The PawSox won a fun one last night, depending on what your view on “fun” is. Nonetheless, it ended in dramatic fashion.

The day began at 4am to hop on a bus to drive to the Indianapolis Airport to fly to Philadelphia for our connection prior to arriving in Providence. Unlike last week, the connection in Philly was seamless and we arrived at McCoy Stadium at about 11am.

Most of the players went home to rest after the club had played a 10 inning game on Thursday night in Indianapolis.

A bit of jetlag showed early as Syracuse plated three first inning runs on a pair of back to back doubles.

Into the bottom of the 7th, the Sox trailed 5-2. But this group of comeback kids never stopped having good at bats. Jeremy Hazelbaker reached on an error to start the inning (one of five the Chiefs made on the night). He would score on a misplay in the outfield making the score 5-3. Mitch Maier, activated from the disabled list just two days prior on Wednesday, launched a game-tying homer to right center to even the tally at 5-5. Justin Henry followed with a walk, moved to second on a wild pitch and scored on a two-out, two-strike RBI single by Ronald Bermudez to give the PawSox their first lead, 6-5.

I did not last long, though, as the Chiefs got back to back RBI doubles with two outs in the 8th to regain the lead at 8-6.

No to be deterred, Drew Sutton, who had been marred in a 5-for-35 slump the last eight games, smoked a two-run homer almost to the same spot in right-center that Maier hit his game tying homer the inning prior.

Locked in an 8-8 score into the 10th, the Sox had a great chance to win the game. Brock Holt led off with a single and advanced to second base on a throwing error. A sacrifice bunt moved him to 3rd. After an intentional walk was issued to Jeremy Hazelbaker, Sutton had a chance to play hero again. This time, however, he did what the Chiefs wanted him to, bounce into a double play. The game remained tied 8-8 into the 12th.

Errors played a big role in this game, and Will Rhymes, normally a very sure handed infield, booted a Justin Henry ground ball to open the door for the PawSox. After another sacrifice and intentional walk to Holt, Jonathan Diaz came up.

Diaz ended the month on April batting .095 (4-for-42). May was a totally different story. He was a late insertion into the lineup Friday night after Brandon Snyder was scratched about three hours prior to the game. Diaz singled in his first at-bat, doubled home a run in his 2nd, drew a walk in his 3rd and sacrificed in the 10th. In the 12th, Diaz, listed at 5’9”, 160 LBS, ripped a game-winning double into right center field to win the game for the PawSox, 9-8 over four hours and 20 minutes in 12 innings. When the game finally ended, most of the club had been awake for 19 hours. But a fitting end to a long day!

Diaz capped off a hot May with that game winning hit and raised his season batting average to .231 after finishing the month batting .307 with eight extra base hits (6 2B, 3B, HR) and 13 RBI.

Tonight is Star Wars Night at McCoy Stadium…not guarantees on having Chewbacca fill in for me on the air for an inning, but I’ll certainly try. Fireworks themed to the musical talents of John Williams will follow the game too. It should be a ton of fun at McCoy tonight and through this beautiful weekend.

Allen Webster will look to win his 5th straight start on the mound tonight against Syracuse!

Thanks for reading and go PawSox!

Jeff
@jlevering4
jlevering@pawsox.com

The Boston Red Sox today recalled outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. from Triple-A Pawtucket. To make room for him on the 25-man roster, right-hander Alex Wilson was optioned to Pawtucket after last night’s game.

Executive Vice President/General Manager Ben Cherington made the announcement.

For Bradley, 23, this marks his second stint with the Red Sox this year. In 20 games since his April 18 option to Pawtucket, he is hitting .354 (28-for-79) with seven doubles, a triple, two home runs, nine RBI, 15 runs, and 13 walks while making appearances at all three outfield positions and designated hitter. Bradley has hit safely in each of his last 12 games with the PawSox, going 21-for-48 (.438) with nine extra-base hits (6 doubles, 1 triple, and 2 homers), seven RBI, and 11 runs scored in that time. He made his major league debut with the Red Sox on Opening Day and appeared in 12 games (10 starts) from April 1-17, all in left field, going 3-for-31 (.097) at the plate with one double, three RBI, five runs, and six walks.

Wilson, 26, made his major league debut with Boston on April 11 and has gone 1-0 with a 2.50 ERA (5 ER/18.0 IP) and 15 strikeouts in 16 relief appearances with the Red Sox. He returns to Pawtucket where he was 1-0 with a 10.12 ERA (3 ER/2.2 IP) in two relief outings to begin the season.

