A brilliant outing by Alex Meyer isn't enough. Good pitching in three of the four games, but only one win. Four errors sink the Rock Cats.
PAWTUCKET 3, ROCHESTER 1 IN PAWTUCKET
Batting stars: Chris Parmelee was 2-for-4 with two doubles. Doug Bernier was 2-for-4.
Pitching star: Alex Meyer struck out eleven in 6.2 scoreless innings, giving up three hits and three walks.
Opposition stars: Garin Cecchini was 1-for-1 with a double, scoring once and driving in two. Allen Webster pitched 6.1 innings, allowing one run on five hits and a walk with five strikeouts.
The game: There was no scoring, and really no threats to score, until the seventh, when Rochester got on the board with a walk, a stolen base, a wild pitch, and a sacrifice fly. It looked like it might be enough, but in the eighth Cecchini hit a two-run double and scored on a Ryan Lavarnway single to give Pawtucket a 3-1 lead. The Red Wings got a pair of singles in the ninth, putting men on first and second with one out, but a ground out and a strikeout ended the game.
Of note: Wilkin Ramirez was 1-for-4. Deibinson Romero was 0-for-4. Eric Farris was 1-for-3 with a walk. Matt Guerrier pitched two-thirds of an inning, giving up no runs on a hit and a walk with one strikeout.
NEW HAMPSHIRE 7, NEW BRITAIN 5 IN NEW BRITAIN
Batting stars: Tony Thomas was 2-for-4 with a home run, a double, and a walk, driving in two. Daniel Ortiz was 1-for-4 with a double and two RBIs.
Pitching stars: Daniel Turpen pitched 2.1 scoreless innings, giving up a hit and striking out one. Ryan O'Rourke pitched two innings, giving up an unearned run on two hits and a walk with one strikeout.
Opposition stars: Andy Burns was 2-for-3 with a triple, a double, and a walk, scoring three times. Andy Fermin was 2-for-4 and scored twice. Richard Bleier pitched four innings of relief, allowing one run on one hit with two strikeouts.
The game: It looked good early for New Britain. Ortiz hit a two-run double in the first to make the score 2-0 and Thomas had an RBI double in a two-run second that put the Rock Cats up 4-1. New Hampshire kept coming back, though, getting one in the third and one in the fourth to make it 4-3 and taking the lead in the fifth. Two Rock Cat errors led to three runs in the fifth inning to give the Fisher Cats a 6-4 advantage. Thomas homered in the seventh to cut the lead to 6-5, but another error allowed New Hampshire to make it 7-5 in the eighth. The last nine New Britain batters were retired.
Of note: Nate Hanson was 1-for-4 with a run. Kennys Vargas was 1-for-4. Starter D. J. Baxendale struck out four in 4.2 innings, giving up six runs (two earned) on five hits and a walk. The Rock Cats made four errors which led to five unearned runs.
FORT MYERS 4, JUPITER 2 IN FORT MYERS
Batting stars: Travis Harrison was 2-for-4 with a double, scoring once and driving in two. Adam Pettersen was 1-for-3 with a double and a run.
Pitching stars: Tyler Duffey pitched six shutout innings, giving up one hit and one walk with five strikeouts. Tim Shibuya pitched two innings, giving up two hits with one strikeout.
Opposition star: Brian Ellington struck out two in two shutout innings, allowing only a walk.
The game: A single, a double, a single, and an error put Fort Myers on the board with two in the first inning. A two-run single by Harrison made it 4-0 after five. Jupiter did not even threaten until the ninth, when three consecutive two-out singles produced two runs before a fly out ended the game.
Of note: Levi Michael was 1-for-4 with a run. Jorge Polanco was 1-for-4 with an RBI. Dalton Hicks was 0-for-3 with a walk and an RBI. Adam Brett Walker II was 0-for-4. Max Kepler was 0-for-4.
PEORIA 2, CEDAR RAPIDS 0 IN PEORIA
Batting star: Logan Wade was 2-for-4.
PItching stars: Ethan Mildren struck out six in five no-hit innings, giving up only a walk. Alex Muren struck out three in two innings, giving up an unearned run on a hit and a walk.
Opposition stars: Cesar Valera was 1-for-1 with a double and two walks, scoring once. Ronald Castillo was 2-for-4 with a double and a run. Arturo Reyes pitched five shutout innings, allowing three hits and two walks with two strikeouts.
The game: Cedar Rapids threatened in the second, putting men on first and third with one out, but a strikeout/throw out double play ended the threat. They threatened again in the sixth, getting men to second and third with one out, but a short fly and a strikeout again ended the threat. Peoria broke through in the seventh on a double, an error, and a ground out. The Chiefs scored again in the eighth on a double, a passed ball, and a wild pitch. The Kernels went down in order in the ninth.
Of note: Jonatan Hinojosa was 0-for-3. Tanner Vavra was 1-for-3. Chad Christensen was 0-for-3 with a walk. Bryan Haar was 0-for-4. Zach Larson was 1-for-4.