The Salem Red Sox lost the completion of a suspended game 8-2 to the Winston-Salem Dash on Saturday afternoon at BB&T Ballpark. The loss eliminated the Red Sox from contention for the first half Southern Division title and allowed the Myrtle Beach Pelicans to clinch a playoff spot.
The game was suspended due to rain in the bottom of the second inning on June 2 with the Red Sox trailing 3-0. The Dash got their first run when Nolan Earley singled home Chris Jacobs. TJ Williams then beat out an infield single that allowed Omar Narvaez to score. Adam Engel knocked in Earley with a sacrifice fly in the last at-bat before the rain came.
After a delay of 17 days, 20 hours and 28 minutes, the game resumed on Saturday with Taylor Grover entering in relief of Ty Buttrey. Grover walked Jake Peter to load the bases and hit Trey Michalczewski, driving in Michael Suiter from third. He got Keon Barnum to ground out to end the inning, the tenth batter Winston-Salem sent to the plate in the frame, and Winston-Salem led 4-0.
Three more runs crossed in the sixth thanks to an RBI double from Engel, a sacrifice fly from Peter and a Michalczewski infield single, pushing the Dash lead to 7-0. Grover retired ten in a row at one point but allowed three runs on five hits over 4.1 innings out of the bullpen. Buttrey (5-1) took the loss with four runs allowed on five hits over 1.2 innings.
The Dash added another run in the bottom of the seventh inning, extending their lead to 8-0. The Sox earned both of their runs on RBI groundouts in the top of the eighth, as Yoilan Cerse drove in Forrestt Allday and Deiner Lopez knocked in Jake Romanski. Yency Almonte (1-0) picked up the win with two runs allowed on four hits over seven innings in his High-A debut.
Salem’s loss ensured that it would not win a first half division title for the 27th consecutive season, a streak that dates back to 1988. The Red Sox would have needed to win their last three games while the Pelicans lost their three remaining contests.
The Red Sox and Dash begin their originally scheduled game 30 minutes after the completion of the suspended contest. Teddy Stankiewicz (1-8, 3.97) will oppose Brandon Brennan (0-0, 2.25) in the second game of the quasi-doubleheader.
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Chris Graham
