Laura Soukkavong –
SYRACUSE, N.Y. — The Worcester Red Sox nearly erased a six-run deficit for the second consecutive night, but their late rally came up just short as the Syracuse Mets held on for a 6-5 victory Saturday night at NBT Bank Stadium.
The loss dropped Worcester to 40-42 overall and 4-7 in the second half, while Syracuse improved to 44-42 overall and 6-5 in the second half. The defeat also marked the third straight year the WooSox have lost to Syracuse on Independence Day.
The game remained scoreless until the bottom of the fourth inning when Syracuse broke through against Worcester reliever Noah Song. MJ Melendez drew a leadoff walk before Christian Arroyo singled to put runners on the corners. Ryan Clifford followed with an RBI single to give the Mets a 1-0 lead. After Jihwan Bae walked to load the bases, Hayden Senger lined an RBI single to left to make it 2-0. Vidal Brujan then delivered the biggest hit of the inning, a three-run triple down the right-field line that extended the lead to 5-0.
Syracuse added another run in the seventh inning when MJ Melendez hit a solo home run to right field off Worcester reliever Angel Bastardo, pushing the Mets’ advantage to 6-0.
Meanwhile, Syracuse starter Jack Wenninger controlled the game after working out of early trouble. Following four stranded Worcester baserunners over the first three innings, Wenninger retired 13 of the next 14 hitters to complete seven innings. He allowed one hit, struck out five and earned the victory to improve to 4-5.
Worcester finally broke through in the eighth inning. Braiden Ward singled before consecutive hit batters loaded the bases with one out. Mikey Romero delivered a two-run single through the right side to cut the deficit to 6-2. Jason Delay then walked to reload the bases, and Brett Harris grounded into a force play that brought home Mickey Gasper to make it 6-3. Romero later scored on a throwing error by Jihwan Bae, trimming the deficit to 6-4.
Osvaldo Berrios kept Worcester within striking distance by striking out the side in the bottom of the eighth inning.
The WooSox mounted one final rally in the ninth. Max Ferguson walked and later scored after Braiden Ward singled and Mickey Gasper delivered an RBI single to right field, cutting the deficit to 6-5. Worcester had runners on the corners with two outs and the tying run 90 feet away, but Mikey Romero grounded out to first base to end the game.
Noah Song took the loss for Worcester, allowing five runs on five hits over 1.1 innings. Former WooSox left-hander Joe Jacques recorded the final out for his second save of the season.
The WooSox will attempt to earn a series victory in Sunday’s finale. Left-hander Raymond Burgos is scheduled to start for Worcester against Syracuse right-hander Jack Weisenburger. First pitch is set for 1:05 p.m., with pregame coverage beginning at 12:45 p.m. on the WooSox Radio Network.