Will playoff baseball be in the future of the Salem Red Sox and their fans? Things were looking up after the completion of this week’s four-game home series against their main competitor for the final Carolina League Southern Division playoff spot.
Salem took three-of-four from the Carolina Mudcats after Tuesday night’s game-four marathon, moving out to a 2 1/2 game lead over the Cleveland Indians farm team.
Salem collected themselves after losing the first game of a twin-bill against Carolina on Sunday, then taking the second game of the doubleheader and following it up with wins Monday and Tuesday.
The pivotal game Tuesday night, with a 2-game swing in the standings on the line, turned into an endurance test. Salem was the last man standing in the 10-9 win.
The Sox broke a 1-1 tie in the bottom of the second, plating six runs for what appeared to be a comfortable 7-1 lead. Although Salem tacked on a run in the third, the Mudcats showed plenty of fight, scoring 2 in the third and 5 more in the fourth to tie things at 8. The game was two hours long by the top of the fifth inning. Salem then got two runs down the stretch and held off several Mudcat rallies.
In other significant news on Tuesday, the Red Sox announced that Vice President of Ticketing, Ryan Shelton, had been promoted to General Manager. As part of the transition, Assistant General Manager Allen Lawrence and Director of Food and Beverage Tim Anderson have each been promoted to Vice President, rounding out the club’s senior leadership team.
“We wanted the next GM of the Salem Red Sox to embody many of the core principles of our organization- progressive, energetic and community-minded,” Tim Zue, managing director of the Salem Red Sox and vice president of Business Development of the Boston Red Sox noted. “We also felt it was critical that we find a dynamic leader who will put our fans first After conducting a nationwide search, we are confident that we have found that person in Ryan.”
‘As the new GM, I am eager to help serve as one of the stewards of this rich baseball tradition that has bred Hall of Famers and has created countless memories for local fans,” Shelton said of his promotion after joining Salem only five months ago. “This is a deeply passionate market that has embraced and supported baseball for 58 years. We will work tirelessly to continue to earn the support of our fans as we build one of the elite franchises in all of Major League Baseball.”
Bill Turner
