Stewart Homers to Win Game One, WooSox Split Twin Bill 

WORCESTER, M.A. — The Worcester Red Sox (11-9) charged back to win game one over the Buffalo Bisons (12-8) and nearly did the same in game two, splitting a doubleheader by final scores of 4-2 and 7-5, respectively.

In game one, Buffalo grabbed the early lead on a two-run homer from Samad Taylor, a ball that left the bat at 99 miles-per-hour. That was the only mistake Connor Seabold made all day, as the right-hander tossed six innings of two-run ball, striking out six in the win.

Over his last three appearances, Seabold has posted an ERA of 1.06 in 17 innings of work.

That outing kept the WooSox in the game, and the offense followed suit. In the fourth, Jeter Downs smashed a 2-1 offering over the right field wall to put the home team on the board, giving Downs his third long ball of the year.

It remained a one-run game until the sixth, when Worcester put runners on first and third for Franchy Cordero, who lifted a ball deep to left center for a game-tying sac-fly. One batter later, Christin Stewart delivered a go-ahead, two-run home run that plummeted to Earth above the Worcester Wall.

4-2 WooSox!! pic.twitter.com/l3PveBUVYY

— Worcester Red Sox (@WooSox) April 27, 2022

Stewart’s third homer of the season was the difference, as Zack Kelly posted a 1-2-3 inning in the seventh to seal the 4-2 win in game one.

Game two began with five rallies—three from the Bisons and two from the WooSox, and at the end of three, Buffalo led 4-2. Darwinzon Hernandez got the start for Worcester, going two innings and allowing two runs on four strikeouts, one walk and two hit-by-pitches (26 strikes, 21 balls). The runs for the WooSox came on an error and a sac-fly from Grant Williams, before Buffalo put up two in the third thanks to a Nick Podkul solo homer and a Joshua Fuentes RBI single.

The Bisons made it a 7-2 game on a three-run shot by Taylor in the sixth, a near carbon copy of his home run in game one. The WooSox nearly tied the game in the seventh on a three-run home run from Ryan Fitzgerald, his sixth of the season. Worcester put the winning run on base, but Adrian Hernandez struck out Franchy Cordero to cinch a Buffalo victory.

The WooSox continue the six-game series versus the Buffalo Bisons on Thursday at Polar Park. On the mound, Thomas Pannone, off six innings of two run ball in Syracuse, faces former San Francisco Giant Shaun Anderson. Radio coverage is live at 6:25 p.m. on 98.9 Nash Icon and the WooSox Radio Network, while television coverage is on NESN+ tape delay.