To this point in the 2014 baseball season, Portland’s Sea Dogs make the Binghamton Mets howl. Compensating for early season weather postponements, the B-Mets began the past weeks Eastern League play in Portland battling the first place Sea Dogs in a four-day, six-game series.
Things got off to an encouraging start when Hansel Robles and Cody Satterwhite combined to toss a six-hit shutout in the series opener, but the good vibes were washed away like a hard spring summer when Portland ran off the next five wins in a row.
Call it the Portland puzzle, but the Binghamton has yet to decipher the Sea Dog’s winning code. With the five straight wins, Portland holds a 10-4 advantage over Binghamton in the season’s series. Binghamton is 24-11 against the rest of their Eastern League opponents leaving them 28-21 on the year, in third place, and 5.5 games behind the Sea Dogs.
As is their custom, the B-Mets returned home after the Portland debacle to sweep New Britain in four games.
Kevin Plawecki symbolized the B-Met down, then up again direction in the week. The B-Met catcher went 3-for-16 in Portland but his bat showed signs of awakening with a two-run home run in the final outing against the Sea Dogs. Plawecki sizzled at NYSEG against New Britain going 8-for 15 with two doubles, two home runs and five RBI’s.
Binghamton wasted a terrific outing by Darin Gorski, falling 2-1 in Portland, then dropped the final two games against the Sea Dogs in heart breaking style by identical 6-5 scores. Binghamton squandered an early 5-0 lead in losing the fourth game of the series then the following night, allowed two Sea Dog runs in the bottom of the ninth to lose the last game.
But, the B-Mets prospered with some home cooking, sweeping New Britain in four games. One constant was the hot bat of Matt Ryenolds, who hit safely in the first eight games of the week before an 0-2 performance Sunday night against New Britain. Even so, Reynolds drew two base-on-balls in that contest and was a combined 13 of 29 during the week.
Wilfredo Tovar continues to show plate discipline going 9-for-30 over the week and drawing four base-on-balls.
Dustin Lawley is gaining some traction at the plate, hitting safely in his last six games, with a home run and two doubles. Kyle Johnson had a solid week at the plate with 10 hits in 30 at bats and Darrell Ceciliani finished the week, 8-for-27.
Travis d’Arnaud created a stir when he slammed a two-run home run Sunday night in his first at-bat of a rehab assignment.
Angel Cuan joined the B-Met rotation winning one game and losing another last week. Jack Leathersich appears to be shaking off the rust as the lefty reliever fanned five batters in a two inning outing during the week.
The pitching gem of the week was Darin Gorski’s compete game, Memorial Day, two-hitter.
