8/25 Cup of coffee: After two consecutive sweep days, only one partner emerged victorious on Saturday. Greenville won its third straight victory and seventh in nine games, led by the bat of Ronald Rosario (pictured) and arm of Dalton Rogers. Roman Anthony opened Worcester’s defeat with another home run, while Juan Valera returned to his scoreless style in a duel between the Salem pitchers. Portland fell despite solid efforts from Max Ferguson And Philip Sikes.

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Portland fell as David Sandlin had home run trouble again. The 23-year-old right-hander allowed six runs on six hits in four innings, with four of those runs coming on two home runs in the fourth inning. On a more positive note, he continued to show the ability to miss batters and recorded six strikeouts, giving him 26 strikeouts in 18 2/3 innings since his promotion. Bryce Bonnin made his Sea Dogs debut with two scoreless innings in relief, allowing two hits and one walk with three strikeouts. Reidis Sena went the final two innings, allowing two runs on two hits. He struck out seven of the 12 batters he faced and walked two.

Philip Sikes And Max Ferguson at the plate, with both players hitting two home runs as part of 2-for-4 attempts. The home run for Ferguson was his first hit since April 14 after missing more than four months with an ankle injury.

The defeat reduces Portland’s lead over Somerset to 4 1/2 games with three weeks to go.

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The Drive put in a strong performance all around, picking up the organization’s only win on Saturday. Dalton Rogers was the starter, allowed two runs on four hits in 4 1/3 innings and had nine strikeouts and just one walk. The nine punchouts are a season high for the 2022 third-round pick. Zach Fogell got the win in relief, allowing one unearned run on four hits in 2 1/3. Isaac Stebens went the last 2 1/3 scoreless frames to get the save, striking out five and walking one. At the batting plate, Ronald Rosario was 3 for 4 with a double, three RBI and a run scored. Justin Riemer was a catalyst from the first batting position, scoring two runs while hitting 2-for-4 with a steal.

Bowling Green (TB) also won, maintaining its 2 1/2 game lead over Drive in the South Division of the South Atlantic League with 13 games to go.

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Offensively, it was tough, as both teams combined for just five hits and the game remained scoreless until the ninth inning. After surprisingly allowing runs in his last start, Juan Valera returned to his tradition of not doing so. Valera, 18, struck out three and walked two in three innings and has gone hitless in 10 of his last 13 appearances at two levels. Nicholas Judice made his first appearance in Salem as a reliever, throwing a strikeout in a perfect inning. Judice was part of the counterpart in the deal that sent Alex Verdugo to the Yankees. Calvin Bickerstaff And Griffin Kilander both delivered two hitless innings from the bullpen before Lynchburg finally reached Nathaniel Cruz for three runs (one earned) in the ninth. Salem’s lineup managed just two hits against a trio of Hillcats. Brooks Brannon had a double and a walk, while Karim Ayubi sporadically.

First-place Fredericksburg (WAS) also lost, leaving Salem two games out of first place in the North Division.

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Photo credit: Ronald Rosario by Kelly O’Connor