Power Show Leads WooSox to a 7-4 Win Over IronPigs

ALLENTOWN, P.A. — The Worcester Red Sox (36-29) cracked three home runs in a 7-4 win over the Lehigh Valley IronPigs (28-39) on Wednesday night at Coca-Cola Park to snap a three-game losing skid and even the seven-game series at one win apiece.

After Lehigh Valley took a 1-0 first-inning lead on an Odubel Herrera home run, the WooSox answered by putting two men on base in the second against Iron Pigs’ starter Mark Appel (2-1). Chad De La Guerra came up next, and he blasted a three-run shot (2) deep over the right field wall to put Worcester on top 3-1.

The IronPigs tied it two innings later, a frame that began with four straight hits against bulk-reliever Stephen Gonsalves (4-4). The last of those two—RBI singles from Matt Vierling and Darick Hall—made it a 3-3 game.

But the WooSox offense answered in a big way by scoring on solo homers in each of the next two frames. In the fifth, Connor Wong gave the lead back with a solo blast deep to right-center, his second long ball of the year. That swing was the final run allowed by Appel, who allowed three earned runs in five innings of work.

A 4-3 lead, courtesy of Connor Wong 👌 pic.twitter.com/qrjVOPnthg

— Worcester Red Sox (@WooSox) July 22, 2021

An inning later, Jonathan Arauz followed Wong with another homer deep to right for his fifth of the season to extend the lead to 5-3. It came against MLB-rehabbing reliever Sam Coonrod in his only inning of work.

Lehigh Valley began the seventh with a pair of walks against Gonsalves, who then got an out but allowed an RBI single that cut the lead to 5-4. Billy McMillon went to the pen, bringing in Brandon Brennan with one out and the tying run on second.

Brennan threw one pitch—it was lined up the middle by Dalton Guthrie, but it was caught by second baseman Jeter Downs who stepped on the bag to complete a lead-saving, inning-ending double play.

Worcester added insurance in the eighth and ninth. Arauz delivered an RBI single that slipped through a pulled-in infield, and Yairo Muñoz added a single that brought home one in the ninth.

The 7-4 advantage held in the ninth, as Phillips Valdez came through with a scoreless inning to record his first save of the Triple-A season. Arauz had a perfect night at the plate, going 3-for-3 with a walk, two RBI and two runs scored.

The WooSox continue the series Wednesday at 7:05 p.m. at Coca-Cola Park versus the Lehigh Valley IronPigs. Radio coverage starts live at 6:45 p.m. on 98.9 Nash Icon and the WooSox Radio Network. Matthew Kent (0-0, 7.36) gets the start for Worcester, facing David Parkinson (0-6, 6.71).