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Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders: L 3-5 vs. Durham Bulls
Brady Lail got the start for Scranton yesterday afternoon and turned in a solid performance. The righty threw six innings of one-run ball with four strikeouts, though he did allow five hits and a pair of walks. The RailRiders had a 3-0 lead thanks to a Chris Parmelee two-run homer and an RBI single from Eddy Rodriguez to score Pete Kozma, who had doubled. Lail gave up a solo homer in the sixth, and Al Pedrique turned to his bullpen.
Unfortunately, no one was sharp. Diego Moreno, Neal Cotts, and Johnny Barbato combined to give up four runs over the final three innings. Cotts and Barbato each surrendered a homer, and Durham won the game, 5-3. Aaron Judge went 0-for-5 with two strikeouts while Parmelee and Nick Swisher were the only players to record extra base hits on Scranton's side. Parmelee finished 2-for-3 with the aforementioned homer and a walk, and Swisher had a 2-for-5 day with a double.
Double-A Trenton Thunder: W 9-2 vs. Binghamton Mets
A slim 3-2 Thunder lead turned into a blowout late, as the Mets' bullpen fell apart in the eighth and ninth with six runs crossing the plate. Every Trenton starter except for Dante Bichette Jr. had a hit. Shortstop Tyler Wade was the main attraction from the leadoff position, as he went 3-for-5 with a double, a walk, a stolen base, and an RBI to boot. He hasn't had much power yet, but he is batting .264/.364/.365 in 47 games at Double-A this year. Mark Payton also had a big afternoon, going 3-for-5 on his own with an outfield assist; he has really caught fire since his return to the Thunder a couple weeks ago, as he has a .775 OPS in 13 games. Juan Silva also had two doubles and a sacrifice fly, and even Cito Culver turned in a multi-hit day.
Dietrich Enns was not spectacular, but he got the job done. He pitched 5 1/3 innings of two-run ball, surrendering seven hits and a walk, though still keeping his Trenton ERA at 2.15 in eight starts. Matt Wotherspoon and Jonathan Holder were more effective in relief, with the former throwing 2 2/3 frames of nearly perfect ball with a hit, no walks, and three strikeouts, and Holder closing out the win with two strikeouts of his own in the ninth.
High-A Tampa Yankees: Off-day
Low-A Charleston RiverDogs: L 0-1 vs. Greenville Drive
Charleston was blanked over and over again, stranding runners left and right against Greenville pitching. They generated five walks, four against teenage phenom Anderson Espinoza, but it's tough to win when only recording three hits. Those came off the bat of Chris Gittens, Jeff Hendrix, and Leonardo Molina; none were in the same inning. The offense had opportunities, but just couldn't get the job done. Right fielder Jhalan Jackson's frustration was evident, as after an 0-for-4 ended with his second strikeout, he was ejected for arguing with the home plate umpire.
The only mistake by the RiverDogs' pitching staff came in the third inning, when Josh Ockimey took Luis Cedeno deep for a solo homer. Cedeno was fine other than that over five innings, and reliever Nestor Cortes was even better. The 21-year-old southpaw gave up just one baserunner (a walk) over three otherwise perfect innings, fanning five batters and reducing his ERA to 0.79 in 22 2/3 innings. He was a deep 36th round pick back in 2013, but after a strong 2015 in Pulaski and a dominating beginning to his time in full-season ball, it does not appear that he will be long for the level.