Red Sox Minor League Report: Greenville’s Late Push Led by Homers From Luke Heyman and Maximus Martin

Boston Red Sox Affiliate Recap

Triple-A Worcester Red Sox

Season Record: 63-55

Worcester’s subpar offense and mediocre pitching led to a 5-0 loss to the Syracuse Mets (New York Mets). 

There were not many positive takeaways in this matchup. The bats did not register a single extra-base hit, tallying just four hits and four walks while going 1-for-4 with RISP. Brett Harris had two of the WooSox’s four knocks, with Franklin Arias and Nate Eaton collecting one apiece. 

Worcester’s lone positive was Noah Song’s relief outing. The Southern California native punched out seven batters while giving up just one run through three innings. Gage Ziehl got hit around, and the three walks he allowed did not help, giving up four runs (one unearned) through four innings.

Double-A Portland Sea Dogs

Season Record: 60-56

Just like their fellow Triple-A club, Portland’s bats were quiet, taking an 11-1 blowout defeat to the Reading Fightin Phils (Philadelphia Phillies).

Will Turner had two of the Sea Dogs' three hits, one of which was a solo blast in the fifth inning that made it a 3-1 game, but it all fell apart from there. The last hit came from Yoeilin Cespedes, who hit a double. 

Despite Portland’s pitching staff getting hammered, Hayden Mullins was solid through five innings. The southpaw got smacked around in the first inning, giving up a run on three hits and a walk. After that, he locked in, punching out eight batters. 

Standout Performances:

• Hayden Mullins: 5 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 8 K
• Will Turner: 2-for-4, HR, R, RBI

High-A Greenville Drive

Season Record: 52-62

The Drive took a late lead and came out with a close 8-7 victory over the Winston-Salem Dash (Chicago White Sox).

Greenville jumped on Winston-Salem immediately: Maximus Martin's two-run double in the first inning was followed by a Ronny Hernandez sacrifice fly for a 3-0 lead, then Isaiah Jackson's RBI double in the third made it 4-0. The Dash chipped back and ended up taking a 6-4 lead after an RBI double in the sixth.

Luke Heyman and Martin cracked two homers in the seventh, tying the game 6-6. After the Dash nudged ahead 7-6 in the eighth, Greenville answered in the bottom half: Stanley Tucker doubled home Skylar King, then Jackson's sacrifice fly scored Tucker for the 8-7 lead. 

The Drive’s pitching staff was very shaky, but the offense helped them out in the end. Jason Gilman started and went 3 ⅓ innings with six strikeouts but four walks and three runs. Luis Cohen took the sixth-inning damage, giving up three runs, then Trennor O'Donnell earned the win with three innings of one-run ball to give Greenville’s bats a chance to come back.

Standout Performances:

• Luke Heyman: 3-for-4, HR, 3 R, RBI, BB
• Maximus Martin: 2-for-5, HR, 2B, R, 3 RBI
• Isaiah Jackson: 2-for-4, R, 2 RBI

Low-A Salem RidgeYaks

Season Record: 51-64

An incredible comeback turned into a heartbreaker for Salem, taking an 11-10 defeat to the Wilson Warbirds (Milwaukee Brewers).

The RidgeYaks managed just one run over six frames against Wilson. Salem's lone run through the first six innings came in the second, when Andrews Opata scored on Anderson Fermin's RBI single to left.

Trailing 4-1, Salem's relievers collapsed. Caden Vire got one out, then gave up five runs on two hits and three walks; Nicholas Judice allowed one more. A wild pitch, a pickoff error at third, and a run scoring on a strikeout turned a manageable deficit into 10-1. 

Then came the comeback. Opata and Avinson Pinto opened up the seventh with back-to-back singles, then D'Angelo Ortiz doubled both home (10-3). Martin Shelar walked, Colton Coates doubled in Ortiz (10-4), then Franklin Primera brought in another with a groundout (10-5). Louis Andujar extended his on-base streak to 17 games after hitting a two-run homer (10-7), then Nunez and Opata walked, and both eventually scored on wild pitches during Pinto's groundout (10-9). 

Wilson pushed a run across in the eighth. In the ninth, Coates walked, Primera singled, then after a force out, Nunez's sacrifice fly brought Coates home to make it 11-10. Opata struck out swinging to end it with Andujar stranded at first.

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