Manchester, N.H. – Jordan Groshans produced his fifth three-hit night of the season, but the New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Blue Jays Double-A affiliate) couldn’t muster enough offense in a 3-1 loss to the Portland Sea Dogs (Boston Red Sox) on Thursday night at Delta Dental Stadium.
After starting his night by grounding into a double play, Groshans responded with hard-hit singles in each of his final three plate appearances.
New Hampshire’s lone run came in the third, when Taylor singled, moved to second on a base hit from Groshans, and scored on a fielding error at second base. The error made it 1-0 Fisher Cats, but Portland took the lead back in the top of the fourth.
Ronaldo Hernandez started the rally with a single, and Hudson Potts doubled to put two men in scoring position. A wild pitch tied the game at 1-1, and a Roldani Baldwin sac fly gave Portland a 2-1 lead.
The Sea Dogs made it 3-1 in the sixth with an error, a stolen base, and an RBI single from Jeisson Rosario.
Elvis Luciano pitched well in limited action, returning to the Fisher Cats rotation and pitching beyond the first inning for the first time since July 18. He tossed 2.2 scoreless innings, working around two walks and two singles.
Jon Harris provided two scoreless innings of relief for New Hampshire, allowing just one hit and recording one strikeout. Brandon Eisert tossed a perfect ninth to keep it close.
The series continues at Delta Dental Stadium with a doubleheader on Friday at 5:35 p.m., one game on Saturday at 7:05 p.m., and another doubleheader on Sunday at 12:05 p.m.
