WORCESTER—One of baseball’s greatest appeals in the chilly Northeast, beyond the bunts and balls and strikes and triples, is that it represents summer in this eclectic part of the world.
Bad news — baseball here ends here next Sunday on the day that autumn officially begins. Good news — a lot will be happening at Polar Park between now and then.
The last six games of the Worcester Red Sox season are scheduled to played starting Tuesday as Fan Appreciation Week. The team’s longtime rival, the Rochester Red Wings, will provide the opposition. How fitting is that for the end to this year’s schedule?
The last two teams on it are Syracuse and Rochester, the only two cities that were in the league during Worcester’s first year in Triple-A, 1899.
“This year has been extraordinary for the WooSox,” club President Dr. Charles Steinberg said. “More people have packed the park per game than last year and even the year before that. We appreciate that fans are coming in increasing numbers in our fifth year, and are helping us to make Polar Park better than ever.”
The Worcester Red Sox will break the 400,000 mark in attendance during the homestand’s first game. They are at 398,419 at present.
The final six games culminate with a Sunday afternoon celebration when fans can meet the team before the game, and the players give fans the shirts off their backs after it is over.
Post-game, when kids can run the bases as usual and fans in general can come onto the field for an endless Sunset Catch on the Polar Park outfield.
The day before will feature a pre-game appearance by Hall of Fame broadcaster Joe Castiglione as part of the Great Polar Park Writers Series. He will talk about his long career doing Red Sox games, and other teams and sports, during a program in the DCU Club that starts with lunch at 12:30 p.m. Fans who buy a ticket for the game can attend.
The WooSox will also provide more details about a pair of off-season festivals. One extends the celebration of Halloween. The other makes Polar Park a family destination at Christmastime.
There will also be a little of 2026 as 2025 ends. The WooSox will be promoting their three alternate names for the Summer of ’26. As part of Minor League Baseball’s Alternate Identity Program, they will transform into the “Pawtucket Hot Wieners,” the “Worcester Kelley Squares,” and “The Art of the Woo” on select dates throughout the year.
Perhaps nothing in baseball aside from the DH has evolved as much as names, both team and player. That 1899 team was named the Farmers and featured Joes, Jims, Mikes, Jacks and one Elmer. This year’s WooSox team has a Jhostynxon.
The 2026 alternate names celebrate Worcester history as well as the franchise’s Rhode Island connection. Maybe for 2027 they could be the Clamcakes or Stuffed Quahoags.
Locally, a great throwback name would be the Coal Heavers, used here for the 1923 and ‘24 Eastern League teams. How about a candlepin bowling connection? The Worcester Half-Worcesters, named after the sport’s diabolical leave, would sell a lot of merchandise.
Merchandise for the new 2026 names will be available at various times during the homestand.
For decades, minor league baseball ended on Labor Day. In 2021, the return from Covid season, the schedule was extended into October and attendance after Labor Day was excellent.
The WooSox have done well on their season-ending homestands. Last year they averaged 7,979. That included a franchise-record crowd of 9,700 on Saturday, Sept. 14. Worcester averaged 9,253 for its last homestand in 2023.
While the WooSox will not make the playoffs, they have some on-field milestones to shoot for in the final week.
They have had winning seasons in each of their four years in town. The WooSox are hovering around .500 as the season closes. If they finish in the black it will mark only the second time in Boston Red Sox history their Triple-A teams have had five straight winning seasons, the first time in the same city.
The Sox’ Triple-A affiliates had winning records six straight times from 1957 through 1962. Three different cities were involved — San Francisco, Minneapolis and Seattle.
It will also give manager Chad Tracy four straight winning seasons, a first for a Boston Triple-A manager.
The final homestand will give fans the chance to see a few more likely future Boston players such as infielder Mikey Romero and starting pitcher Shane Drohan, both of whom are closing the year well.
Good weather, good crowds and good baseball are how the Worcester Red Sox are hoping to finish their fifth year at Polar Park.
Bill Ballou covered the Red Sox for the Worcester Telegram from 1997 through 2018. He has covered pro hockey in Worcester since 1994 and currently does a weekly column for the Worcester Red Sox. Ballou can be reached at vetgoalie@aol.com
