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IL Worcester Red Sox

With 24 Games Remaining, WooSox Are Making a Late Push for the Postseason

August 28, 2024 - International League (IL)
Worcester Red Sox News Release


At the end of play on August 6, the Worcester Red Sox were a season-worst nine games under .500 with their hopes of a postseason berth seemingly out the window.

Three weeks later, things are getting interesting.

Worcester has won 14 of their last 17 games following their series-opening 12-2 win over the Toledo Mud Hens on August 27 at Polar Park. The club sits five games back of the International League-leading Columbus Clippers, who are 34-17 entering Wednesday's slate of games.

Though it's still an uphill battle, the season is far from over. In baseball, it's often about getting hot at the right time.

Consistent offensive production has been a theme for the WooSox all year, but it has certainly shown in their recent winning stretch. Over their last 17 contests, Worcester has averaged 6.2 runs per game, propelling them to a league-best 731 total runs scored. Their +91 run differential ranks second best in the International League behind only Omaha at +125.

The WooSox also top the league in a host of categories, including RBIs (684), BBs (650), and OBP (.370) and are tied with Columbus for the lead in OPS (.807). The addition of some of baseball's top prospects has certainly helped.

Roman Anthony, the Boston Red Sox' No. 2 prospect according to MLB Pipeline, was promoted to Triple-A along with Marcelo Mayer (No.1) and Kyle Teel (No. 3) on August 12. Since his introduction to the lineup, Anthony has been one of the WooSox' leading contributors.

In 12 games with the club, the 20-year-old outfielder is hitting .364/.426/.636 with three home runs and nine RBIs. After a 4-for-5 night in the series opener against Toledo, Anthony is 17-for-36 with 13 runs scored in his last eight games.

"He's not 20 years old," Kristian Campbell said before his first game at Polar Park. "It's crazy some of the things I've seen him do...He's really special and a really good outfielder, too."

Campbell was promoted to Triple-A before the WooSox opened their six-game road trip in Norfolk on August 20. In six games with the club, the Red Sox' No. 5 prospect is batting .333 (9-for-27) with three home runs and 12 R

Though he was only drafted a year ago, Campbell has not been fazed by the elevated competition in his first full professional season. Beginning the year at High-A Salem, the Georgia Tech product slashed .306/.418/.558 before earning a promotion to Double-A Portland, where he hit an even better .362/.463/.582 in 56 games with the Sea Dogs.

"Very talented," WooSox manager Chad Tracy said about the 22-year-old. "Another one that you look at and you see the quality of the at-bat, the bat speed, the ability to put the ball in play with two strikes, use the whole field--all these things have stood out to me in one week's time...He definitely belongs here and then some."

While Anthony, Campbell, and the rest of Worcester's offensive production has been a key factor all season long, the pitching staff's turnaround has fueled Worcester's late-season playoff push.

Over the season's first four months, WooSox pitching had a 5.55 ERA in April, 4.88 ERA in May, 4.99 ERA in June, and 5.05 ERA in July. In their first six games of August, it seemed the trend would continue with the team surrendering 43 earned runs in its first 48 innings. But in their last 17 games, the pitching staff has posted a 3.19 ERA in 144 innings--with the bullpen stepping up in a big way.

During their winning stretch, the WooSox relief corps has been nothing short of dominant. In 71.1 innings since August 7, the 'pen has a 2.91 ERA with 77 strikeouts. Among the bullpen's top contributors is Luis Guerrero, who has punched out 18 batters in his 10.1 scoreless innings streak.

"We've done a fantastic job in the last two-and-a-half weeks of closing out games after grabbing the lead," Tracy said about his bullpen's recent success. "That's been a big part of this, as well."

As the WooSox continue their penultimate homestand against the Toledo Mud Hens on Wednesday, they'll look to keep the streak going with the season entering its final stretch.

For information on tickets, please visit https://www.milb.com/worcester/tickets

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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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