Salem falls to Kinston

Tyler Cannon’s three-run blast helped spoil Manny Rivera’s Carolina League debut, and the Kinston Indians won their third straight, downing the Salem Sox 6-2 to hand the Sox their third loss in a row. Rivera walked five Indians in four innings, surrendering eight hits and six runs in the process in his first Salem start. The Sox bullpen, highlighted by four spectacular frames from Chris Martin, dealt five scoreless innings, but Salem managed just five singles against a quartet of Kinston hurlers.

Rivera walked three of the first five batters in the ballgame, but escaped the first inning with just one run allowed thanks to a strikeout and a double play. In the second, Rivera walked the leadoff batter and yielded a single, but slithered out of the two-on, nobody-out predicament by retiring the next three. In the third, however, a leadoff single and a two-out walk set the table for Cannon, who crushed a mammoth three-run bomb to deep left-field, extending Kinston’s advantage to four. In Rivera’s final inning, he did not walk anybody, but the K-Tribe bashed four-hits off him, including a pair of doubles from Argenis Martinez and Tyler Holt and an RBI single for Jeremie Tice, surging the Indians to a 6-0 lead.

Salem’s offense contributed minimally through the first seven innings, connecting on just one hit and receiving three walks through seven, with no baserunner reaching second base in that time. In the last of the eighth, Shannon Wilkerson and Josue Peley both singled to put multiple runners aboard for the first time. A Derrik Gibson ground-out advanced the pair to second and third, and Heiker Meneses earned his first Carolina League RBI with a two-out single to center, trimming the deficit to 6-2.

Meneses led the Sox with two hits, while Wilkerson, Peley, and Miles Head each contributed singles as well. Kinston’s Tyler Holt and Roberto Perez each delivered two hits for the Indians, who out-hit the Sox 10-5 and won their sixth straight game at LewisGale Field.

Kinston starter Francisco Jimenez allowed just one hit and three walks in four and two-thirds innings but departed before recording the final out of the fifth. Hence, Chris Jones, who retired all seven men he faced over two and a third innings, earned the victory, improving to 6-1. Rivera fell to 0-1 in his first chance with Salem, while Martin dominated over four scoreless innings out of the Sox pen. Jeremiah Bayer retired the side 1-2-3 in his only frame on the bump.

Salem and Kinston continue their four-game weekend series on Saturday night at 6:05, with Chris Hernandez set to oppose Marty Popham. The famous San Diego Chicken will be in attendance at Salem Memorial Ballpark for his first appearance in the Roanoke Valley since 1993.