Portland Sea Dogs starter Isaac Coffey ties season high in strikeouts
Portland Sea Dogs pitcher Isaac Coffey has been on a tremendous run on the mound, securing wins in five of his last nine outings, including going 6-0 over the last two months.
On Thursday night, Coffey was brilliant again, striking out 11 batters, tying a career high over four frames. He struck out 11 hitters back on Aug. 6 at home against the Altoona Curve over five scoreless innings. The righty gave up just four hits and one unearned run, and he also hit a batter. The right-handed hurler threw 83 pitches in the outing.
Coffey finished the night with 16 swings and misses, which was second most in Double-A, six behind Travis Adams of the Wichita Wind Surge.
Coffey, 24, was drafted in the 10th round, out of Oral Roberts, during the 2022 MLB draft. The athletic 6-foot-1, 205-pounder throws from a sidearm slot and offers a four-pitch mix. He operates an 88-90 mph fastball that tops out around 91 mph. In addition, he has a 76-78 mph changeup, which is considered to be his best pitch in his repertoire, an 82-84 mph slider, and a 71-74 curveball.
This season, Coffey has made 21 appearances and 18 starts, all for the Portland Sea Dogs. He owns a 10-2 record with a 3.34 ERA while striking out 123 batters with 44 walks. Coffey has hit 21 batters in 97 innings, calling into question his command at times.
Sea Dogs reliever Brendan Cellucci earned the win, tossing 3 2/3 shutout innings of relief. The lefty allowed just one hit while striking out five, and he didn’t issue a walk.
Cellucci is enjoying his best season in the Red Sox system, posting a 7-2 record with a 3.23 ERA and four saves with 88 strikeouts to 36 walks over 55 2/3 innings (29 games).
Liam Hendriks makes second rehab appearance
Red Sox rehabbing reliever Liam Hendriks made a relief appearance for the Sea Dogs on Thursday night. He wasn’t as sharp as he was last Sunday when pitching for the WooSox.
Hendriks lasted just 1/3 of an inning, facing three opposing hitters, starting out by allowing a hit and a walk, then the next batter lined out to left for his only out of the inning. After pitching to a full count to the third batter he faced, Hendriks was charged with a pitch clock violation. His fastball sat around 93-94 mph, according to Beyond the Monster’s Josh Ball, who was covering the game at Hadlock Field.
The Australian righty tossed a perfect inning with the WooSox on Sunday.
Hendriks told reporters in Boston that he would need about six to eight rehab outings to sharpen up before he could rejoin the Red Sox. The veteran wants to throw back-to-back outings during his rehab.
