Cup of Coffee: Valera, Rodriguez debut at new levels; FCL Sox knocked out

7/26 Cup of Coffee: Thursday was the final full slate of the 2024 season, with the FCL Red Sox playoff hopes coming down to the final day. The team got a win to put themselves in position, but fate was not on their side as the Pirates and the weather conspired to send them home for the winter. Elsewhere, Juan Valera (pictured) extended his hitless streak to a new level in his Salem debut, while Elmer Rodriguez turned in a solid first High-A start in Greenville's win. Roman Anthony and Nick Decker keyed a ninth-inning rally for Portland, while Worcester squandered an excellent Grant Gambrell effort. 

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An outstanding start by Grant Gambrell went for naught as the bullpen slumped to a seven-run seventh inning. Gambrell surrendered just two hits across six shutout innings, striking out four and walking one. He pounded the strike zone, throwing 53 of 81 pitches for strikes. Unfortunately, that was not the case for Alex Speas, who relieved Gambrell to start the seventh and walked four of the five batters he faced, with a double mixed in. A pair of singles and a walk surrendered by Brian Van Belle allowed all of those runners to score, and suddenly a 2-0 advantage became a 7-2 deficit. Bobby Dalbec got the scoring started with a solo home run in the second inning. Nick Yorke ripped a double and worked a walk, going 1 for 3 to snap a three-game hitless skid.

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It was a thrilling comeback victory in Thursday's back-and-forth contest. Down by two headed into the ninth, Nick Decker blasted a game-tying home run to knot the game at 6-6. Later that inning, Roman Anthony singled in Karson Simas with what proved to be the game-winning run. Anthony had a two-run single in the fifth inning, giving him three driven in on the night. Kristian Campbell and Kyle Teel both stayed hot, picking up three hits apiece. Isaac Coffey struck out seven and allowed only two hits in his four innings of work, but he walked three straight batters in the second inning before surrendering a grand slam. Jonathan Brand allowed one run on one hit in three innings of relief, and Zach Bryant earned his first win since 2022, giving up one run and striking out four in his two innings of work.

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Greenville had the late lead on Wednesday when the rains came in the eighth inning. The action from that day was recapped by Brandon Campbell in yesterday's Cup of Coffee. Ronald Rosario picked up another hit to finish the contest 3 for 5. Upon Thursday's resumption, Reidis Sena went the 1 1/3 scoreless innings, picking up the save. 

Elmer Rodriguez made his High-A debut in the regularly-scheduled contest. The reigning SoxProspects.com Pitcher of the Month allowed two runs on two hits in four innings. He struggled some with his control, walking four against three punchouts and throwing just 34 of 64 pitches for strikes. Jeremy Wu-Yelland also had control troubles in relief, walking four batters as he gave up two runs on one hit in two frames. Cooper Adams did yeoman's work to keep the game close, going three scoreless innings without allowing a hit, striking out a pair while walking one. Adam Smith allowed the automatic runner to score in both the 10th and 11th innings but was otherwise unscored upon, lining him up for the win. 

Every member of the Greenville starting lineup got at least once hit in the victory. Ahbram Liendo blasted a two-run homer in the eighth inning as part of a 2-for-6 effort. Bryan Gonzalez also went deep, as he is quietly tied for second in the system with 17 homers on the year. Luis Ravelo picked up a pair of hits while Miguel Bleis was 1 for 4 with a walk and a stolen base.

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Juan Valera was promoted to full-season ball on Monday but he proved to be just as unhittable against the more advanced competition. The 18-year-old righty went another four hitless frames, striking out three against two walks. It was the third consecutive start and sixth time in eight appearances across two levels that Valera held his opponents hitless. Danny Kirwan followed by scattering three hits across four scoreless frames, and a scoreless ninth by Francis Hernandez sealed the win. All of the Salem run-scoring came on a pair of home runs: Albert Feliz ripped a solo blast in the fifth, while Stanley Tucker followed with the insurance two-run shot in the seventh. Feliz also worked a pair of walks, finishing with two runs scored. 

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Needing a win and some help to reach the FCL Playoffs, the FCL Sox did their part. Entering the day, they trailed the Rays and Pirates by one game in the South Division and also sat a half game behind the Tigers in the wild card standings. Trailing 1-0 in the fourth, Frederik Jimenez raced to third with a triple and came on to score the tying run on a Yosander Asencio single. Andruw Musett blasted a solo home run that proved to be the difference the following inning. Musett also doubled, capping off a strong season stateside for the 18-year-old catcher out of Venezuela. 

With the season on the line, Jesus Garcia got tabbed for his first start of 2024. He rose to the occasion, allowing one run on two hits in three innings. Cristofer Soriano went two scoreless innings of relief to get credit for the win, and Luis Jerez and Eduardo Rivera combined for three scoreless innings. to preserve the win. 

The Sox knocked the Rays out of the playoffs with the win by virtue of the tiebreaker, but a victory by the FCL Pirates put the Sox in waiting mode. A loss by the FCL Tigers would give the Sox the wild card slot, but a rain delay in Tampa meant their contest with the FCL Yankees did not begin until nearly 4:00. The Yankees jumped out to a 3-0 lead, but rain came through in the fourth and did not subside. The game was called and the score wiped clean as it was short of the five innings needed to be official. This left the Red Sox in a virtual tie with the Tigers but percentage points behind, holding a 35-24 record (.593) against the Tigers' 34-23 (.596). It is a tough end to a strong season for the FCL squad.

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Coming off of a rare loss, Team Red raced out with four runs in the top of the first and never looked back. Avinson Pinto led the way at the plate, going 4 for 5 with a run scored. Pinto is hitting .380/.429/.507 over his last 19 games. Kenyon Simmons picked up a pair of hits off the bench. Madinson Frias got the start, surrendering two runs on three hits in three innings. The victory went to Yoandys Veraza, as he scattered three hits across three scoreless innings, striking out four against one walk. 

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A close contest throughout, Team Blue gave up five runs in the ninth as the Tampa squad blew the game open. Yoiber Ruiz led the offense, going 2 for 4 with a double, the team's only extra-base hit on the day. Yohandy Gonzalez took the loss despite a solid effort, giving up one unearned run on two hits in 3 2/3 innings.

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Player of the Day: New level, same result for Juan Valera. Nearly impossible to hit in his final month in the FCL, Valera went four hitless in his first exposure to the Carolina League. Valera's hitless streak has now reached 13 1/3 innings, with the last hit surrendered coming back on July 4th. He's given up just 17 hits in 44 1/3 innings between the two levels, with a .744 WHIP that is significantly lower than any other player in the system with over 40 innings -- Michael Sansone is next with a .923 mark. Valera, signed in 2023 to a modest $45.000 bonus as an International Free Agent out of the Dominican Republic, jumped onto the SoxProspects.com Rankings in July at #42.