva vs. Lakewood, 6:35 PM (Reid Love)
Aberdeen vs. West Virginia, 7:05 PM (TBD)