BINGHAMTON, N.Y. — Reynaldo Rodriguez hit home runs in his first two at-bats Wednesday night to lead the Portland Sea Dogs to a 7-0 rout of the last-place Binghamton Mets in an Eastern League game shortened to six innings because of rain.

The Sea Dogs have won five of their last six, scoring 47 runs. They totaled 21 runs in a pair of seven-inning games in a doubleheader sweep Tuesday.

“The guys are doing a nice job as far as working the count,” Sea Dogs Manager Kevin Boles said. “They’re taking pitchers’ pitches and not giving in. They’re getting pitches they can drive. Our offense has been very productive all year.”

After falling behind 5-3 in Tuesday’s second game, the Sea Dogs have outscored the Mets 19-0 over nine innings.

Rodriguez hit a three-run homer to right field for a 4-0 lead in the first. He closed the scoring with a two-run shot to left-center in the third.

He had two home runs in 22 games before homering in his last at-bat Tuesday. He wound up with three straight homers following Wednesday’s start.

Advertisement

“I keep working on my swing in the cage and in practice, and I was able to take that into the game,” Rodriguez said.

Chih-Hsien Chiang, who was named EL Player of the Month for June, added two doubles.

Chiang drove in the first run and scored on each Rodriguez homer.

In June, Chiang had hits in 21 of 27 games and reached base in 23. He batted .320 with a league-high seven home runs, driving in 27.

“He accounted for close to 50 runs in a month,” Boles said. “That’s very impressive. Obviously we like his bat and he’s starting to come along defensively. It’s good that he’s starting to get some recognition with the Futures Game and the (Eastern League) All-Star game.”

Chiang started Wednesday first in the league in slugging percentage (.618) and extra-base hits (44); second in RBI (58) and doubles (26); fourth in total bases (152); seventh in runs (49), tied for seventh in home runs (14); and tied for ninth in batting average (.309).

Advertisement

Brock Huntzinger and Cesar Cabral combined on a three-hit shutout. Huntzinger (5-7) held the Mets hitless for the first three innings. He struck out eight and walked two, giving up two hits in five innings.

“He was able to leverage the ball down in the zone and he didn’t make many mistakes,” Boles said.

Cabral gave up a hit and struck out two in the sixth. It was his first appearance since June 26.

The rain moved in with Cabral pitching in the middle of the sixth. The game was stopped at the end of the inning and called after a delay of more than an hour.


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.