By Tiffany Williams –
With the All-Star break now behind us, baseball is back across New England as the Hartford Yard Goats, Worcester Red Sox, and Portland Sea Dogs return to action this weekend.
In Hartford, the Yard Goats are back at Dunkin’ Park tonight to open a three-game weekend series against the New York Yankees’ Double-A affiliate, the Somerset Patriots. The series marks the team’s first action since the All-Star break, following a six-game set in Portland that ended with three straight losses after Hartford took the first three games. The Yard Goats are still searching for their first series win in July, having gone 0-2-1 so far, despite winning their final two series in June.
Right-hander Connor Staine will take the mound for Hartford, making his 16th start of the season and his second against Somerset. Staine is seeking his second win in his first season at the Double-A level. The 2022 fifth-round draft pick by the Rockies was transferred from the ACL roster and started most recently on July 11 in Portland, where he allowed two runs in 4.1 innings during a 4-3 loss. Staine earned his first Eastern League win on April 17 against Portland. Last season, he went 4-6 with a 4.48 ERA in 20 games with Spokane, striking out 101 batters over 90.1 innings. He started Game Two of the Northwest League Playoffs last September in Vancouver and was ranked the Rockies’ No. 29 prospect in 2023.
The Yard Goats’ active roster includes 28 players—16 pitchers and 12 position players—with 13 returnees and 15 newcomers. The team features two first-round picks: No. 1 overall prospect and first baseman Charlie Condon, and outfielder Benny Montgomery, the Rockies’ No. 13 prospect. Other top prospects include outfielder Cole Carrigg (No. 2), left-hander Sean Sullivan (No. 8), outfielder Jared Thomas (No. 10), left-hander Welinton Herrera (No. 20), right-hander Jack Mahoney (No. 24), infielder Dyan Jorge (No. 27), and tonight’s starter, right-hander Connor Staine (No. 30).
Recent roster transactions include the promotion of infielder Braylen Wimmer from Spokane on July 18, the placement of pitcher Blake Adams on the injured list, and the promotions of Kyle Karros and Brayan Castillo to Triple-A. On July 1, Charlie Condon and Jared Thomas were called up from Spokane, while Braiden Ward and infielder Jose Torres were promoted to Triple-A.
Tonight marks the 10th of 18 games between Hartford and Somerset this season. The Yard Goats are 5-4 against the Patriots so far, having taken two of three at home and split six games on the road in New Jersey. This weekend’s series is Somerset’s final visit to Hartford. The Yard Goats will travel to Somerset again in late August. The two teams met in the Eastern League Division Series last season.
In Worcester, the WooSox return to Polar Park tonight to begin a three-game weekend series against the first-place Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders, Triple-A affiliate of the New York Yankees. First pitch is scheduled for 6:45 p.m. and marks the team’s first home game since a July 3 loss to Syracuse.
The WooSox come into the second half with a 6-12 record and sit in ninth place in the International League East, 8.5 games behind Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. The RailRiders have surged to a league-best 14-3 start to the second half and carry an eight-game winning streak into Worcester.
Worcester has performed well at home, winning 14 of their last 19 games at Polar Park since May 23. They are 24-17 at home this season and could climb to a season-high eight games over .500 at home with a win tonight. The WooSox have played just three home games so far in the second half (1-2), compared to 15 on the road (5-10), while the RailRiders are 13-2 at home since the second half began on June 24 but only 1-1 on the road.
This weekend marks Scranton’s first visit to Worcester in 2025. The teams will also play Saturday at 4:05 p.m. and Sunday at 1:05 p.m., wrapping up the brief series before Scranton returns for a six-game series from September 2–7.
Worcester reached the All-Star break with a 47-45 overall record (6-12 in the second half). By comparison, they were 44-48 at the break last year, 46-40 in 2023, and 47-43 in 2022. There was no official break during their inaugural 2021 season, shortened by the pandemic. The WooSox have had four straight winning seasons since their inception.
Among standout performers, outfielder Jhostynxon Garcia has hit safely in four straight games (6-for-15), while infielder Vaughn Grissom is on a tear, hitting in five of his last six games (.455, 3 doubles, 1 HR, 7 RBI) and 11 of his last 13 overall. Grissom ranks in the league’s top five in hits (87), doubles (24), and runs (57).
First baseman Nathan Hickey has hits in four of his last five games (6-for-18), and Blaze Jordan brings a seven-game hitting streak into tonight’s game. Outfielder Trayce Thompson is 6-for-21 in his last six games with three extra-base hits and seven RBI.
On the mound, reliever Jose Adames has allowed just one hit and one run in his last 12 appearances (12.2 IP). Austin Adams has struck out eight and allowed no earned runs in his last seven appearances. Hobie Harris and Wyatt Mills have each posted strong recent numbers, with Mills allowing only two runs in his last 14.2 innings over nine games.
The WooSox have also welcomed back two familiar faces. Catcher Ronaldo Hernandez returns to Worcester after a stint with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and two games in the Mexican League with Puebla. A fan favorite, Hernandez played in 105 games in 2022 (.261, 17 HR, 63 RBI) and 99 games in 2023 (.242, 17 HR, 70 RBI) for the WooSox. He signed with Arizona prior to the 2024 season and hit .311 with 11 home runs for Triple-A Reno before joining the Yankees organization.
Infielder David Hamilton was optioned from Boston on July 12. In 62 MLB games this season, Hamilton batted .179 with three home runs and led the Red Sox with 15 stolen bases. He played in 103 games for Worcester last year, batting .247 with 17 home runs and 57 stolen bases, setting a franchise record. In 2022, Hamilton led all of Double-A with 70 stolen bases while playing for Portland.
Meanwhile, the Portland Sea Dogs are on the road in Reading, Pennsylvania, to open a three-game weekend series against the Reading Fightin Phils at FirstEnergy Stadium.
Infielder Marvin Alcantara enters the series with a three-game RBI streak. The 20-year-old, the second youngest on the Sea Dogs roster, has been strong defensively, turning 17 double plays and holding a .967 fielding percentage over 355.1 innings split between second base and shortstop.
The Sea Dogs lead the league in stolen base activity with infielder/outfielder Max Ferguson atop the team leaderboard. Ferguson has stolen 24 bases in 26 attempts, the fifth-highest total in the Eastern League, while infielder Ahbram Liendo is in a four-way tie for sixth with 22 steals. As a team, Portland has swiped 126 bases this season, including 15 against Reading alone.
Portland added reinforcements ahead of Friday’s matchup. Infielder Karson Simas returns to the Sea Dogs, having hit .207 with five doubles, a triple, and a home run across 29 games earlier this year. Right-hander Cooper Adams joins from High-A Greenville after posting a 3.95 ERA and 55 strikeouts in 43.1 innings. Right-hander Jacob Webb was also promoted from Greenville after striking out 12 in 9.2 innings with a 0.93 ERA over six appearances.
Left-hander Dalton Rogers gets the start for Portland. In his sixth start of the season, Rogers brings a 2-2 record and 4.85 ERA. He threw six innings against Hartford on July 9, giving up two runs (one earned), and last faced Reading on May 22, allowing three runs over 3.2 innings while striking out six.
As the second half of the season begins, fans in Hartford, Worcester, and Portland can look forward to an exciting weekend of baseball with playoff implications beginning to take shape.