Kavadas & Sogard Homer, WooSox Win Final Home Game of Season at Polar Park
Published on September 18, 2023 under International League (IL)
Worcester Red Sox News Release
WORCESTER, M.A. - The Worcester Red Sox (38-30, 77-66) won their final game of the season at Polar Park in decisive fashion, an 11-5 win over the Syracuse Mets (25-42, 58-83) in front of 9,508 on Sunday afternoon.
The WooSox close their season with a home record of 43-33, finishing above .500 at Polar Park for the second straight season under Chad Tracy.
Worcester entered the bottom of the fourth trailing 4-0, but would celebrate their final game at Polar Park by scoring 11 times over the next four innings. With the bases loaded in the fourth, Niko Kavadas smacked a two-run single to put the home team on the board, the beginning of a big afternoon for the 24-year-old.
In the fifth, the WooSox brought 10 men to the plate, starting with a leadoff walk by David Hamilton. He promptly stole second, his International League-leading 57th of the season, then scored the third Worcester run of the day on a Nick Sogard single.
After another hit, Ronaldo Hernandez cracked a game-tying run-scoring double down the left field line. Corey Rosier followed with an RBI infield single to give Worcester its first lead of the day, and a few batters later, Christian Koss ripped a ball at 110-miles-per-hour off the glove of the third baseman, plating Hernandez to make it 6-4.
Despite a Michael Perez homer in the sixth for Syracuse, the WooSox would score four times for the second straight frame in the bottom of the inning. Hernandez made it a multi-hit, multi-RBI afternoon with a single, and two batters later, Kavadas stepped up with two on.
He worked a 1-1 count, then smashed a gamebreaking three-run home run. Kavadas now has seven Triple-A home runs, four of which came in the month of September.
In the seventh, Sogard lined a solo home run over the left field wall, adding to his career high in home runs (7) and extra-base-hits (28). His long ball marked the 105th WooSox home run of the season at Polar Park, adding to the Red Sox Triple-A single-season record for home runs (213).
On the mound, Shane Drohan recorded just two outs and allowed three runs before the WooSox went to the bullpen-Oddanier Mosqueda was the first of seven Worcester relievers, tossing 1.1 scoreless innings.
Zack Kelly appeared on rehab for the second straight day, working an 11-pitch scoreless inning with one strikeout.
In his first game action since May 9, Bryan Mata posted the following line: 0.2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 1 K on 24 pitches (14 strikes). Justin Hagenman followed and earned the win, tossing a team-high 2.1 innings on the day and allowing one run. Luis Guerrero, Joe Jacques and A.J. Politi worked runless seventh, eighth and ninths, respectively.
The WooSox conclude their season with a six-game road series starting Tuesday at 6:45 p.m. against the Lehigh Valley IronPigs, affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. On the mound, Kyle Barraclough (8-1, 3.60) is the scheduled starter for Worcester. Radio coverage is live at 6:25 p.m. on 100.1 FM The Pike, 98.9 Nash Icon and the WooSox Radio Network.
The total attendance for the season at Polar Park was 519,651, while a ballpark record 545,231 tickets were sold.
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