The PawSox also transferred INF Ryan Dent to Double-A Portland and activated OF Mitch Maier from the disabled list. Maier had been on the DL since April 23rd with a wrist sprain/quad strain. RHP Oscar Villarreal (groin strain) was activated prior to the Sox game last night in Indianapolis.

Jeff
@jlevering4
jlevering@pawsox.com

The PawSox are one of the hottest teams in the league having won four straight games (three in Louisville and one in Indianapolis). And the odd thing, is that they have had much of their success away from McCoy Stadium. The Sox currently hold the International League’s best road record at 18-9 (Syracuse is next at 17-9).

Their 13-11 mark at McCoy is the only winning record at home for any team in the North Division. That, to me, is a very crazy stat. Buffalo and Lehigh Valley are both at 13-13.

Pawtucket has three more games on this road trip in Indianapolis, tonight at 7:05, tomorrow at 1:35 and Thursday at 7:05 before they head home for an 8-game homestand against Syracuse and Charlotte.

A couple of nights to keep your eyes on once the Sox return to McCoy are Friday May 31st and Saturday June 1st.

Friday, the first 3,000 adult fans coming to McCoy when the PawSox host Syracuse at 7:05 pm will be given a PawSox Travel Mug courtesy of Dunkin’ Donuts and NESN. The travel mug will have images from the PawSox 2012 Governors’ Cup Championship celebration.

And Saturday, the PawSox will host their 5th Annual Star Wars Night at McCoy Stadium when they play the Chiefs at 6:05 pm. More than 30 Star Wars characters from the 501st New England Garrison – the largest, sanctioned Star Wars Fan Club in New England – will be in attendance to meet and greet fans. After the game, fans will be treated to a spectacular Fireworks Show to Star Wars Music. I’m hoping to interview Chewbacca for the pregame show!

Tonight, the Sox will try to make it five wins in a row with New England native Terry Doyle on the mound. He’s looking for his first win since May 8th against Gwinnett.

Here is tonight’s lineup against Indianapolis:
Jackie Bradley Jr. RF (riding a team high 11-game hitting streak)
Drew Sutton 1B
Ryan Lavarnway C
Bryce Brentz DH
Brandon Snyder 3B
Jeremy Hazelbaker LF (Indiana native playing at home for the 1st time as a pro)
Ronald Bermudez CF (7-game hitting streak)
Brock Holt SS (has hits in 10 of his last 11 games)
Jonathan Diaz 2B

Here are a couple shots from the road trip (more to come).

Thanks for reading and Go PawSox!

Jeff
@jlevering4
jlevering@pawsox.com

Friday morning, the Pawtucket Red Sox had an opportunity to see how the Louisville Slugger Bat Factory manufactures some of their bats. I was fortunate enough to tag along on the tour and the following photos are from our tour.

What a sensational tour…I hope you have enjoyed it as well! Definitely a highlight of the trip.

Another highlight was when I returned from my tour, I settled into my hotel room to crank out some game notes. A heard a knock on my door, answered it and my wife was standing in front of me! I had not seen her since I moved to Pawtucket March 1st and she left Springfield, Missouri at 3:30am to drive to Louisville to surprise me. I was floored! What a great way to being a holiday weekend!

The PawSox are back in action tonight with knuckleballer Steven Wright on the mound against Greg Reynolds of the Louisville Bats. Game time is at 6:05, pre-game at 5:50.

Thanks for reading/taking the tour!

Jeff
@jlevering4
jlevering@pawsox.com

Per the Boston Red Sox Media Relations Department.

The Red Sox announced the following roster moves today:

Catcher David Ross was activated from the seven-day concussion disabled list. To make room for him on the 25-man roster, catcher Ryan Lavarnway was optioned to Triple-A Pawtucket after last night’s game.

Right fielder Shane Victorino was placed on the 15-day disabled list (retroactive to May 21) with a left hamstring strain. To fill his spot on the roster, right-hander Alfredo Aceves was recalled from Pawtucket. Aceves was schedule to pitch yesterday in Louisville, but was a late scratch.

Third baseman Will Middlebrooks was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a low back strain. To fill his spot on the roster, infielder Jose Iglesias was recalled from Pawtucket. Iglesias made his first career appearance at third on Tuesday.

Executive Vice President/General Manager Ben Cherington made the announcements.

Ross, 36, experienced concussion symptoms after taking a pair of foul balls off his catcher’s mask in the game on May 11 against Toronto. He made a one-game rehab assignment for Double-A Portland yesterday, going 1-for-3 with a double and an RBI as the starting catcher. In 15 games for Boston this season, he is hitting .209 (9-for-43) with four home runs and five RBI.

