Nelson Figueroa ’98 Leads Pawtucket Red Sox to International League Title
Published: September 14, 2012Section: Sports
Nelson Figueroa’s magical journey with the Red Sox continued Thursday night. On the mound against the Charlotte Knights, the AAA affiliate of the Chicago White Sox, Figueroa tossed six innings, allowing just one run on seven hits while striking out five and not walking any batters. Behind Figueroa’s strong performance, the Pawtucket Red Sox completed their sweep of the Knights to win the Governor’s Cup finals for the first time since 1984.
In his two postseasons starts, Figueroa is 2-0 with a 1.29 ERA over 14 innings. In his two starts he has allowed only two combined runs and just nine hits.
In a matter of months, Figueroa had gone from not knowing if he had a place in professional baseball to being the stabilizing force and ace of the Pawtucket Red Sox.
Pawtucket now advances to the AAA National Championship Game in Durham, N.C., on Tuesday, Sept. 18 against either the Omaha Storm Chasers, the Triple-A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals, or the Reno Aces, the Triple-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks.