With the go-ahead run in Josh Ockimey at third base with 2 outs, Oscar Hernández sent the Pawtucket faithful home happily Saturday night at McCoy Stadium. Along with a sacrifice fly in the fourth, the Red Sox catcher blasted a walk-off two-run homerun over the left field wall against Buddy
With the go-ahead run in Josh Ockimey at third base with 2 outs, Oscar Hernández sent the Pawtucket faithful home happily Saturday night at McCoy Stadium. Along with a sacrifice fly in the fourth, the Red Sox catcher blasted a walk-off two-run homerun over the left field wall against Buddy Boshers to complete the 7-5 10-inning victory in game four of the five-game, four-day series this weekend in RI.
The walk-off came after Buffalo couldn't hold onto their 5-3 lead in the bottom of the ninth when the Red Sox loaded the bases with a hit and two walks against the Herd's Ty Tice. Then, Bryce Brentz brought home Gorkys Hernández on a fielder's choice against Tice, which led to Tzu-Wei Lin scoring on a wild-pitch from the incoming Boshers in Ockimey's at-bat.
Before Hernandez's hit, the Bisons had their chance to take the lead in the top of the 10th but Billy McKinney lined out directly to pitcher Trevor Lakins (winning pitcher), leaving what would have been the go-ahead run in Bo Bichette at third.
Up until the ninth, it appeared that the Bisons would record another big comeback victory after the way things were looking starting in the fifth. Trailing 3-1 and facing Pawtucket starter Teddy Stankiewicz, the offense had another one of their well-known streaks. After Andy Burns fought around for a single - the team's first hit since the first inning - Michael De La Cruz and Bo Bichette knocked in back-to-back RBI doubles to tie the game at three. The hit was Bichette's first in this series and went along with his two stolen bases later that night in the seventh.
Even though the Red Sox loaded the bases in the bottom half of the frame, reliever Kirby Snead got out of trouble with a strikeout and a groundout. He kept the game tied at three when he returned for the sixth inning with a 1-2-3 inning on 13 pitches, ending in De La Cruz's successful throwdown to third to catch Cole Sturgeon stealing and Gorkys Hernandez becoming Snead's third and final strikeout on the next pitch.
Then, in the seventh, De La Cruz came up clutch at the time. Behind in the count, the veteran catcher capped off his big night with a two-run home run, sending home Jordan Patterson in the process, for the 5-3 lead. His first home since the teams met back in May, De La Cruz finished 2 of 4 at the plate with 3 RBIs and a run of his own.
In the loss, Sean Reid-Foley had a slow start to his four-inning no decision. Through the first two innings, Reid-Foley walked five batters, including three to load the bases in the first before the Red Sox left them stranded. Reid-Foley gave up a two-run home run to Sam Travis in the third followed by Oscar Hernández's sacrifice fly in the fourth for Pawtucket's brief 3-1 lead.
Sócrates Brito also continued his hot summer at the plate for the Herd. The left fielder hit a solo home run off Stankiewicz's 101 mile-per-hour fastball for the team's 1-0 lead. This was his 10th home run of the year and is now at a team-high 43 RBI.
BISON NOTES: Bichette with two stolen bases now with 14 on the season and is now 14 of 17 in stolen base attempts… In his second appearance since coming off the injured list Thursday, Jason Adam allowed only one hit and earned two of Buffalo's 11 strikeouts in the seventh inning… Bisons are now 9-6 against the Paw Sox this season… Herd wraps up series tomorrow at McCoy Stadium with 1:05 first pitch. Thomas Pannone takes the mound for the Herd against the Paw Sox's Josh Smith. This will be the final road game before Buffalo starts a seven-day homestand against the Charlotte Knights and the Columbus Clippers.