Lavarnway, 25, has had two stints with the Red Sox this season. In three games (two starts) for Boston, he has hit .250 (2-for-8) with one double and two RBI. Lavarnway will rejoin Pawtucket where he has hit .313 (25-for-80) with seven doubles, two home runs and 15 RBI in 22 contests.

Victorino, 32, experienced tightness in his left hamstring in the sixth inning of Monday’s game in Chicago. In 34 games for Boston this season, he is batting .283 (36-for-127) with four doubles, two home runs and 10 RBI. Victorino, who has yet to commit an error in the field in 2013, has a team-leading four outfield assists, tied for fifth-most among American League outfielders.

Aceves, 31, will rejoin the Red Sox for his second stint with the club in 2013. He worked out of the starting rotation at Pawtucket, going 2-1 with a 3.13 ERA (8 ER/23.0 IP) with 11 walks and 21 strikeouts in four starts. He has allowed two earned runs or fewer in three of his four starts. With Boston this season, Aceves was 1-1 with an 8.66 ERA (17 ER/17.2 IP) in five games (three starts).

Middlebrooks, 24, left last night’s game against Cleveland in the fifth inning due to low back spasms. In 46 games this year, he has hit .201 (35-for-174) with 12 doubles, eight home runs and 21 RBI. Middlebrooks’ eight home runs are tied with David Ortiz for the club lead and are fourth-most among AL third basemen.

Iglesias, 23, also rejoins the Red Sox for his second stint of the year. In 33 games for Pawtucket this season, he has hit .202 (24-for-119) with two doubles, four home runs and 15 RBI. Iglesias made his first career Opening Day roster with the Red Sox in 2013 and hit .450 (9-for-20) with two doubles and one RBI in six games at the major league level.

Jeff
@jlevering4
jlevering@pawsox.com

We arrived in Louisville…how that happened was quite the adventure Thursday.

For most of us, we arrived at McCoy Stadium at 4:30am to bus to T.F. Green Airport at 5am to fly from Providence to Philadelphia before eventually arriving in Louisville at about 11:45. Not a bad plan.

However, when we arrived in Philadelphia, we were told our flight to Louisville was cancelled. Yes, not delayed, but cancelled. For a traveling party of 37, this is not a good thing. The reason…congestion. There was an alleged Air Traffic Control strike going on which led to this cancellation, but that is still a mystery.

Our Athletic Trainer (and part time traveling secretary), John Jochim, did a terrific job of trying to defuse the situation and keep everybody relaxed. He was in communication with the PawSox VP and CFO Matt White who coordinates the team travel.

There were three options discussed.

1. Try to fly stand by on another flight to Louisville (only five total seats were available for the two remaining flights that day)
2. Get two buses ASAP to Philadelphia to drive the team to Louisville (a 10 hour ride).
3. Bus back to Providence, rest and do the whole thing all over against tomorrow (Friday).

We waited from the time we landed in Philly (8:30am) until 1:15pm before we actually had a plan of attack.

That plan, and again all the credit goes to John and Matt for making this happen, was to hop on a flight to Charlotte and then fly to Louisville to get the team in by 5:45. Oh, by the way, our game was scheduled for 6:35pm.

We took off for Charlotte at 2:00pm and landed at 3:45. The team got off the plane, found our next gate, walked on the connecting flight (which was being held for us), and took off for Louisville. We landed at 5:45pm, hopped on a bus and booked it to Louisville Slugger Field thanks to a police escort.

The bus parked at 6:15pm at the ballpark. Thankfully the Bats were understanding of the situation and pushed the start time back to 7:40 to allow the team to catch its breath… a little.

You may be wondering about the luggage…amazingly, every piece made it successfully and never was on a flight that we physically were not a part of. Simply shocking!

The team struggled during the game as they were routed 10-0. But they did have some impressive at-bats and even Jonathan Diaz pitched a scoreless inning. It was his 1st appearance as a pitcher since high school.

We’ll try and get after it tonight at 6:35pm with Alfredo Aceves on the mound for the Sox!

I also took a tour of the Louisville Slugger Factory…what a great experience. Pictures to follow in the next blog tomorrow!

Jeff
@jlevering4
jlevering@pawsox.com

After losing game one of the four-game set against Indianapolis 6-3 on Saturday night, the PawSox evened the series with an 11-3 victory Sunday afternoon at McCoy.

In a game that was billed as a “Battle of Aces” between the Red Sox #4 prospect Allen Webster and the Pirates #1 prospect Gerrit Cole, Pawtucket blew the game open with a five-run bottom of the 6th to take a 9-1 lead.

