PawSox Fall in 14 Innings to Louisville

LOUISVILLE, Ky.  - The Pawtucket Red Sox endured an hour-long rain delay, received dominant relief pitching and grabbed a go-ahead run in the 13th inning, only to lose to the Louisville Bats, 6-5, in 14 innings Thursday night in the series finale at Louisville Slugger Field.
The game began after the 60-minute delay, and the PawSox (60-64) promptly plated four runs in the first two innings on a pair of home runs. Louisville (49-74), though, tied the game in the bottom of the fourth, and the teams exchanged zeroes until the top of the 13th, when PawSox shortstop Deven Marrero supplied a sacrifice fly. The Bats tied the game to force a 14th and won on an RBI infield single from third baseman Hernan Iribarren, who didn't even enter the game until the 10th inning.
The 14-inning heartbreaker marked the longest game, by innings, for Pawtucket. Excluding the rain delay, the marathon lasted four hours and 26 minutes, two minutes shy of matching the longest game, by time, of the season.
PawSox starter Roenis Elías, who was optioned to the team Thursday afternoon after being returned from his MLB injury rehab assignment, worked 5.2 innings of four-run ball in his first non-rehab outing of the season. Right-handed reliever and Kentucky native Chandler Shepherd then followed with 3.1 perfect innings in which he struck out three, and southpaw Williams Jerez chipped in with two hitless frames. Righty Shawn Haviland (L, 6-8) allowed two runs in 2.2 stanzas.
Louisville starter Jackson Stephens logged seven innings and allowed four runs on five hits, including a pair of homers, and right-hander Ariel Hernández (W, 1-1) fired 1.2 hitless innings to close out the victory.
Pawtucket center fielder Tzu-Wei Lin (2-for-6) and Marrero (2-for-5, RBI) recorded multi-hit efforts.
The PawSox started the scoring in the top of the first when third baseman and cleanup man Matt Dominguez demolished a three-run blast to left field to crack open a 3-0 lead.
Louisville, however, countered in the home half of the first when it sent eight men to the plate and pushed across three runs of its own on three hits, a walk, a hit batter and a sacrifice fly.
In the second inning, Pawtucket snatched the lead back, 4-3, when second baseman Mike Miller lifted a leadoff solo homer to left-center - his third long ball of the season.
The Bats pulled even, 4-4, in the bottom of the fourth when catcher Adrian Nieto rolled an RBI infield single to the right side to plate the game-tying run.
In the top of the 13th, Pawtucket loaded the bases on a bloop single from left fielder Brian Bogusevic, a walk by first baseman Blake Swihart and a Louisville error. From there, Marrero drilled his sacrifice fly to right field to plate Bogusevic.
In the home half of the inning, Louisville first baseman Sebastian Elizalde mashed a solo homer to right field to level the score, 5-5.
Louisville shortstop Alex Blandino tagged a two-out double to left field in the bottom of the 14th and then scored the winning run on an RBI infield single from Iribarren.
Following the series with Louisville, the PawSox open a three-game series with the Columbus Clippers (Cleveland Indians) on Friday at 7:15 p.m. at Huntington Park. PawSox right-hander Héctor Velázquez (7-4, 2.25) is scheduled to oppose Clippers righty Julian Merryweather (3-4, 5.95). Radio coverage on WHJJ (920 AM) and throughout the PawSox Radio Network begins with the PawSox Pre-Game Show at 6:45 p.m.
The PawSox return home for the final homestand of the season August 21-27 (Monday-Sunday). Good seats are available, and fans can visit the McCoy Stadium box office, which is open Monday-Friday from 10 a.m. through 5 p.m., and during all home games. Fans can also call (401) 724-7300 or log on to PawSox.com for tickets.