MOOSIC, Pa. – Rochester left 13 men on base while finishing 5-for-19 with runners in scoring position as the Red Wings fell 7-5 to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Friday night at PNC Field to fall 4.5 games behind the RailRiders in the IL North.
The Red Wings (51-39) left at least one man on base in every inning except the third. Rochester loaded the bases with two outs in the ninth inning but John Ryan Murphy flied out to end the game.
The back-and-forth contest saw the RailRiders (55-34) score three runs in the second inning to take a 3-0 lead against Jose Berrios (8-4). It marked the 11th consecutive game in which the Wings have allowed the first run of the game.
Despite early chances against Scranton/WB starter Kyle Haynes, Rochester didn’t strike until the fourth inning. In fact, the Wings plated all five of their runs in the fourth to take a 5-3 lead behind three singles, a triple, a walk, a sacrifice bunt, a sacrifice fly and a huge error on a potential double play ball to plate the five runs. Tommy Field added the triple in the inning.
Ben Gamel doubled in a run with two outs in the fourth to cut the Wings lead to 5-4 but a well-executed relay from Logan Schafer to Wilfredo Tovar to Field tagged Gamel out at third base to end the inning.
The RailRiders went to reliever Matt Wotherspoon (2-0), promoted just today from Double-A, to begin the fifth and despite numerous opportunities against the right-hander the Wings did not score in 3.1 innings. Wotherspoon allowed five hits and a walk but no runs.
Tyler Austin gave the RailRiders the lead for good in the sixth with a two-run blast off Berrios. A single one batter later and Berrios’ night was done, having given up six runs, three earned, on nine hits and three walks with five strikeouts in 5.2 innings. Scranton/WB added an insurance run in the eighth against Alex Wimmers to cap the scoring.
Rochester had at least one runner in scoring position in each of the final five innings and did not score. The 13 men left on in the game matches a season-high.
Adam Brett Walker had three hits for the second night in a row. James Beresford and Field also chipped in with three hits apiece while Darin Mastroianni and Tovar had multi-hit efforts in defeat. The 16 hits for the Wings ties a season-high.
Next Up: Rochester continues its series with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (Yankees) with game two against the International League’s best team to wrap up the pre-All-Star schedule Saturday at 7:05 p.m.
From RochesterRedwings.com.
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