Sox Ride Huge Eighth Inning to Victory

After a strong start and a dramatic finish, the Salem Red Sox (57-53, 22-22) squeezed past the Delmarva Shorebirds (38-72, 17-28) to take the series lead in an 11-10 victory.

When the contest entered the bottom of the eighth inning tied at six apiece, many people thought that one run would make the difference in the outcome. Little did they know that nearly half of the offense was still left to score.

Brainer Bonaci came in clutch during the bottom of the eighth when he cleared the bases with his first hit of the night, a 2-RBI single, to give Salem the 9-6 edge. Add on a Yorberto Mejicano RBI single and a Carson King balk, and the Red Sox had their largest lead of the night entering the top of the ninth with a five-run advantage.

But what Delmarva has proven in the first half of this series is that they will not shy away from any deficit.

For what looked to be the game-ending strikeout by Luis De La Rosa on Delmarva’s Issac De León, the third strike rolled past Mejicano and the Shorebirds infielder reached safely at first. Then in the very next at-bat, Frederick Bencosme roped a three-run home run down the right field line to bring the visitors within one.

Luckily for Salem, De La Rosa (W, 2-1) recovered by striking out Mishael Deson to secure back-to-back wins for the Red Sox.

Based on how the night started off, it seemed a final like this was far from reality. The Red Sox exposed the Delmarva starter Juan De Los Santos by scoring four runs in the opening frame before being pulled after a third of an inning of work.

Meanwhile, Salem starter Hunter Dobbins recorded nine strikeouts, his most in an outing since when he struck out 10 Delmarva batters in Salisbury, Md. on July 4. The eighth round selection of the 2021 draft even strung together seven straight punch outs, from the second out in the second inning through the second out in the fourth inning.

But there were times where Dobbins struggled as well when he gave up a pair of RBI doubles to Noelberth Romero in the second and Creed Willems in the third, which brought Delmarva back into the mix. Then in the fifth with a Dylan Beavers fielder’s choice and De León sacrifice fly, the Shorebirds were able to overcome those early miscues and tie the ballgame at five.

Eddinson Paulino lengthened his hitting streak to seven games with a two-hit night, which also extended his feat of six straight games with multiple base hits. Kier Meredith also had a two-hit night which is back-to-back nights where the Salem outfielder has connected for a pair of base hits.

The Salem Red Sox and Delmarva Shorebirds will meet for game four of the six-game series on Friday at 7:05 p.m. at Salem Memorial Ballpark.

First Pitch: 7:06 p.m.

Time of Game: 2:42

Attendance: 3,129

Venue: Carilion Clinic Field