Webster looked as dominant as he has all season retiring the first 11 batters he faced, including six straight strikeouts. A couple walks and an RBI single with two outs in the 4th led to the first run of the game scoring for the Indians. But, Webster notched his 7th and final strikeout to end the 4th with only the one run scoring.

Cole, after surrendering a double to Brandon Snyder in the 2nd, retired the next eight batters faced before he plunked Snyder with two-outs in the 4th. Jeremy Hazelbaker followed with a single and Jonathan Diaz tripled into the left-center field alley to give Pawtucket a 2-1 lead. Diaz would score on a balk to make it 3-1.

Jackie Bradley Jr., fresh off the disabled list on Friday, drew a two-out walk and scored from first on a Justin Henry RBI double to take a 4-1 advantage.

Webster would end up throwing five full innings and pitched to a batter in the 6th leaving the game with a 4-1 lead. He allowed just the one run and one hit while walking five and striking out seven. His command was brilliant in the first 3.2 innings, but walked five of the last eight batters he faced. He was able to work through the trouble, but the lack of command late was troublesome.

Chris Martin, who had tossed 21 scoreless innings in Portland prior to his promotion last week, fired two spotless frames to extend his run of bagels to 26 straight innings without allowing a run.

The five-runs scored against Cole in the 6th were the most allowed by the prospect in any inning all season. Prior to Sunday, Cole had allowed just 12 runs on the whole season…he allowed eight earned runs yesterday!

Infielder Jonathan Diaz continues to swing a hot bat during May as he has lifted his batting average over .200 for the first time this season (.209). Once April concluded, Diaz was hitting .095 (4-for-42) and since then, he’s batting .306 (15-for-49) with six extra-base hits and seven RBI.

Bryce Brentz has also hit safely in 10 of his last 11 games (including six multi-hit efforts) raising his average from .243 to .276 and has driven in 10 runs during that span.

Tonight, the Sox send right hander Steven Wright to the mound in search of his 3rd win of the season and a chance to take the advantage in the series with Indianapolis.

Here’s tonight’s lineup for the 7:05pm game:
Jackie Bradley Jr. DH
Justin Henry CF
Drew Sutton 3B
Bryce Brentz RF
Brandon Snyder 1B
Jeremy Hazelbaker LF
Jose Iglesias SS
Brock Holt 2B
Dan Butler C

Tomorrow’s game is scheduled to start at 12:05pm with Rubby De La Rosa on the mound.

Go PawSox!

Jeff
@jlevering4
jlevering@pawsox.com

The PawSox scored three times in the bottom of the 9th inning Friday night on one swing of the bat by Bryce Brentz. The 5-4 victory earned a much needed series split with Gwinnett to open up an eight-game homestand.

To this point, the PawSox have still not lost three games in a row in 2013. Thanks Bryce Brentz…that was a very loud homer!

Here are a few shots from photographer Jillian Souza of the celebration at home plate.

This is what it sounded like on the air…

http://www.milb.com/multimedia/vpp.jsp?content_id=27214515&sid=milb

My broadcast partner even got a shaving cream pie at the end of the game during the post game interview!

Tonight, the PawSox welcome Indianapolis to McCoy Stadium for the first game of a four-game set. The Indians hold the best record in International League at 30-13, but are just 10-8 away from Victory Field in downtown Indy.

Here is tonight’s starting lineup:

Justin Henry DH
Drew Sutton 1B
Bryce Brentz RF
Brandon Snyder 3B
Jeremy Hazelbaker LF
Ronald Bermudez CF
Jose Iglesias SS
Dan Butler C
Brock Holt 2B
and lefty Franklin Morales makes his second major league rehab start with Pawtucket.

Red Sox closer Andrew Bailey is scheduled to pitch an inning for the PawSox tonight as well.

Happy walk-off!

Jeff
@jlevering4
jlevering@pawsox.com

First, some PawSox news.

Pawtucket dropped their second straight game last night by a score of 6-4 to Gwinnett. Omar Poveda pitched a great game for the Braves mixing and matching his changeup with an average fastball to keep the PawSox hitters off-balance.

The Sox did mount a comeback in the 9th scoring three times on a two-run double by Ronald Bermudez and an RBI single by Brock Holt, but the rally still came up a couple shy.

Rubby De La Rosa started Thursday and matched a season high with four innings while allowing an unearned run. He threw 71 pitches, 36 were strikes and has now thrown 18 consecutive innings without allowing an earned run over his last five starts.

Tonight, the PawSox need a victory to split the four-game set with Gwinnett before the team the Indianapolis Indians come to McCoy Saturday.

The lineup for tonight’s game with Alfredo Aceves on the mound.

