Offense powers Salem past Delmarva

After being swept in Charleston last week, the Salem Red Sox continue to stay hot at home with their ninth consecutive victory in Salem Memorial Ballpark with a 12-3 result.

The Red Sox made an early impact on the scoreboard in the first inning as Eddinson Paulino displayed his flashy speed to score the game’s first run which was then followed by Niko Kavadas’ team-best eighth home run of the season.

As the Shorebirds cut the deficit in half in the top of the third inning, Salem distanced themselves with a six-run third inning which saw 12 plate appearances by the Red Sox in the bottom half. Blaze Jordan torched his fourth home run, a three-run blast, on the season while Brainer Bonaci recorded a 2-RBI single to jump the lead out to seven.

Delmarva wasn’t going away lightly as they scored runs in the fourth and fifth inning, but the Red Sox delivered the final blow with a four-run fifth inning to put the comeback out of reach. Paulino homered for the fourth time in 2022, while Kavadas extended his team-high 34 RBI count with a double to score a pair.

Wikelman Gonzalez picked up his third victory of the season with a splendid five inning performance where he allowed three hits and two earned runs. It was not a busy day out of the bullpen as Graham Hoffman and Blake Loubier were efficient with their four combined innings which allowed a single hit.

Game two of the six-game series will be played Wednesday at 7:05 p.m. at Salem Memorial Ballpark.

First Pitch: 11:08 a.m.

Time of Game: 2:38

Attendance: 1,771

Venue: Salem Memorial Ballpark