PORTLAND – Kyle Weiland finally can toast a win.
Maybe today will be Casey Kelly’s turn. His chances are good if Ryan Kalish and teammates keep the bats hot.
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Kalish drove in three runs with a home run and triple Sunday to lead the Portland Sea Dogs to an 8-4 win over New Britain before 6,930 at Hadlock Field.
Weiland (1-3), a right-handed prospect, recorded his first victory with six innings of four-hit, one-run ball, striking out five. His ERA dropped down half a run to 4.74.
“Just attacking the hitter,” Weiland said. “We talked about it before the game with (pitching coach Bob) Kipper. I had been trying to pick the corners a little too much. We needed to change the mentality, to go after them and make them swing the bat.”
Kelly (0-3), the Red Sox’s top pitching prospect, looks for his first victory today at 1 p.m., in a game televised by NESN.
It will be a matchup of first-round draft picks as New Britain starts the Twins’ top pitching prospect, Kyle Gibson (3-0).
The Rock Cats rolled out another prospect Sunday, left-hander Tyler Robertson (0-5), who gave up a two-run homer to Kalish on a 3-0 fastball in the third inning. Robertson had struck Kalish out in the first on a curveball but fell behind in the third.
“He’s tough on lefties,” Kalish said. “With it 3-0, I figured he would lay one in and he did.
“(Manager) Arnie (Beyeler) gave me the green light. Knowing that your manager has confidence in you feels good.”
Kalish’s team-leading eighth home run reached the eighth row of the right-field pavilion.
In the fourth, Robertson didn’t recover from an infield error, allowing five unearned runs.
With the bases loaded and two outs, first baseman Erik Lis bobbled Nate Spears’ grounder. Spears and Robertson raced to first base, but Robertson couldn’t handle Lis’ toss.
Two runs scored. Che-Hsuan Lin (3 for 5) then singled in two more runs, and Kalish tripled in Lin for a 7-1 lead.
Kalish is 7 for 9 in his last two games. He’s hitting .288.
“He’s been swinging the bat really well,” said Beyeler, who didn’t hesitate to let Kalish swing on a 3-0 pitch. “He’s earned that. And he got a good pitch and put a good swing on it.”
Yamaico Navarro (2 for 3) singled in Ray Chang (2 for 3) in the fifth for an 8-1 lead.
The support was plenty for Weiland, who showed good command (17 first-pitch strikes) until the sixth, when he walked two. That and a single loaded the bases with one out.
Weiland got out of it with a strikeout and flyout.
Reliever Kyle Lawson shut out New Britain for two innings. The Rock Cats got to closer Bryce Cox for three runs.
NOTES: Shortstop Jose Iglesias will miss a few games with a bruised hand, suffered Saturday when he was hit by a pitch. It wasn’t broken. Starter Stephen Fife was put on the seven-day disabled list with a bruise on his left foot. Ticket-holders to today’s game can play catch in the outfield from 10 to 11:15 a.m.
Staff Writer Kevin Thomas can be contacted at 791-6411 or at:
kthomas@pressherald.com
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