WooSox Blast Tides with Six-Homer Night in Norfolk
NORFOLK, VA – A night after being shut out for just the second time this season, the Worcester Red Sox responded with a 13-5 drubbing of the first-place Norfolk Tides, matching a season high with six home runs on Wednesday night at Harbor Park. Bobby Dalbec and Ryan Fitzgerald each
NORFOLK, VA – A night after being shut out for just the second time this season, the Worcester Red Sox responded with a 13-5 drubbing of the first-place Norfolk Tides, matching a season high with six home runs on Wednesday night at Harbor Park. Bobby Dalbec and Ryan Fitzgerald each had two-homer games, while Ronaldo Hernandez and Narciso Crook added homers of their own.
Hernandez wiped out an early 2-0 deficit with a game-tying, two-run single in the top of the third. Christian Koss gave Worcester a 3-2 edge with an RBI base knock in the fourth, and the WooSox rolled from there, thanks in large part to Dalbec’s offensive outburst.
Dalbec went 4-for-6 with two home runs, a triple, and four RBIs. His night started with an opposite-field single in the first inning, then he blasted a 1-2 fastball 388 feet out to the Tides bullpen for a three-run homer in the fourth. The rip to right field gave Worcester a 6-2 advantage, and it turned out to be his second-most impressive long ball of the game.
After legging out a triple in the sixth on a frozen rope to the center field wall, Dalbec came to bat in the eighth following a leadoff home run from Fitzgerald. Needing a double to complete the cycle, Dalbec worked the count to 2-2 against Joey Krehbiel (KRAY-bull), and punished a hanging slider completely out of the ballpark. The 453-foot torpedo zoomed past the left side of the batter’s eye, disappeared into the Norfolk night, and extended Worcester’s lead to 12-3.
Fitzgerald, who came into the game in the bottom of the third when Enmanuel Valdez was hit by a pitch on the right arm, homered to right field in each of his last two plate appearances. After going back-to-back with Dalbec to lead off the eighth, he hit a skyscraping shot over the wall in right center to cap the scoring at 13-5 in the ninth.
Crook went 2-for-5 with a double in the fourth and a solo homer in the fifth, while Hernandez finished the night 2-for-4 with 5 RBIs, including a three-run home run in the sixth inning that pushed the WooSox lead to 10-3.
In his second relief appearance since his impressive MLB debut, Chris Murphy (H, 2) allowed two unearned runs in 3 relief innings, surrendering four hits with no walks and five strikeouts.
David Hamilton returned to the lineup for the first time in 11 games (left thumb sprain), and reached base four times with two singles and two walks.
After retiring the first four batters of the game, Matt Dermody (W, 3-2) scattered six hits and two walks while allowing three runs in five innings. He struck out five, throwing 94 pitches with 60 strikes.
The series continues with a day game on Thursday at 12:05 p.m. at Harbor Park. Shane Drohan (2-1, 5.55 ERA) is scheduled to start for Worcester. Radio coverage will start at 11:45 a.m. on the 98.9 NASH Icon WooSox Radio Network.
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