BY JONATHAN SKUZA
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — The Rochester Red Wings (10-13, 37-58) fell short in 12 innings Wednesday evening 8-6 to the Scranton/WB RailRiders (18-4, 56-38) in a contest where Rochester had chances to secure the victory.
“Unfortunately situational play down the stretch, wasn’t good and it cost us,” Red Wings manager, Matt LeCroy said. “Their team is really good and we stayed neck and neck with them, but we just didn’t finish.”
Scranton jumped on Rochester in the first inning where they pushed across four runs. Everson Pereira hit a two-run home run into the Red Wings bullpen. T.J. Rumfield drove in the third run with an RBI base hit and Jeimer Candelario grounded into a double play that allowed Rafael Flores to score.
Robert Hassell III answered quickly for the Red Wings with a towering lead-off home run down the right field line. Hassell III extended his hit streak to six games with the long ball.
”We want to answer,” LeCroy said. “We wanted an answer after we gave up four and with the homer it kind of seems like we were back in it. His homer put us in a good spot.”
Rochester tied the ball game two innings later when Andres Chaparro hit a sacrifice fly to score Hassell III, and Nick Schnell collected a two RBI double. Schnell extended his on-base streak to 16 contests with that extra-base hit.
”He’s having a really nice go here at Triple-A,” LeCroy said about Schnell. “He’s impacting the ball. He’s getting big hits, he’s athletic and plays good defense. He’s been a nice little addition to our organization.”
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Yohandy Morales gave a Rochester the lead the following inning with an RBI base hit that scored Francisco Mejia, who led the inning off with a walk. Morales extended his own base streak to 16 contest as well.
Rochester would hang on to the lead until the seventh where a Jose Rojas RBI double and a Spencer Jones sacrifice fly would give the RailRiders the edge again. Rojas worked a 14 pitch at-bat before delivering the game tying double.
Andrew Pinckney tied the ballgame up in the bottom half of the inning with a base hit through the hole at shortstop to score Chaparro.
For the next four innings, both teams traded opportunities to push across the decisive run, but neither team could deliver the final blow to secure the victory. Scranton finally broke through in the 12th, pushing across two runs when Nicky Lopez scored on a wild pitch and Andrew Velazquez scored on an Pereria RBI base hit.
Rochester’s best chance came in the 11th ending, but was squandered by a double play that involve a fly out and Hassell III being called out for leaving the base early on a tag up after an appeal by Scranton. The call in the field didn’t sit right with LeCroy leading to him to have heated discussions with the umpires and leading to his ejection in the 12th.
“He told me he was 100% he left early,” LeCroy said. “ I didn’t see it, to me I questioned how you could see both at the same time.”
Despite pushing across six runs in Wednesday’s contest,Rochester stranded 14 runners on base and struck out 22 times. The amount strikeouts was a Scranton franchise high.
”We didn’t get the job done on our situational play,” LeCroy said. “We didn’t get a bunt down and ended up striking out.”
Andrew Alvarez started for Rochester Wednesday and gave them six endings on the hill where he gave up four runs on six hits and one walk, but struck out five in the process.
“He gave us a shot to win,” LeCroy said. “ The guys know they want to help him out because he fights his tail off every night. We had the opportunity to win that game and we let it slip underneath us.”
Luis Gil got the start for Scranton as a part of Major League Rehab assignment. The right hand toss three in a third inning where he surrendered five runs on four hits and three walks and struck out four.
”We took some good swings off of him,” LeCroy said. “ he wasn’t as sharp as I’ve seen him in the past obviously he’s been rehabbing, but I thought our guys took some good swings and give them a little confidence.”
Rochester and Scranton have a quick turnaround as they will continue the series on Thursday at 11:05 a.m. The Red Wings will send right hand Bryce Conley (1-0, 2.57) to the hill while the RailRiders will have righty Brendan Beck (2-0, 3.86) toe the slab.
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