Cup of Coffee: Anthony and Romero homer twice to lead Wednesday power surge
8/1 Cup of Coffee: Wednesday's slate featured plenty of power across the board. In Portland, Roman Anthony (pictured) homered twice as part of a three-hit night. Phillip Sikes also went deep in the process of racking up three hits himself. In Greenville, Mikey Romero connected on two long balls for the second time in his last three games. He went back-to-back-to-back with Miguel Bleis and Jhostynxon Garcia in the eighth inning of the Drive's shutout win. Nazzan Zanetello belted a solo shot for Salem as well.
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Buffalo Bisons (TOR) @ Worcester Red Sox (PPD, Rain)
Wednesday's game between Buffalo and Worcester was postponed due to inclement weather. It will be made up as part of a single-admission doubleheader at Polar Park on Thursday afternoon.
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Five members of Portland's starting lineup recorded multiple hits. Roman Anthony led the way by going 3 for 4 with two home runs, three RBIs, three runs scored, one walk, and one stolen base. Phillip Sikes went 3 for 5 with one triple, one home run, three RBIs, and two runs scored, finishing just a double shy of the cycle. Kristian Campbell and Kyle Teel each went 2 for 5 with a double. Campbell collected an RBI and stole a base while Teel scored a run. Alex Binelas went 2 for 4 with an RBI and one run scored. Tyler Miller doubled in a run for his only hit of the night.
Isaac Coffey improved to 8-2 after allowing two earned runs on three hits, and three strikeouts over five innings. He retired nine of the final 10 batters he faced after giving up a pair of solo shots in the top of the second. In relief of Coffey, Alex Hoppe and Robert Kwiatkowski combined to toss four innings of one-run ball.
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An offensive explosion in Greenville featured three players going deep four times. Mikey Romero stayed scorching hot at the plate, going 4 for 5 with two doubles, two home runs, five RBIs, and three runs scored out of the leadoff spot. Miguel Bleis went 3 for 5 with one home run, two RBIs, one run scored, and one stolen base. Jhostynxon Garcia went back-to-back-to-back with Romero and Bleis in the eighth inning for his 15th home run with the Drive. Ahbram Liendo did not leave the yard, but he did go 2 for 4 with four RBIs, two runs scored, one walk, and one stolen base.
Elmer Rodriguez picked up his first win since being promoted to Greenville. He scattered three hits and one walk with three strikeouts over five scoreless innings. Gabriel Jackson and Reidis Sena preserved the shutout by combining for four scoreless, no-hit frames out of the bullpen. They struck out three batters apiece.
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Freili Encarnacion and Natanael Yuten each had two hits. The former went 2 for 4 with a go-ahead RBI double while the latter went 2 for 4 with a game-tying RBI triple. Nazzan Zanetello went 1 for 4 with his sixth home run of the season. Franklin Arias and Nelly Taylor stole one base apiece. On the mound, Juan Valera tossed four scoreless innings in his second start for Salem. He allowed just one hit and one walk while striking out two of the 13 batters he faced. Max Carlson followed with two more scoreless frames out of the bullpen. Royman Blanco yielded two unearned runs over three innings but was credited with the winning decision.
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Player of the Day: There were plenty of deserving candidates, but Mikey Romero gets the nod since all four of his hits on Wednesday went for extra bases. The 20-year-old infielder batted a stout .354/.382/.780 with 12 doubles, one triple, seven home runs, 19 RBIs, 18 runs scored, one stolen base, four walks, and 15 strikeouts over 19 games (89 plate appearances) for Greenville in July. He is currently ranked as the 26th prospect in the organization.
Photo Credit: Roman Anthony by Kelly O'Connor