MANCHESTER, New Hampshire (Saturday, August 28, 2010) – In a game featuring the Eastern League Pitcher of the Year and an unbeaten starter, you would expect a low-scoring affair. That was not the case on Saturday at Merchantsauto.com Stadium as Blake Maxwell and the Portland Sea Dogs out dueled the New Hampshire Fisher Cats, 5-2.
Maxwell remained unblemished at Double-A this season, allowing five hits and two runs over 5.2 innings.
Both pitchers got off to strong starts in the first inning as Drabek threw a 1-2-3 first inning for the Fisher Cats, while Maxwell got out of the first on just one hit. New Hampshire shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria lined a single off the glove of third baseman Ray Chang for a one-out single.
Drabek allowed a leadoff walk to designated hitter Ryan Lavarnway, but settled in and a flyout and a double play ball by catcher Luis Exposito to end the threat. Maxwell allowed just a two-out walk to left fielder Callix Crabbe in the bottom of the second.
In the third, Portland left fielder Jorge Padron singled to center and the two runners were cut down behind Drabek, the recently named Eastern League Pitcher of the Year, to end the inning. Maxwell worked around a single to Hechavarria and hitting right fielder Adam Calderone as he got a little help from his defense in the bottom of the third. Right fielder Chih-Hsien Chiang made a great play, running at least ten feet to his left to track down a sure hit from center fielder Darin Mastroianni for the second out.
Drabek retired the top three batters in Portland’s order to begin the fifth inning, including striking out two of the Red Sox’ top young prospects: shortstop Jose Iglesias and first baseman Anthony Rizzo to end the inning. Catcher Matt Liuzza hit a one-out single, but was caught stealing on an inning-ending strikeout double play.
The first sign of trouble for the Fisher Cats came in the top of the fifth inning when Drabek walked the first two batters of the inning, Lavarnway and Chang, before inducing another double play ball to Exposito. With two out, Padron walked and center fielder Che-Hsuan Lin struck out to end the threat. Maxwell came back with a very brisk 1-2-3 inning on two groundouts and a strikeout.
Drabek had some constructive criticism for his game, saying “It’s no fun walking people, so it could have been a lot better and I’ll have to work on it.”
David Purcey came in to relieve Drabek after five, one-hit innings. Purcey is currently on a rehab assignment from Toronto and has been sidelined since August 12 with a sprained right foot.
Things unraveled for the Fisher Cats in the sixth inning as they scored four runs off relievers Purcey and Trystan Magnuson. Purcey loaded the bases with two outs on singles by Chiang and second baseman Nate Spears and a walk to Lavarnway. Chiang and Spears scored on a two-run single to right field by Chang, while Exposito drove in two on a single to left field. Padron ended the inning with a fielder’s choice.
Maxwell came into the sixth inning with a large cushion behind him and struggled as well. After striking out Hechavarria, he allowed a single to Calderone and then he came around to score on a two-run home run to right-center field (20) by first baseman David Cooper. Manager Arnie Beyeler booted him with two outs in the inning after 5.2 innings. Eammon Portice came in and struck out catcher Matt Liuzza to end the inning.
Radio voice Bob Lipman noted to reporters in the press box that with Cooper’s 20th home run, the Fisher Cats have three 20-home run hitters for the first time in franchise history (joining outfielder Eric Thames and infielder Shawn Bowman).
Portland came back with another run in the seventh inning on a Nate Spears one-out RBI double to left field. Chiang, who singled, came home to score on the play. Fisher Cats left fielder Callix Crabbe robbed another hit and run from Rizzo on a diving catch to end the inning. Portice came back on to pitch for the ‘Dogs, allowing a one-out single to second baseman Jonathan Diaz and a two-out knock to Mastroianni.
Magnuson came back in to retire the heart of the Sea Dog lineup on a groundout, flyout, and strikeout. Portice came back with a 1-2-3 inning of his own, recording flyout between two whiffs.
Alan Farina came in to pitch the ninth for the Fisher Cats and induced groundouts to the bottom of the Portland order, each to a different infield position. Daniel Turpen relieved Portice and earned his first save of the season, retiring the first three batters he faced.
During the game, the Fisher Cats clinched a playoff spot as Reading lost their game against Binghamton. “They’ve played hard all year,” said manager Luis Rivera. “We’ll celebrate when we win and when the time is right.”
The game was played in front of a crowd of 8,476 fans, which ranks third all-time in Fisher Cats history. A John Smoltz rehab in May 2009 and the 2008 Eastern League All-Star Game hold the top two slots in franchise records.
