‘Birds Swept by Red Sox Sox in Twin Bill

SALISBURY, MD -The Delmarva Shorebirds were swept in a doubleheader against the Salem Red Sox by scores of 9-3 and 11-2 at Arthur W. Perdue Stadium on Friday night.

After being rained out on Thursday, the Shorebirds (36-20) struggled to find shelter from the bats of the Red Sox (33-25) in both games of the twin bill.

GAME ONE

Salem got the bats going early. After Gilberto Jimenez struck out, four straight Red Sox reached, and three runs came across in the frame. Matthew Lugo singled, Stephen Scott walked, and Joe Davis doubled to score both of them. Nick Decker doubled to score Davis and give the Sox a 3-0 lead.

The slugging continued for the Red Sox in the second. Jake Mackenzie led off with a solo homer and Jimenez singled one out later. After Lugo recorded the second out of the inning, five consecutive Red Sox reached and five more came across. Salem combined for seven hits, two home runs and six runs in the frame and led 9-0 after two.

TT Bowens led off the bottom of the inning with his eighth homer of the season to cut into the deficit. Jean Carmona walked to reach after the bomb, but Red Sox starter Jorge Rodriguez retired the rest of the side to end the surge and keep the game at 9-1.

The home side cut back into the lead again in the bottom of the third inning. Delmarva traded outs for singles to open and Bowens singled with two down to score Darell Hernaiz from third. At the end of the frame, the Shorebirds trailed 9-2.

Neither side scored from there until the final inning, when Lamar Sparks singled home a run to set the final line at 9-3.

Rodriguez (4-3) earned the win in his first start of the season for Salem. The performance was one of his best of the year, seeing Rodriguez toss five innings and allow two runs on four hits.

Shane Davis (4-2) was handed the loss for Delmarva. Davis struggled through 1.2 innings, allowing nine runs on nine hits, and conceding two homers on the evening.

Joe Davis and Nick Decker combined to go 4-for-8 while driving in seven total runs.

The star of the game for Delmarva was Ryan Watson. Watson slammed the door on Salem, allowing just one hit in four innings of work while sitting down three Sox hitters on strikes.

GAME TWO

The runs came fast and furious for Salem in Game Two. Ceddanne Rafaela reached on an error with two down in the opening frame. Rafaela then stole second base, and came around to score on a throwing error on the play by Ramon Rodriguez. Salem left the top of the inning with a 1-0 lead.

This time, Delmarva was ready to answer back. Mason Janvrin doubled to lead off the bottom of the inning and TT Bowens later homered for the second time in the doubleheader, his ninth of the campaign, to give the ‘Birds a 2-1 advantage.

Nick Northcut decided to follow Bowens with a two-run blast of his own in the next inning. After a leadoff double by Alex Erro, Northcut uncorked one to give the Sox a 3-2 lead once more.

The Sox held the lead for the rest of the game and held Delmarva hitless from the second to the sixth. An hour-long rain delay in the fourth did not slow the Salem bats as they scored in every inning but the third in the 11-2 victory.

Jordan DiValerio (7-2) earned the win for Salem in relief. He pitched two hitless innings, walking one and punching out two.

Luis Perez (1-1) started the game and was handed the loss for the Shorebirds. He allowed two earned runs in three innings of work while walking and striking out two batters each.

Shane Drohan started for Salem on the bump but did not factor into the decision. He allowed two runs in three innings of work and punched out two Shorebirds.

Gilberto Jimenez was the driving force for the Sox in game two, finishing 3-for-5 with a home run and driving home three.

Bowens led the Shorebirds offensively on the day, driving in four of Delmarva’s five runs in the doubleheader. He went a combined 3-for-6 with two home runs and four RBI in the twin bill.

The Shorebirds go back to the drawing board against the Red Sox on Saturday, July 10 at Perdue Stadium. Noah Denoyer (4-2, 3.72) toes the rubber for Delmarva against Bradley Blalock (0-3, 4.15) for Salem. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. with pregame coverage beginning at 6:50 p.m. on MiLB.TV and Fox Sports 960 AM with Sam Jellinek on the call.

ABOUT THE DELMARVA SHOREBIRDS
The Delmarva Shorebirds were founded in 1996 and have been the Class-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles since 1997. The Shorebirds have won two South Atlantic League championships in 1997 and 2000 and were named the MiLB.com Minor League Team of the Year in 2019 after going 90-48 in the regular season. Based in Salisbury, Maryland, the Shorebirds are proud to represent the entire Delmarva Peninsula and have hosted two SAL All-Star Games in 1999 and 2011. The Shorebirds are owned by 7th Inning Stretch, LP, based in Stockton, California headed by Chairman Tom Volpe and President Pat Filippone.