Rochester drops the first game 4-0 before winning the nightcap, 4-3, over the RailRiders.
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — The Rochester Red Wings split a double header with the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Railriders on Sunday afternoon before 6,960 fans at Frontier Field.
In Game 1, the Wings were blanked by the Railriders, 4-0. Reynaldo Rodriguez collected 2 hits for Rochester.
The Red Wings had their chances as they stranded 2 men on base in the 1st, 2nd, and 4th innings.
Irondequoit native Cito Culver paced SWB as he went 3-for-3 and scored twice.
Rochester won the second game as they overcame a 2-0 deficit to win 4-3.
“I’m glad to at least get a split,” said Red Wings manager Mike Quade.
Right-hander Omar Bencomo made his Red Wings debut, after joining the team from Double-A Chattanooga on Saturday. The RailRiders used a lead-off walk and three singles to take a 2-0 lead in the top of the first.
Bencomo is happy to be with the Red Wings. In 2012 in his native Venezula, he was shot in a car-jacking incident. He nearly died as he lost a kidney and part of his spleen. He was out of baseball two years while recovering, but his faith in God saw him through.
“I played in Italy in 2014,” Bencomo said. “I was playing in the Independent League (last year) when the Twins signed me. I am so grateful to them for giving me the opportunity.”
In this season Bencomo has risen from Single-A, to Double-A, and now to Triple-A.
“A lot of things happened to me for me to get here,” said Bencomo. “I’m doing what I love.”
The Wings got a run back in the bottom of the first when Daniel Palka doubled off Kyle Haynes to score Reynaldo Rodriguez. It was Palka’s 10th double and 15th RBI for Rochester this season.
Rochester scored two runs in the bottom of the fifth to go up 3-2. John Ryan Murphy hit a double that drove in Wilfredo Tovar to tie the game at two. The Wings took the lead when Haynes threw a wild pitch and Murphy scored.
Tommy Field left the game after striking out in the fifth with an apparent wrist injury. He was replaced in the field by Leonardo Reginatto.
In the top of the sixth, a two out single of Bencomo and a wild pitch by Alex Wimmers put the tying run at second. Reynaldo Rodriguez made a long run and a great grab of a pop fly with his back to the field, ending the threat.
Bencomo worked 5.2 innings allowing seven hits, two earned runs and a walk with four strikeouts. He threw 71 pitches, 52 for strikes.
Daniel Palka launched a long home run off Haynes in the bottom of the sixth inning, increasing the Wings’ lead to 4-2. In the top of the seventh, the RailRiders moved to within a run when a one-out double from Eddy Rodriguez made the score 4-3. Wimmers struck out Mason Williams for the second out, and a walk put runners at the corners. Sean Burnett came out of the bullpen to face Ben Gamel, and a groundout ended the game.
*NOTES — Wilfredo Tovar stole his 27th base in Game Two, the most in a season for any Red Wing in the Frontier Field era…Lehigh Valley (72-49) won its game and increased the IronPigs lead over Rochester (67-55) in the Wild Card chase to 5.5 games…Byungho Park did not play as his status remains questionable regfarding possible injuries…The Wings have just 8 home games remaining, Thursday and Friday against Buffalo, then Sunday, Aug. 28-Friday, Sept. 2