The Lehigh Valley IronPigs (35-35) and the Worcester Red Sox (37-35) played game three of a six-game series on Thursday night from Polar Park. Coming into this game, the IronPigs were trending in the wrong direction with a two-game losing streak and 3-7 in their last ten games.
Meanwhile, the Red Sox have been red hot in the International League with a five-game winning streak and 8-2 in their last ten games.
Before the game started, the Lehigh Valley IronPigs said goodbye to outfielder Dalton Guthrie, who was traded by the Philadelphia Phillies to the San Francisco Giants in exchange for cash considerations.
Guthrie played 151 games in two and half seasons in Lehigh Valley batting .296, .467 SLG, .826 OPS, .359 OBP, with 14 home runs, 74 RBIs, 25 stolen bases, 40 walks, driven in 92 runs, and 163 hits in 550 at-bat appearances. Thank you, Guthrie, and good luck in San Francisco.
After two scoreless innings, Lehigh Valley struck first at the top of the third inning. Jake Cave doubled on a line drive to right field with two outs as Drew Ellis stepped up to the plate. Ellis hit Gudino’s 85 mph splitter for a two-run home run onto the berm at left field.
It was 2-0 Lehigh Valley. It was his seventh home run and 34th RVI for Ellis this year. Ellis is a Red Sox killer with five home runs and 15 RBIs. Darick Hall was next but lined out toward left fielder Marcus Wilson which ended the inning.
The lead did not last long as in the bottom of the second inning the Red Sox struck. With two outs, T.J. Zeuch gave up back-to-back singles to Marcus Wilson and Niko Goodrum. Wilyer Abreu was next. During his at-bat, a double steal occurred as Rafael Marchan threw to second baseman Esteban Quiroz but the ball got away from him and Goodrum went to third base while Marcus Wilson scored. It was 2-1 Lehigh Valley. Then, Abreu singled to center field, bringing home Goodrum, and the game was tied 2-2. The inning ended when Bobby Dalbec flies out to right fielder Dustin Peterson.
Moving ahead to the bottom of the fifth inning, Worcester took the lead. It started when Marcus Wilson singled to left field with two outs with Niko Goodrum due up to bat. Goodrum doubled to the corner right field, scoring Wilson as the Red Sox took a 3-2 lead.
That was it for Lehigh Valley pitcher T.J. Zeuch, who was replaced by Taylor Lehman. Zeuch finished the night pitching 4.2 innings, allowing six hits, three runs, and three strikeouts in 73 pitches, of which 42 were strikes. Lehman got Wilyer Abreu to ground out toward first baseman Darick Hall for the final out of the inning.
Lehigh Valley battled back at the top of the sixth inning. Jake Cave started the inning with a double to left field, followed by a Drew Ellis single to left field which moved Cave to third base. Darick Hall was next. He doubled on a line drive to right field, scoring Cave that tied the game 3-3.
After Weston Wilson struck out, Simon Muzziotti hit the ball toward first baseman Daniel Palka and he threw the ball to catcher Stephen Scott who tagged out Ellis. Muzziotti was safe on first base. Dustin Peterson was next but he grounded out to third baseman Bobby Dalbec, who threw the ball to first baseman Daniel Palka for the final out of the inning.
At the top of the seventh inning, Lehigh Valley’s offense put them back in the lead. Taylor Broadway was the new Worcester pitcher. Rafael Marchan was the first to face Broadway and worked a four-pitch walk. Esteban Quiroz was next and he hit Broadway’s hanging breaking ball for a two-run home run over the wall at right field which gave the IronPigs a 5-3 lead. It was Quiroz’s seventh home run of the season and the 24th RBI of the year.
Then, Broadway loaded the bases by walking Drew Ellis, Darick Hall, and Weston Wilson with two outs for Simon Muzziotti. However, Worcester changed pitchers with Oddanier Mosqueda in for Broadway. Next, Muzziotti made a nice hit out to left field which scored Ellis and Hall for a 7-3 lead. Dustin Peterson had a chance to keep the inning going but was called out on strikes.
At the top of the ninth inning, Lehigh Valley had a chance to add another run. They faced new Worcester pitcher Ryan Fernandez. Fernandez walked Drew Ellis with one out, followed by a Darick Hall single and Ellis went to third base. Unfortunately, Weston Wilson grounded into an inning-ending double play.
Ben Bowden closed out the game for Lehigh Valley in the bottom of the ninth inning. Bowden walked Ronaldo Hernandez to start the inning. Two batters later with one out, Bowden gave up a single to Narciso Crook and Hernandez went to second base.
Bowden kept his composure and got Stephen Scott to pop out and Christian Koss to fly out toward center fielder Cal Stevenson for the final out of the game. The IronPigs defeated the Red Sox by the final score of 7-3, snapping a two-game losing streak. In addition, Lehigh Valley snaps Worcester’s five-game winning streak.
Lehigh Valley rebounded in this game. The bullpen (Taylor Lehman, Connor Brogdon, and Bobby Bowden) did a good job only allowing one hit for the rest of the game. It was nice to see Lehigh Valley’s offense get back on track. They finished the night with eight hits, went 4 for 9 with runners in scoring position, and left six men on base.
Connor Brogdon earned his first win of the season for the IronPigs, while Taylor Broadway lost his first game of the year for Worcester.
The IronPigs and Red Sox play game four on Friday at 6:45 pm on MiLB.com. Tickets for the game are available on StubHub and Viagogo. Also, pick up IronPigs merchandise today at Fanatics.com.
