Season-High Sixteen Hits Help RiverDogs Soar Past Salem

The Charleston RiverDogs collected a season-high 16 hits while taking down the Salem Red Sox 10-6 on Saturday night at Haley Toyota Field. The RiverDogs emerged victorious despite the pitching staff issuing 11 walks, the most in a game since 2019.

Charleston (9-5) scored seven runs in the first two innings to take control of the contest out of the gate. The game began with singles from Shane Sasaki and Carson Williams with the next batter, Willy Vasquez, driving in both with a double to the gap. Marcelo Mayer trimmed the lead to 2-1 with a solo home run in the bottom of the first, but the RiverDogs had more in store in their next trip to the plate.

In the second, the first four hitters to step into the box reached base safely. Oneill Manzueta tripled to start the inning and was joined on base by Michael Berglund who walked. Gionti Turner's RBI double made it 3-1 and an ensuing base hit by Sasaki widened the gap to 5-1. RBI singles followed from Vasquez and Bobby Seymour before the third out was recorded.

Mason Auer drove in a run with a sacrifice fly in the fourth inning and Manzueta struck again with a solo home run in the fifth to push the margin to 9-1. Niko Kavadas answered with a solo blast of his own in the bottom of the fifth for Salem before Mayer added an RBI single in the sixth, trimming the Red Sox (8-6) defcit to 9-3.

The teams exchanged single runs in the seventh, but Salem made one last push in the eighth. Two hits, a walk, an error, a passed ball and two wild pitches allowed the Red Sox to close within four. However, with two men still on base, right-hander Jack Snyder escaped the inning by inducing a groundball to third. The right-hander closed the game by striking out the side in the ninth after joining the team earlier in the day.

Manzueta was 3-4 with a triple and a home run, finishing a double shy of the cycle. Williams also chipped in three hits, as the 18-year-old collected multiple hits for a sixth consecutive game. Vasquez was part of the three-hit club as well, driving in three in the process. Sasaki, Turner and Seymour each collected two hits.

Austin Vernon earned the win out of the bullpen by pitching 3.1 innings. The first man out of the bullpen allowed two runs on three hits. Ben Peoples, who started, was chased after 2.2 innings, having walked five Red Sox. Neraldo Catalina allowed three runs on three hits and three walks in 1.1 innings. Snyder struck out four while recording the final five outs.

The RiverDogs will be in search of a fourth straight victory on Sunday evening in the series finale. The game is scheduled for 5:05 p.m. RHP JJ Goss (0-0, 2.25) will start for the RiverDogs against a Red Sox pitcher to be announced.

Single-game tickets are available for all RiverDogs home games at riverdogs.com. RiverDogs season tickets, flexible ticket plans, and group tickets, including options to the Segra Club at Riley Park, are available at riverdogs.com/tickets or by contacting the RiverDogs front office at 843-577-3647 (DOGS).