Pitching Matchups; Game of the Day 9/3/11

5:05pm
Trenton Thunder (Craig Heyer 10-8, 4.10) GAME 1
vs. New Britain Rock Cats (Logan Darnell 1-1, 4.85)

Trenton Thunder (Cory Arbiso 5-5, 4.98) GAME 2
vs. New Britain Rock Cats (N/A)

6:00pm
New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Nestor Molina 2-0, 0.47)
vs. Portland Sea Dogs (Jeremy Kehrt 3-1, 4.46)

6:05pm
Scranton Wilkes-Barre Yankees (Manny Banuelos 2-2, 3.03)
vs. Pawtucket Red Sox (Tony Pena Jr. 9-6, 3.40)

Tri-City Valley Cats (N/A)
vs. Vermont Lake Monsters (Seth Frankoff 5-3, 2.55)

7:05pm
Lowell Spinners (Raul Alcantara 0-2, 6.94)
vs. Connecticut Tigers (Wilsen Palacios 4-5, 3.38)

Game of the Day – Yankees vs. Red Sox – It’s clinching time for the Pawtucket Red Sox (78-61) who can earn postseason rights with a win tonight or a Lehigh Valley loss to Buffalo…but let’s face it, it’s always nicer to win and get in than to back in. However, there stands a tough task in front of them if they wish to clinch their first playoff appearance since 2008 in front of their home fans. That task comes in the form of Scranton pitcher Manny Banuelos, who baffled the PawSox lineup on Monday when he allowed just one hit and two walks over seven innings. He is considered the Yankees best pitching prospect by most experts and the 20-year-old lefty has breezed through the system, landing in Triple-A at the beginning of August. This will be Banuelos seventh start since being called up from Trenton and he is in search of his third straight victory. Tony Pena Jr. gets the call for the PawSox tonight, his second tilt against Banuelos this week. Pena pitched admirably in that game, going 4 2/3 and allowing only 1 earned run, but of course the lack of offensive support did not help his cause. Pena picked up the loss in that game and had finished both July and August with losses, but on the flip-side he started both of those months with wins. So the big question is, will this be viewed as his first start of September, or his last?...The PawSox have not won the I.L. North title since 2003. Scranton Wilkes-Barre's streak of five straight I.L. North titles will come to end this season…Pawtucket is 8-6 versus the Yankees this season, but are only 2-4 against them at home...The PawSox won exactly 17 games in June, July and August.

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