Salem Red Sox Make Push For Final Playoff Spot

Red Sox baserunner Carlos Asuaje (dark jersey) barely beats the tag at second base by Pelican shortstop #10 Edwin Garcia during Sunday's win.
Red Sox baserunner Carlos Asuaje (dark jersey) barely beats the tag at second base by Pelican shortstop #10 Edwin Garcia during Sunday’s win.

Yogi Berra said it best. “It’s like deja vu all over again.”

A year after the Salem Red Sox made an extraordinary, if not improbable, run to the Carolina League playoffs, then finished the job with sweeps over Myrtle Beach and Potomac to capture the Mills Cup championship, Salem has again gone on a late-season winning streak to put themselves in a similar position.

Sunday evening, Salem won their eighth straight game in a resounding 9-1 win over Myrtle Beach, giving the Sox some breathing room over the two teams they need to outdistance down the stretch, Winston-Salem and Carolina.

A little over two weeks ago, Salem was in last place in the Carolina League Southern Division and there were few indications they would be in contention for postseason play.

“Two weeks ago, I never saw this coming,” Salem director of broadcasting and media relations, Evan Lepler, noted before Sunday’s matinee with the Pelicans. “We were behind everybody.”

Salem’s turnaround came in the most unusual fashion, along with plenty of help from the other two teams contending for the final playoff spot. Myrtle Beach was already assured of a playoff berth via its first-half championship.

“It was a combination of our team suddenly getting breaks and at the same time, the others started playing poorly,” Lepler said. “We were gaining ground despite not even playing.”

Things got strange when a 3-game home series against Potomac was entirely rained out, forcing the makeup games being moved to Potomac in the following days. Salem, which had enjoyed little success against the Nationals since the early part of the season, reeled off an unlikely pair of doubleheader sweeps in the Potomac park, followed by the sweep at Lewis Gale Field over Myrtle Beach.Those wins left Salem three games clear of third place Winston-Salem.

Salem, after an off day Monday, has 16 games left in the second-half regular season, including 12 on the road. The Sox travel to Winston-Salem Tuesday through Thursday before returning home for the final home series in a 4-game set against Wilmington beginning Friday, August 22nd through Monday, the 25th. Salem closes the regular season on the road with nine games in seven days that include a pair of doubleheaders.

As the Sox enter the stretch run, the roster looks significantly different from that of May. It’s the norm in minor league baseball.

“It’s a revolving door,” Lepler points out. “At this level, the roster changes every week. Fortunately, in our case, the new guys are swinging the bat well.”

Salem’s recent win streak can be attributed to a variety of factors. Good pitching on some nights, good hitting on others. And, plenty of breaks.

“Baseball is all about getting breaks,” Lepler adds. “We’ve had a couple games where an opposing hit went off the wall instead of going over the wall. A couple of our clutch hits were a few inches from being an out. Pitchers who had struggled earlier in the year are now taking the mound with confidence. You need to have some luck. When things go your way everyone starts gaining confidence. Suddenly, you expect to win. It’s contagious. Right now, I like our chances.”

– Bill Turner

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