Red Sox Minor Lines: Mitch Moreland gets back to his rehab

Pawtucket W 4-3

Chris Owings, 2B: 1-4, 1 2B, 1 R, 2 K

Mitch Moreland, 1B: 0-2, 1 BB

Josh Ockimey, 1B: 0-0, 1 BB

Rusney Castillo, RF: 2-4, 2 RBI, 1 K, 1 CS

Tzu-Wei Lin, LF: 1-2, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 K

Bryce Brentz, DH: 1-4, 1 HR, 1 R, 2 RBI, 2 K

Josh Smith: 6 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 6 K (90 pitches)

Mike Shawaryn: 0.1 IP, 2 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 1 K (26 pitches)

Bobby Poyner: 1.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K (25 pitches)

Trevor Kelley: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K (11 pitches)

The first part of this game that obviously jumps out to anyone is that Moreland was back in action. This is the second time he has tried to start a rehab in Pawtucket, but was immediately called back last time around. He didn’t do a to in this game and was replaced after just a few plate appearances, but by all accounts things went well. The pitching, meanwhile, was outstanding outside of Shawaryn. Poyner in particular stands out after another stellar outing. The lefty is on a hot streak in his last few appearances, tossing 4 ²⁄₃ scoreless innings in his last three outings with nine strikeouts and no walks.

Portland L 5-8

Jarren Duran, CF: 0-3, 1 BB, 1 K

C.J. Chatham, SS: 2-4, 1 R, 1 K

Bobby Dalbec, 3B: 1-3, 1 2B, 1 R

Joey Curletta, 1B: 2-3, 1 RBI

Marcus Wilson, LF: 2-4, 2 HR, 2 R, 4 RBI

Tate Matheny, RF: 2-4, 1 K, 1 CS

Bryan Mata: 4 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 6 K (78 pitches)

Eduard Bazardo: 1.1 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 0 BB, 1 K (38 pitches)

This was a tough one for Portland and was highlighted (or probably more accurately, lowlighted) by a couple poor pitching performances from guys who have typically been better than this. Mata has been perhaps the most eye-opening performer in the entire farm system this year, but he had some command problems here. He had a couple walks in just four innings and also threw a wild pitch. It is worth noting, though, that six of the seven hits he allowed were singles. As I always say in this space, it’s impossible to tell from the box score how much of that was on him and how much was on the defense. Bazardo, meanwhile, has been great in the bullpen between Salem and Portland this year. He just had one of those days on Friday and totally imploded. It happens, which doesn’t make it any easier to stomach. It’s all about how you bounce back. In more positive news, Wilson seems to be having a better time with things during this stint at Double-A.

Salem L 1-6

Ryan Fitzgerald, SS: 1-4, 1 R

Victor Acosta, LF: 2-4

Pedro Castellanos, 1B: 1-4, 1 BB, 1 RBI, 1 K

Garrett Benge, 3B: 0-4, 2 K, 2 E

Tanner Nishioka, 2B: 2-3, 1 K

I’m going to be honest here. I have nothing much to say about this Salem roster these days. I could try to force it, but I’m not going to do that today. They lost pretty handily.

Greenville W 9-4

Brandon Howlett, 3B: 2-5, 1 3B, 1 R

Triston Casas, 1B: 0-3, 2 BB, 1 R

Devlin Granberg, DH: 1-3, 2 BB, 3 R, 1 K

Tyler Esplin, RF: 2-2, 1 HR, 2 BB, 3 R, 3 RBI

Tyler Dearden, LF: 1-3, 1 HR, 1 BB, 1 R, 4 RBI

Cole Brannen, CF: 0-4, 1 RBI, 2 K

Alex Scherff: 6 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 4 K (90 pitches)

This game was really close until a big three-run seventh for the Drive broke it open. It was a nice all-around performance for Greenville, who not only smacked eight hits but also drew the same number of walks. The story for the offense, though, was the two Tylers. Esplin and Dearden were both fairly high-profile high school picks in recent years, but they haven’t really made themselves known in the system to this point. It’s nice to see them both leave the yard on the same night. Scherff, meanwhile, continues his absolute rollercoaster of a year but breaking a streak of three starts in which he allowed at least four runs.

Lowell W 6-5

Gilberto Jimenez, CF: 1-5, 1 R, 1 K

Cameron Cannon, SS: 1-4, 1 BB, 1 R, 1 K, 1 E

Stephen Scott, LF: 0-2, 3 BB, 1 R, 1 K

Jaxx Groshans, C: 1-2, 1 2B, 2 BB, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 K

Nick Decker, RF: 1-3, 1 HR, 1 BB, 1 R, 3 RBI, 1 K

Antoni Flores, DH: 0-4, 2 K

Ricardo Cubillan, 1B: 2-3, 1 BB, 1 R, 1 SB, 1 CS, 1 E

This was an extremely New York Penn League baseball game, with the Spinners committing five errors and still winning the game. Most of the offense came early in this one, with ten of the eleven total runs being scored by the end of the third. Ultimately, it was the two-run homer from Decker that made the difference. Last year’s second round pick is already up to five homers in 23 games. That’s a 33-homer pace over 150 games. Power is the carrying tool for Decker, so it’s nice to see it playing up in his first pro experience.

GCL L 1-4

Dominic D’Alessandro, 1B: 0-3, 1 BB

Danny Diaz, 3B: 0-4, 1 R, 2 K

Dean Miller, RF: 3-4, 1 2B, 1 RBI, 1 K

DSL 1 W 5-4 (F/7)

Eduardo Vaughan LF/RF: 1-4, 1 HR, 2 R, 1 RBI

Carlos Sanchez, 1B: 2-3, 2 RBI, 1 K

DSL 2 W 3-2 (F/8)

Bryan Gonzalez, DH: 0-4, 1 K