Cup of Coffee: Arias homers in Sea Dogs win; Sandoval struggles in rehab start

4/15 Cup of Coffee: Only one Red Sox affiliate was victorious on Tuesday night, as the Sea Dogs won a pitching duel behind a two-run shot by Franklin Arias. The WooSox fell as Patrick Sandoval struggled in his second rehab start. Starting pitchers Shea Sprague and Leighton Finley (pictured) delivered strong starts but both Greenville and Salem lost their series openers. 

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Patrick Sandoval was roughed up in the second start of his rehab assignment, allowing five runs on three hits and four walks in two innings pitched. He threw only 59 pitches (30 for strikes) after building up to 63 in his first rehab start. Reidis Sena followed him with two innings of relief, allowing one run. Tyler Uberstine struggled with his control in 2 2/3 innings out of the bullpen, walking four batters and giving up three runs (two earned). Noah Song was the only pitcher who escaped unharmed, as he threw 1 1/3 scoreless frames. 

Nashville starting pitcher and old friend Shane Drohan fared better against the WooSox than he did against the Red Sox in his MLB debut last Wednesday, striking out eight WooSox hitters and allowing two runs (one earned) in 5 1/3 innings. Jason Delay was responsible for both of Worcester's early runs, hitting a solo home run in the third and drawing a bases-loaded walk in the fourth as part of a 1-for-3 game. Mickey Gasper was 1 for 4 with a run and an RBI after he drew a bases-loaded walk of his own in the seventh. 

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It was a successful bullpen game for the Sea Dogs, as four pitchers threw multiple innings and stymied Altoona in a low-scoring game. Isaac Coffey threw the first two innings, allowing a run on two hits and two walks. Cooper Adams was excellent as the first pitcher out of the bullpen, striking out four and giving up just one hit in three shutout innings. Cade Feeney struck out four and allowed one hit in two scoreless innings pitched and Patrick Halligan also struck out four but allowed one run in his pair of innings. 

It was a fairly quiet night for the Portland bats as well, but Franklin Arias got the Sea Dogs off on the right foot with a two-run blast in the third inning, his first home run of the season. Arias was 1 for 4 in the game. Ronald Rosario and Ahbram Liendo drove in Portland's other two runs with RBI singles in the fourth and seventh innings, respectively. Catcher Nate Baez was the only Sea Dogs hitter with multiple hits, going 2 for 4. 

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The Drive offense was completely shut down by the Hot Rods on Tuesday night, recording only one hit in the game: a double by Yophery Rodriguez in the sixth inning. While the Greenville pitchers were impressive in their own right, they were unable to overcome the lack of run support. Starter Shea Sprague tossed five innings, striking out five while allowing two runs. Jojo Ingrassia struck out three batters and walked a pair while allowing one run in two innings. PJ Labriola threw two scoreless innings of relief. 

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The RidgeYaks took an early lead with a four-run outburst in the fourth inning but they were unable to hang onto the lead in their series opener in Hickory. That fourth-inning rally was powered by an RBI double off the bat of Enddy Azocar and a three-run homer for Skylar King. Azocar was 2 for 4 with two runs scored in the game. Catcher Kleyver Salazar drove in a run with a double in the fifth inning, going 1 for 3 on the night. 

Starter Leighton Finley struck out five batters while walking only one but he was let down by his defense as he allowed three runs (one earned) in 4 2/3 frames. Adam Bates struggled out of the bullpen, allowing four runs (three earned) in 1 1/3 innings. Harry Blum tossed two shutout innings, walking a pair of batters. 

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Player of the Day: Making the second start of his professional career, Leighton Finley was impressive in 4 2/3 innings on Tuesday night. In total, he allowed three runs against Hickory but only one of those runs was earned as the RidgeYaks made two errors in a two-run third inning for the Crawdads. Finley struck out five batters while walking only one. A sixth-round pick out of Georgia last year, Finley is the 36th-ranked prospect in the system.