The affiliates only lost three games last night. Two were in the lowest levels of the minors, which included an extra-inning game, while the other was a one-run game in Double-A. Former Blue Jays Robert Ray and Jayson Nix helped Las Vegas to victory, while Justin Nicolino and Nestor Molina had strong, albeit short, outings.
Las Vegas 4 @ Tucson 1 – Boxscore
Robert Ray made a triumphant return to Las Vegas with 7 innings of one-run ball against Tucson. Ray surrendered five hits and didn’t walk a batter. He struck out four and left having thrown 63 of his 92 pitches for strikes. Unfortunately, he was outshone by the Padres’ Samuel Deduno, who has a 3.04 ERA in 50.2 innings for Tucson now. Deduno struck out 5 over 6 innings. He allowed two hits and a walk and left with a 1-0 lead. Ricardo Nanita and Ramon Vazquez had the singles and Adam Loewen walked.
In the 7th inning, Jayson Nix got to sidearmer and former Twin Pat Neshek with a solo shot to tie the game. In the top of the 8th, Chris Woodward and Vazquez singled, but the 51’s weren’t able to push a run across. Sean Henn had a 1-2-3 bottom of the inning. Nanita led off the 9th with a homer. With two out and Nix having reached base on a single, Woodward also singled, scoring Nix. Kevin Howard singled, scoring Woodward and gave Las Vegas the 4-1 lead. Danny Farquhar came on for the save, with a little assist from Darin Mastroianni, who threw out Kyle Blanks at home.
New Hampshire 1 @ Binghamton 2 – Boxscore
Chad Beck took the loss, falling to 7-3 with a 3.41 ERA. Binghamton dinged him for eight hits and also worked him for three walks over 4 innings. Beck struck out three and allowed two runs. Casey Janssen struck out two over his rehab inning. Rey Gonzalez pitched 1.2 innings of relief and struck out two. Clint Everts struck out three over 1.1 innings of relief and also stranded both of the runners he inherited.
Collin McHugh of the Mets kept the Fisher Cats bats at bay, striking out nine over 6 innings. New Hampshire only touched him for one run, as Moises Sierra doubled home Travis d’Arnaud in the second. Both Sierra and d’Arnaud had two hits in the game; they were the only Fisher Cats with a multi-hit games. Adeiny Hechevarria had a single and a walk and Mike McDade doubled. Unfortunately, the Fisher Cats squandered most of their scoring opportunities, going 0-for-10 with runners in scoring position. Anthony Gose stole his 43rd base of the year and Sierra his 10th. Hechavarria was caught stealing for the 10th time this season. Gose threw out a runner at third base and Sierra had an outfield assist at home.
Bradenton 2 @ Dunedin 3 – Boxscore
Brett Lawrie’s dodgeball skills were tested yesterday and, unfortunately, he was hit twice by pitches from Florida’s Brett Sinkbeil. Otherwise, Lawrie was 0-for-2 and Ryan Goins pinch-hit for him in the eighth. Jon Talley and Chris Hopkins each went 2-for-4 with a double and a run scored. Hopkins also drove in a pair. Brian Van Kirk and A.J. Jimenez each also went 2-for-4. Kevin Nolan was 1-for-3 with a run scored and Brad McElroy went 1-for-4 with a walk and an RBI.
Nestor Molina started for the D-Jays and improved to 9-3. He lowered his ERA to 2.65 after 5 innings of shutout ball. He allowed three hits and a free pass, but struck out four. Harold Mozingo threw a scoreless relief inning in his debut in the Blue Jays system and he was followed by Aaron Loup, who struck out two in his frame of relief. Steve Turnbull allowed a pair of runs on three hits, but Wes Etheridge picked up his teammate and notched his 31st save with a scoreless inning.
Lansing 8 @ Clinton 5 (11 innings) – Boxscore
Starters Egan Smith and George Mieses each went 6 innings. Clinton had a 4-3 lead over Lansing, having touched Smith for eight hits and a walk. Both teams scored all their runs in one frame. In the top of the eighth, Marcus Knecht homered to tie the game, reaching double digits on the season. After reliever Tyler Powell had retired five batters in a row, he allowed a home run in the bottom of the inning as Clinton regained a one-run lead. In the top of the ninth, Michael Crouse reached on an error, advanced to second on a wild pitch and then scored on a Carlos Perez single. Powell and Shawn Griffith shut out Clinton over the next 2 innings.
