By Tiffany Williams –
On Tuesday night, the Worcester Red Sox returned home to Polar Park in Worcester, Massachusetts, to kick off a six-game homestand against the Durham Bulls. The Red Sox displayed an impressive performance, securing an 8-2 victory.
Starting pitcher Van Belle took the mound for Worcester, delivering a stellar outing over seven innings. He threw a total of 81 pitches, with 60 being strikes. Belle effectively limited the Bulls’ offense, allowing just four hits and one run while striking out five batters. Following Belle’s strong performance, Zack Kelly came in for relief and pitched two innings, throwing 13 pitches—seven for strikes. Kelly gave up two hits and one run, striking out one batter. Closing out the game for Worcester was Isaiah Campbell, who took the mound for one inning, allowing only one hit, while walking one and striking out three batters.
The scoring started in the bottom of the first inning when Jhostynxon Garcia and Nate Eaton crossed home plate, giving Worcester an early 2-0 lead. The Red Sox extended their advantage in the fourth inning when Blake Sabol scored, making it 3-0. The sixth inning saw Roman Anthony capitalize on a 95.9 mph sinker from Durham’s Cole Wolcox, smashing his sixth home run of the season, further extending Worcester’s lead to 4-0.
The Bulls managed to get on the scoreboard in the top of the seventh inning. Coco Montes launched his third home run of the season off Van Belle, connecting with an 89.7 mph four-seam fastball, bringing the score to 4-1. Durham continued to chip away at the deficit when Tanner Murray scored in the eighth inning, narrowing the gap to 4-2.
However, Worcester responded robustly in the bottom of the eighth inning. Blake Sabol once again crossed the plate, allowing the Red Sox to extend their lead to 5-2. Jhostynxon “The Password” Garcia then made an impact with his first Triple-A homer, hitting a three-run shot off Joey Krehbiel, which was clocked at 94.4 mph. This significant homer propelled Worcester’s lead to 8-2. Garcia, a 22-year-old Venezuelan outfielder, had just been promoted from Double-A Portland earlier that day. He is in his fifth professional season after being signed as an international free agent by the Red Sox in July 2019. This season, before his promotion, Garcia had played 33 games (31 in center field) for Portland, batting .256 with five doubles, one triple, and three home runs. While his average peaked at .291 on May 7, he had struggled recently, going 5-for-31 in his last eight games.
The Worcester Red Sox and Durham Bulls will face off again on Wednesday night for the second game of their six-game series.
Wednesday night at Polar Park is designated as First Responder Wednesday, presented by National Grid, offering first responders four free general admission tickets. The evening will also feature the Smiley Buck-A-Burger Meal Deal and a Purr in the Park Cat Takeover, encouraging fans to bring their cats to enjoy the game.