Justin Henry DH
Jose Iglesias SS
Drew Sutton 1B
Bryce Brentz LF
Brandon Snyder 3B
Jeremy Hazelbaker RF
Ronald Bermudez CF
Dan Butler C
Jonathan Diaz 2B

Notes: Reigning IL Hitter of the Week Mark Hamilton was placed on the DL with a small fracture in his right wrist. He says he’ll miss a few weeks. Reliever Chris Carpenter was also placed on the DL with a right triceps strain. Rumors have been swirling that outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. is close to return from the DL (right biceps strain) and Red Sox closer Andrew Bailey may begin a rehab assignment with the PawSox as soon as Saturday.

Now, a little self-promotion on a Friday.

I received two deliveries at McCoy Stadium today.

The first was from a good friend (and converting PawSox fan) from Springfield, Missouri.

Oatmeal, Cranberry and Walnut cookies…quickly becoming a favorite of the folks in the office!

The second package was a little smaller, but the contents were very special.

From 2010 through 2012 seasons, I had the pleasure of broadcasting and being the Manager of Public Relations for the Springfield Cardinals (Double-A, St. Louis Cardinals). In my final season with the Cardinals, the team won the Texas League Championship. It was the first in their franchise history and the title rings did not disappoint. Mine arrived today…

A big special thanks to Vice President/General Manager, Matt Gifford, for sending the ring and allowing me to be a part of it. Manager Mike Shildt who always reminded our team to “Stay Hungry and Have Faith” (which is inscribed on the inside of the ring). And, for all the great staff members that made it happen!

Thanks for the trip down memory lane…it was an honor to be a part of something so special!

Hope to make it two-in-a-row with the PawSox!!

Jeff
@jlevering4
jlevering@pawsox.com

The PawSox opened up an eight-game homestand Tuesday night with a 5-3 victory over Gwinnett. Bryce Brentz delivered two timely RBI singles in the 5th and 7th innings to provide the difference in the game.

Starter Allen Webster battled with his fastball command for much of the night, but utilized his changeup to notch five strikeouts in five innings of work to earn his 2nd victory of the season. Pedro Beato was good out of the bullpen firing three innings allowing a couple runs, only one earned, on just two hits while striking out three.

Anthony Carter was sensational wrapping up his 5th save of the season allowing a broken bat single before inducing a double play groundout and striking out the final batter to secure the 5-3 victory. In fact, Carter has been one of the PawSox best out of the bullpen lately. In his last nine appearances (9.1 innings pitched) he has not allowed a single run on just six singles while striking out 15. AND he hasn’t walked a batter. The small mechanical adjustment made by Pitching Coach Rich Sauveur has paid off in a big way for the Georgia native.

As for tonight, the PawSox will look for their 11th straight win over Gwinnett (the last loss to the Braves was June 11, 2012 at McCoy). Knuckleballer Steven Wright gets to start for Pawtucket in search of his 3rd win of the season.

Tonight’s starting lineup is as follows:
Justin Henry CF
Jonathan Diaz SS
Drew Sutton DH
Bryce Brentz RF (and on a 6-game hitting streak)
Brandon Snyder 1B
Dan Butler C
Jeremy Hazelbaker LF
Ryan Dent 3B
Brock Holt 2B

There are a few GREAT events coming up in and around McCoy over the next few days.

Saturday – The first of four Free Youth Clinics at McCoy Stadium will take place from 2:00-3:15 pm. Sponsored by Citizens Bank in association with ABC 6, the clinic is open to youngsters of all ages free of charge. PawSox manager Gary DiSarcina, pitching coach Rich Sauveur, hitting coach Dave Joppie, and several players will be on the field at McCoy to offer youngsters instructions and tips on the game of baseball. That’s the first Free Youth Clinic of the season on Saturday from 2:00–3:15 pm followed by a 6:05 pm game against the Indianapolis Indians.

Sunday – Join the PawSox at Uno’s in Attleboro for PawSox Day and Dough Raiser! Come see Paws and a few “Celebrity” bartenders from 6-8. A few PawSox players will be on hand signing autographs and we hope to see you there.

Tuesday – The Pawtucket Red Sox are very excited to announce we will host a bowling event to raise money for the TOMORROW FUND…the PAWSOX STRIKE FOR CANCER event will occur on Tuesday, May 21, 2013 from 7:00pm – 10:00pm at the EAST PROVIDENCE LANES on 80 Newport Avenue, East Providence, RI 02916. For more information, follow this link…
http://www.milb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20130501&content_id=46333696&fext=.jsp&vkey=news_t533&sid=t533

That’s all for now, Go PawSox!

Jeff
@jlevering4
jlevering@pawsox.com