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IL Worcester Red Sox

Valdez Drives Home Two in WooSox Comeback Win

July 9, 2023 - International League (IL)
Worcester Red Sox News Release


WORCESTER, M.A. - The Worcester Red Sox (46-40, 7-4) won their fifth game in six tries against the Syracuse Mets (35-50, 2-9) on Sunday afternoon, a 5-3 win thanks to an eighth-inning comeback at Polar Park.

The WooSox enter the All-Star break with a record of 46-40 and a 7-4 start to the second half.

Worcester trailed 3-2 entering the bottom of the eighth, a rally that began with a Stephen Scott walk. Scott stole second, moved to third on a groundout, putting the tying run 90 feet away for Ceddanne Rafaela. For the second straight day, Rafaela delivered in a big moment, smashing a game-tying RBI double to right-center.

In his first home series, Rafaela went 8-for-22 with two homers and three doubles.

Enmanuel Valdez was next, and he smacked an RBI double off the wall in left-center, plating Rafaela to give Worcester the lead. The two-bagger was part of another multi-RBI day for Valdez, who drove home six during the homestand.

Ronaldo Hernandez added a bases-loaded walk to make it 5-3, and A.J. Politi tossed a runless top of the ninth for his eighth save to finish off the WooSox' 27th come-from-behind win of the season.

Syracuse took an early lead, scoring runs in the third, fourth and fifth. Luke Voit opened the scoring with a third-inning single, Mark Vientos made it 2-0 with a bases-loaded walk of his own in the fourth and Luke Ritter homered in the fifth.

Trailing 2-0, Valdez led the home team's first comeback in the bottom of the fourth. With a man on, he tripled home Worcester's first run. Bobby Dalbec followed with an RBI single of his own, evening the game at two.

Ritter's blast gave the Mets the lead, an advantage that would hold until the WooSox' rally in the eighth.

After Shane Drohan and Kyle Barraclough each went three innings on the mound, John Schreiber pitched a runless seventh in a rehab outing. The right-hander allowed one hit but struck out one, throwing 13 pitches (nine strikes). In his first appearance since being optioned to Triple-A, Justin Garza earned the win after a scoreless top of the eighth.

The WooSox are off for the next four days, then begin a nine-game road trip, starting with a three-game road series against the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp on Friday, July 14. Radio coverage begins at 6:45 p.m. on the 98.9 Nash Icon WooSox radio network. Worcester returns home to Polar Park on July 25 for a six-game series with the Rochester Red Wings.

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