Largest opening night crowd in Curve history watches 8-3 loss to Reading
Published on April 3, 2008 under Eastern League (EL1)
Altoona Curve News Release
ALTOONA- An extremely festive evening off the field turned dreary on the field at Blair County Ballpark Thursday night as the Reading Phillies trumped the Curve, 8-3, on the opening night of the 2008 season.
A dedicated crowd of 6,736, which turned out to be the largest crowd to attend an opener in Curve history, braved the chilly conditions and consistent drizzle throughout the night to watch former Steelers great Jerome Bettis throw out a ceremonial first pitch, which was delivered via helicopter by Curve General Manager Todd Parnell.
The Curve got out to a quick offensive start against Reading starter Andrew Carpenter (1-0). Altoona jumped out to a 1-0 advantage in the first inning by way of a Brad Corley sacrifice fly plating James Boone. That lead, though, was quickly nullified by the R-Phils in the top of the second as they put a pair of runs on the board off Curve starter Kyle Bloom (0-1).
Bloom surrendered four additional runs in the top of the fourth inning, before being lifted. He tossed just 3.2 innings, giving up six runs on five hits. Reading added another run when Juan Tejeda homered in the top of the fifth inning off reliever Kevin Roberts, to take a 7-2 lead.
The Curve, though, were resilient and chipped away at the deficit in the bottom of the sixth when Jason Delaney, who finished the night 2-for-4 with a pair of RBIs drove in his first when he plated Jonel Pacheco. Delaney also knocked home Corley in the home half of the eighth.
The Curve return to action tomorrow night at 6:35 p.m. The first 3,000 receive a Curve magnetic schedule courtesy of AIG. William "The Refrigerator" Perry will be on hand to throw out a first pitch, meet with fans and sign autographs. One lucky fan will also walk home with a refrigerator, courtesy of Park Appliance Furniture and Flooring. In addition, the Curve will hold their first "Food Frenzy Night" presented by Atlantic Broadband, featuring $1 Hot Dogs and Half-Price Curve Burgers all game long. Following the game, Kids Run the Bases courtesy Thomas Chevrolet of Bedford.
RHP Derek Hankins will take the hill for the Curve. He'll be opposed by LHP Josh Outman. Great seats are still available, and can be obtained by calling 877-99-CURVE, by stopping by the Blair County Ballpark Box Office, or buy purchasing online at AltoonaCurve.com.
Eastern League Stories from April 3, 2008
- B-Mets Blank Trenton In Opener - Binghamton Rumble Ponies
- Senators and Akron play to 5-5 tie - Harrisburg Senators
- Fisher Cats drop season opener, 3-2, to Defenders - New Hampshire Fisher Cats
- Largest opening night crowd in Curve history watches 8-3 loss to Reading - Altoona Curve
- Defenders Sneak Past Fisher Cats, 3-2 - Connecticut Defenders
- Sea Dogs Take Opener 3-0 - Portland Sea Dogs
- Portland Outlasts Rock Cats in Season Opener - New Britain Rock Cats
- Binghamton Mets (0-0) vs. Trenton Thunder (0-0) - Binghamton Rumble Ponies
- Thunder Top Harrisburg 4-1 - Trenton Thunder
- Baysox season opener vs. Erie postponed - Chesapeake Baysox
- Opening Day Postponed - Erie SeaWolves
- Erie SeaWolves at Bowie Baysox Game Notes - Erie SeaWolves
- INF Mendoza Transferred Back To Thunder - Trenton Thunder
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
