The Salem Red Sox will look to make up some ground in the North Division of the Carolina League standings when they travel to Fredricksburg this week for six games with the Nationals.
Salem comes into the week six games behind the Carolina Mudcats in the division standings. The Sox will host the Mudcats for a six game series beginning next Tuesday, August 19, so if Salem can pick up a couple games this week they’ll still have a punchers’ chance at the playoffs with three weeks to go.
Last week at home the Sox split six games with the visiting Kannapolis Cannon Ballers, including a thrilling Sunday finale. After winning the opener, 3-2, Wednesday’s game was rained out and the Sox dropped both ends of a Thursday doubleheader, 6-3 and 2-1. They lost again Friday, 7-3, but bounced back to salvage a split, winning 6-4 on Saturday and pulling out an 8-7 win on Sunday.
On Saturday Enddy Azocar’s two-run homer highlighted a four run third inning for the Sox. The top of the lineup was hot as the first three hitters, Justin Gonzales, Mason White and Yoeilin Cespedes, had two hits each, combining to go six-for-11 with five runs scored. Cespedes had three RBIs as Griffin Kilander picked up his third win in relief.
On Sunday the Sox earned the series split in dramatic fashion. Salem entered the eighth inning trailing by four runs but staged a thrilling late rally, capped by a bases-clearing, walk-off single from Starlyn Nunez to stun the Cannon Ballers with an 8-7 victory.
For seven inning, the Sox played from behind and entered their final at-bat down to their last out. But with the game, and a six-game series split, on the line, Nunez stepped into the hero’s role, delivering the club’s fourth walk-off win of the season.
The Ballers led 3-1 after three innings and extended their lead in the fourth when Ely Brown drove in Adrian Gil with an RBI single. Then, on a first-and-third play, Brown broke for home and successfully stole home, making it 5-1.
Salem answered in the bottom half when Nunez lifted a sacrifice fly to score Maximus Martin, trimming the deficit to 5-2.
Grant Umberger, the Kannapolis starter, kept the Sox in check until the sixth when Martin singled and Kleyver Salazar followed with an RBI double to right, bringing the score to 5-3. The Ballers immediately struck back in the seventh, scoring twice on a wild pitch and an RBI groundout to stretch the lead to 7-3.
In the bottom of the eighth Martin opened the frame with his third hit of the day, Azocar single, and Salazar walked to load the bases with no outs. Skylar King ripped an RBI single and Gerardo Rodriguez added a sacrifice fly to cut the deficit to 7-5 after eight frames.
Salem reliever Calvin Bickerstaff pitched a clean top of the ninth to keep the deficit at two and Kannapolis turned to Pierce George, one of their most reliable bullpen arms, to close it out. George got the first out quickly, but Cespedes walked and Martin collected his fourth hit of the day, tying Nunez’s mark from May 20 for the most by a Salem player this year.
With the tying run on base, Azocar popped out for the second out, bringing Salazar to the plate. After a gritty at-bat, Salazar worked a walk to load the bases for Nunez.
Salem manager Ozzie Chavez substituted Natanael Yuten to pinch run at first, adding more speed to the potential winning run. Then, on the second pitch, Nunez rolled a grounder past a diving first baseman into right field. One run scored easily and Cespedes raced home to tie the game at 7-7 when the throw from right fielder George Wolkow arrived on target, but catcher Ronny Hernandez couldn’t scoop it cleanly. As the ball kicked away up the line, Yuten saw an opening and dashed home, beating the relay without a slide to complete a wild walk-off victory.
Nunez finished with three RBIs while Martin went four-for-four with four runs scored. Azocar added a two-for-five effort and Salazar went a perfect three-for-three with two walks. The middle third of Salem’s lineup combined for nine of the team’s 13 hits.
Bickerstaff earned the win after striking out four in two perfect innings while George took the loss, allowing the final three runs in one of the wildest games at Salem Memorial Ballpark this season.
Next week’s homestand with Fredricksburg features a two-for-one ticket deal Tuesday, discounted wings on “Wings Wednesday” and “Hockey Night” and Bark in the Park a week from today.
