Bravehearts Top Spinners 6–4 in Penultimate Home Game at LeLacheur Park

On Wednesday night, the Lowell Spinners hosted the Worcester Bravehearts in front of 2,125 fans at LeLacheur Park for their penultimate home game of the season. Worcester entered the evening having already clinched a playoff berth, with postseason play set to begin Monday night. Lowell, on the other hand, is looking to close out its inaugural season in the league on a strong note, with two games remaining over the weekend.

The matchup featured left-hander Caden Smith on the mound for Lowell, making his 12th appearance of the season (4.24 ERA, 51 IP), against Worcester’s Joey Hagen, making his 10th appearance (4.22 ERA, 32 IP).

Worcester jumped out to an early lead in the first inning, plating three runs off Smith courtesy of back-to-back home runs—a two-run shot to left field by Jeylem Sepulveda followed by a solo blast to left by Brayden Lewis. Lowell responded in the bottom half of the frame, cutting the deficit to 3–2 after Marco Zirpolo scored on a balk and Lorenzo Camilleri delivered an RBI single.

The Bravehearts extended their lead in the third inning, converting three consecutive two-out hits into two runs. Christian Cepin drove in a run with an RBI double to left, and Daniel Colon followed with an RBI single to push the Worcester lead to 5–2. In the fifth, Smith allowed another run on an RBI single to right by Colon that brought home Joey Benoit to make it 6–2.

Smith (3–6) exited after five innings, allowing six runs on 12 hits. From there, the Spinners’ bullpen locked down the Worcester offense, as Mikey St. Martin and DC Brown combined to retire the final 13 Braveheart batters in order. Lowell Manager Kevin Graber expressed high praise for the stellar relief work from both pitchers.

Lowell chipped away in the sixth inning to make it a 6–4 ballgame. An RBI double from Nic Lembo and an RBI single to left from Brett Gallo—whom Graber praised as “one of the most improved players on the team”— had three hits and put the tying runs within reach. However, the Spinners were unable to assemble a late-game rally, an issue Graber noted has plagued the team all season in key situational hitting spots.

Looking ahead to Friday’s home finale, Graber mentioned plans to get every player into the game in front of the home crowd.

Zach Duke earned the win in relief for Worcester (2–0) with 2.1 scoreless innings, while Lane LeClair secured his third save of the season with a clean ninth frame. The Spinners return to LeLacheur Park on Friday night to host the New Britain Bees in their final home game of the summer.