Mata Debuts, Wong Homers Again in Loss to Buffalo
WORCESTER, M.A. — The Buffalo Bisons (65-58) exploded for a series-opening victory over the Worcester Red Sox (63-61) on Tuesday night, a 14-3 final at Polar Park. In his Triple-A debut, WooSox starter Bryan Mata reached 100 miles-per-hour with his fastball, posting the following line: 3.0 IP, 2 H, 1
WORCESTER, M.A. — The Buffalo Bisons (65-58) exploded for a series-opening victory over the Worcester Red Sox (63-61) on Tuesday night, a 14-3 final at Polar Park.
In his Triple-A debut, WooSox starter Bryan Mata reached 100 miles-per-hour with his fastball, posting the following line: 3.0 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 4 BB, 1 K. The right-hander grabbed his first strikeout with Worcester in the second and allowed his lone run on a fielder’s choice in the third.
The WooSox got their runs on a two-run single in the second from Enmanuel Valdez and a Connor Wong solo home run in the eighth.
Crushed by Connor™️ pic.twitter.com/QClWlS2Bzy
— Worcester Red Sox (@WooSox) August 31, 2022
Wong’s blast went 434 feet, his eighth home run in the month of August—he has also recorded hits in 10 of his last 11 games.
Buffalo’s offense did the majority of its damage against Worcester’s bullpen, plating runs in seven consecutive offensive innings. Trailing 2-1 in the fourth, L.J. Talley blasted a solo home run to right off Chase Shugart. An inning later, Vinny Capra cracked a run-scoring double to make it 3-2 in favor of the Bisons.
Tyler Danish made his first appearance with the WooSox since April in the sixth and was charged with four runs on five hits over one inning. Gabriel Moreno ripped a line drive down the right field line for an RBI double, followed by a Yoshi Tsutsugo two-run single.
Buffalo put up a five-run seventh on a Spencer Horwitz single and a Zack Collins grand slam, both against Caleb Simpson. They added two in the eighth off Durbin Feltman on an Otto Lopez RBI double, along with a wild pitch.
Darwinzon Hernandez walked three in the ninth, allowing an RBI base on balls to Lopez in the ninth.
In total, Worcester pitching allowed 14 runs on 18 hits and a season-high 11 walks.
After being optioned to the WooSox on August 27, Jarren Duran made his first appearance with the WooSox since June 12. He went 1-for-5 with an infield single and a lineout to left.
The WooSox continue the six-game series at Polar Park on Wednesday at 6:45 p.m. against the Buffalo Bisons, affiliate of Toronto Blue Jays. On the mound, Connor Seabold (6-1, 3.50) faces Nick Allgeyer (5-4, 5.01). Radio coverage is live at 6:25 p.m. on 100.1 FM The Pike 98.9 Nash Icon and the WooSox Radio Network, while television coverage is on NESN+.