PAWTUCKET — Donning sharp new uniforms and caps, Los Osos Polares de Pawtucket stifled the Buffalo Bisons, 3-1, at McCoy Stadium on a brisk Tuesday night.
In partnership with Minor League Baseball, the PawSox are changing their name for virtually all of their Tuesday home games to celebrate the surrounding Hispanic community. Fittingly, in the first edition of the season, Venezuelan-born starter William Cuevas, Dominican-born reliever Williams Jerez and Cuban- [...]
PAWTUCKET — Donning sharp new uniforms and caps, Los Osos Polares de Pawtucket stifled the Buffalo Bisons, 3-1, at McCoy Stadium on a brisk Tuesday night.
In partnership with Minor League Baseball, the PawSox are changing their name for virtually all of their Tuesday home games to celebrate the surrounding Hispanic community. Fittingly, in the first edition of the season, Venezuelan-born starter William Cuevas, Dominican-born reliever Williams Jerez and Cuban-born southpaw Roenis Elias powered Los Osos Polares (which translates to “polar bears”) and combined on a four-hit effort to even the three-game series with the Bisons (1-1).
In his first start since returning to the Red Sox organization after spending 2017 with Detroit and Miami, Cuevas tossed 6 1/3 shutout innings of three-hit work with six strikeouts. Cuevas did not allow a hit until a one-out single in the top of the fifth.
“He attacked the zone, fastball command,” Pawtucket manager Kevin Boles said. “The pace, especially after [Monday] night with a four-hour game, he set the tone, got the defense involved. Just a terrific job. Very uncomfortable swings. Just kept them off balance the whole night.”
Jerez took over in the seventh with runners at second and third but escaped trouble with a strikeout and weak groundout to short. The southpaw followed that with a 1-2-3 eighth inning. Jerez has now retired all nine batters he’s faced this season.
“He’s around the plate. Definitely the command of the fastball is explosive, you see how the ball comes out of his hand,” Boles said. “He’s aggressive too. It looks like he’s not trying to be too quick with his delivery. It’s a couple of outings, it’s early, but so far, so good. He’s been very impressive. He goes right after hitters.”
Elias fanned two in the ninth, allowed the only run but still got the save.
Pawtucket designated hitter Mike Olt singled and doubled in his PawSox debut after being promoted earlier in the day from Double-A Portland. Shortstop Mike Miller (2-for-2, BB) reached base all three trips to the plate.
Buffalo left-handed starter Ryan Borucki (L, 0-1) gave up a pair of runs on six hits and two walks in five innings.
The PawSox loaded the bases in the home half of the fifth with a pair of walks and an infield single. That’s when cleanup man Sam Travis scorched a two-run single to center to push Pawtucket ahead, 2-0.
Three straight singles loaded the bases again for Pawtucket in the sixth, and center fielder Rusney Castillo lifted a sacrifice fly to the warning track in right field to score third baseman Chad De La Guerra and widen the advantage to 3-0.
The PawSox conclude their three-game series with Buffalo on Wednesday at 12:05 p.m.