In the top of the 11th, Oliver Dominguez led off the inning with a walk, but Gari Pena popped out while attempting to sac bunt. Crouse and Perez hit consecutive singles, scoring Dominguez and leaving runners on second and third when Perez advanced to second on a throw trying to nail Crouse at third. Bryson Namba walked and then Knecht grounded into the force out, short to home. With two out, K.C. Hobson came up with the key hit, plating two insurance runs with a single. It turned out Danny Barnes wouldn’t need them, as he picked up the save with a pair of strikeouts.
In some note from the game, Jake Marisnick was caught stealing second to end the top of the ninth and was ejected from the game by the field umpire after the play. Crouse threw out a runner at third base. Perez made his 9th error of the year and Hobson made his 17th at first base. Knecht was picked off, but Matt Nuzzo had a rare stolen base and Crouse added his 28th of the campaign. Perez led the team with four singles during the game and Pena had three hits, despite missing his bunt in the eleventh.
Boise 2 @ Vancouver 6 (5 innings) – Boxscore
It was a rain-shortened affair in Vancouver last night, which included a 47 minute rain delay. The Canadians were awarded the victory with a four-run lead after 5 innings. Justin Nicolino picked up the abbreviated complete game. He allowed six hits and a walk and struck out six. His ERA now sits at 1.55. Balbino Fuenmayor had a solo homer in the first and went 2-for-3 with a pair of RBIs. Yeico Aponte also had two hits, with a double, a run and an RBI. Vancouver only had seven hits, but made them count and went 3-for-5 with runners in scoring position. The other hits came from Stephen McQuail, Pierce Rankin and Nicholas Baligod.
Bluefield 5 @ Kingsport 1 – Boxscore
Ajay Meyer turned in a fine performance, going 5 innings and earning his first victory for the Blue Jays. Meyer allowed five hits and a walk, but didn’t allow a run to cross the plate. He also struck out three. Kenllie Santana had a much-needed scoreless inning with two strikeouts to lower his ERA to 17.18. Thomas Berryhill and Jonathan Lucas combined for two scoreless innings of relief and Milciades Santana gave up a meaningless run in the ninth.
Bluefield struck for three runs in the first inning. Leadoff hitter Daniel Arcila finished the night 1-for-3 with a double, a walk and two runs scored. Andy Fermin hit his third home run, a solo shot, and also drew a walk. He scored twice, hit a sacrifice fly and is now hitting .311/.376/.527 for a .903 OPS. Art Charles had a double and 2 RBIs, but struck out three times. Chris Hawkins and Leo Hernandez each also went 2-for-4. Hawkins and Gustavo Pierre both made their fifth errors for Bluefield.
GCL Yankees 14 @ GCL Blue Jays 12 (13 innings) – Boxscore
The GCL Yankees struck for 7 in the top of the second. The GCL Jays fought back with four consecutive multi-run innings and had a 10-8 lead after six. The seesaw battle continued with the Yankees retaking the lead in the 7th at 12-10, but a run apiece in the bottom of the seventh and eighth tied the game. Colby Broussard and Chris Roman provided some strong relief out of the pen. They combined for five innings of two-hit relief. Jorge Vega-Rosado went 4-for-6 with a double and a triple and two walks. Eric Acre had two hits and three walks. Dalton Pompey and Dickie Thon Jr. each had a pair of hits and a pair of walks. Seth Conner also worked a pair of walks and had three hits.
DSL Braves 7 @ DSL Blue Jays 3 – Boxscore
The DSL Blue Jays made seven errors this game. Seven. Ricardo Guillen made three fielding errors and was lifted from the game after five innings. The Blue Jays managed one unearned run over 6 innings of the duo of Oriel L. Calcedo and Oriel R. Calcedo. Luis Martin had the only two-hit game for the DSL Jays, one of which was a two-run homer in the ninth.
Three Stars:
3rd Star – Carlos Perez, 4-for-6, R, 4 RBI, 4 TB,
2nd Star – Jorge Vega-Rosado, 4-for-6, 2 R, 2B, 3B, 2 BB, 7 TB
1st Star – Robert Ray, 7 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 4 K
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