EL1 Reading Fightin Phils

Spidale's Late HR Gives R-Phils 4-3 Win Saturday

Published on May 22, 2010 under Eastern League (EL1)
Reading Fightin Phils News Release


Michael Spidale is starting to see the ball really well again.

Spidale ripped a game-winning solo home run in the bottom of the eighth inning, John Ennis shut the door in the ninth, and the R-Phils took the middle game of their three-game series with Richmond by a score of 4-3 in front of 8,713 fans at FirstEnergy Stadium on Saturday evening.

After batting .283 in April, with a team-high 14 RBIs, the Illinois native struggled a bit when the calendar turned to May. The 28-year-old entered Saturday's contest hitting just .236 this month, but had at least a hit in three of his last five games.

Last night, in the opening game of the three-game set with Richmond, Spidale went 2-4 with a stolen base and two runs scored -- setting the stage for tonight's outstanding performance at the plate.

With the game knotted at 3-3 in the bottom of the eighth inning, Spidale broke the game open with a solo blast off Richmond reliever Daniel Turpen (3-2, 3.00), which proved to be the game-winner. The homer, his second of the season, was also his second hit of the night, and fourth over his last two games. He finished the game 2-4 with the home run and a stolen base - his sixth steal this season.

Originally selected by the White Sox in the 12th round of the 2000 draft, Spidale has enjoyed much success over his three plus years in Baseballtown. In 2007, his first season with Reading, Spidale hit .314 over 68 games, and followed that up by hitting .282 with a career-high eight home runs in 2008. Last season -- his third campaign with Reading, he hit .297, and collected his 1,000th career Minor League hit.

While Spidale's home run was the biggest hit of the evening, two other R-Phils went deep on Saturday night. Tagg Bozied, who returned to the lineup, launched his first home run since May 7 - a solo shot, which gave the R-Phils a 1-0 lead. His five home runs this season are good for second on the R-Phils behind team leader Domonic Brown, who has seven.

Matt Rizzotti, who made his FirstEnergy Stadium debut last night, launched his first Double-A home run of his career in the fourth inning off Ray, to extend his hit-streak to seven straight games. Since his debut on May 14 at Akron, Rizzotti, 24, has put together an outstanding stretch. The New York native now has 11 hits over his last seven games, including last night's 2-3 day at the plate.

R-Phils starter Jason Anderson was solid on the evening in just his second start of the season. Anderson, 30, allowed just one run on four hits over five solid innings, but did not factor in the decision. After beginning the season in Lehigh Valley, Anderson has gone 0-0 with a 1.80 over seven games this season for Reading.

Sergio Escalona (1-4, 3.12) tossed 1.1 scoreless innings to earn his first win of the season. A member of the Philadelphia Phillies 40-man roster, Escalona, 25, has now gone 1-3 with a 3.27 ERA in May in nine appearances out of the bullpen.

Ennis, who was optioned back to Reading before the game, pitched a scoreless ninth inning to earn his first save of the season with the R-Phils. The 30-year-old righty has now appeared in five games with Reading this season and has allowed just one run (7.2 innings pitched).

Taking the hill for the R-Phils in the finale of their three-game set will be RHP Phillippe Aumont (1-3, 5.94). Aumont, 21, was solid in his last start of the season, which came on May 18 in Harrisburg. The Canadian native allowed just two runs (one earned) over five innings, but didn't factor in the decision. After posting a 1-1 mark with a 3.32 ERA over four starts in April, Aumont has struggled in May. Over four starts this month, he has gone 0-2 with a 9.82 ERA.

On the mound for the Squirrels for Sunday's finale will be RHP Darryl Maday (6-0, 1.57). Maday, 24, leads the Eastern League with an impressive 1.57 ERA, and has been sharp during the month of May. Maday, who was selected by the San Francisco Giants in the 30th round of the 2006 draft, is 3-0 with a 2.08 ERA this month. His best outing of the season came on April 20 against New Britain where he tossed eight scoreless frames.

Brian Seltzer will have the call beginning with the R-Phils pre-game show at 12:35 p.m. on ESPN Radio 1240 AM WIOV and readingphillies.com. First pitch is set for 1:05 p.m.

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Eastern League Stories from May 22, 2010


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