Maura McGurk had a 4-0 farm system to write about yesterday. I did not get as lucky. Not by a long shot. In fact, I was a lack of a Salem ninth-inning run away from having the exact opposite to write about. I’m also almost convinced that the Sea Dogs haven’t won in a month on a Dean Minor Lines day, and they only have 12 losses on the year, so that can’t be great luck. Anyway, let’s get into it.

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Worcester: L, 3-10 (10)

The WooSox fell under .500 once again on the season, at 20-21, in a game where they just didn’t look like they had much of anything anywhere later in the game... but especially not in the tenth inning. They got off to a good start, with David Hamilton hitting a lead-off triple and Jorge Alfaro, who’s hitting .331 down in AAA, by the way, driving him in with a home run to make it 2-0. But, it was almost radio silence from there, since, after Nick Sogard drove in Greg Allen in the fourth inning to make it 3-0, the Iron Pigs (Phillies AAA) scored ten consecutive runs, three off starter Matt Dermody, who went six innings. Allen, for the record, had his 22nd stolen base of the season last night. The bullpen headed into extra innings having played well, but Chase Shugart, who pitched in the ninth, did not have it in him to record even one out in the tenth before allowing five runs. Oddanier Mosqueda, who entered in a low-leverage situation, got out of the tenth, but not before giving up two runs of his own to make it a rare extra-innings seven-run loss. Bobby Dalbec had the worst game of his season, and it happened down in Worcester, which isn’t exactly comforting given our lack of infield depth. He went 0-for-5, with 3 strikeouts, and 2 defensive errors on the night. I’ll just leave you all to speculate what that could mean for his future in this organization, just pointing that out for no reason.

Portland: L, 6-14

Another nasty loss in Hartford, which is embarrassing enough seeing as it was more or less a home away game, but at least this one went only nine innings, and at least the Sea Dogs scored two in the ninth to make it a single-digit loss. Boy, that pitching staff, stunted by a faulty Wyatt Olds start, looked terrible; Olds pitched the most innings with just 3 1/3, and even that saw him walk six batters and allow three runs. It got worse from there, as Ryan Miller let 3 runs by in 1 2/3. Let’s not even talk about Jacob Webb’s appearance, or that 10-run sixth inning the Yard Goats (Rockies AA) had. We can focus on Nick Yorke’s 3 RBIs, his 5th home run of the season, or about Ceddanne Rafaela’s multiple-hit game, but the fact of the matter is, this was an ugly L to take.

Greenville: L, 2-3

Greenville didn’t allow a double digit number on the scoreboard by the Hot Rods (Rays High-A) and they surprisingly did not commit any errors tonight, but the bats were just not there. It’s truly a shame that Angel Bastardo’s incredible performance went to waste at the hands of his bullpen and some quiet bats; his six innings, one hit allowed, just two walks, and seven strikeouts put him in the driver’s seat to record his first win of the season, but if you’re a pitcher, you’re never truly in the driver’s seat, and he remained 0-4. People not to blame in this lost: Brainer Bonaci, who went 3-for-4 and is batting .340 with an OPS of .900, and Marcelo Mayer, who is hitting even better and had a key RBI hit tonight. One is really left to wonder how much time Mayer has in High-A, but it’s probably better to stay patient with him, and I’ll likely say that on a weekly basis.

Salem: W, 5-4

WOW, look at that! A win! And it took all nine innings... the Hillcats, home of Rafael Devers’ cousin Jose, and Marlins A affiliate, put 3 runs on the board in the eighth inning, but luckily, Louis Ravelo strikes again in the ninth inning with a double. For what it’s worth, Dalton Rogers looked impressive in a start again, allowing one run and three hits in four innings, and striking out seven. Greenville watch? Maybe... but we should just be glad these three fielding errors the Salem Red Sox are committing are happening here and not somewhere more detrimental. In the meantime, I’ll celebrate how narrowly I missed needing to cover a 0-4 night... Thanks, Ravelo!

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I’d like to wish you all a Happy Thursday, myself a Happy Friday, and a Happy Birthday to my Dad today. My Dad turns 62 years young today, and, with apologies to Jake Reiser, my favorite person born on May 18th to talk Sox with. Happy birthday to Jake as well!