Sports stats

EL1 Reading Fightin Phils

Winning streak ends at four in 8-4 loss to Flying Squirrels

May 21, 2019 - Eastern League (EL1)
Reading Fightin Phils News Release


(Richmond, VA) - Despite a 5-0 deficit after the first inning on Tuesday night, the Fightin Phils were never truly out of the game. They battled all night, getting as close as two runs on two separate occasions, but were never able to overcome it. Even in the ninth when faced with their final out, the R-Phils loaded the bases to bring up the tying run, but Giants 40-man member Melvin Adon earned the save and the Squirrels prevailed 8-4 to win the first game on a 7-day, 8-game roadtrip.

In his return to Double-A, three walks in the first inning hurt JoJo Romero, with the big blow coming on a three-RBI double from catcher Hamlet Marte and a subsequent single from Brandon Van Horn for the fifth and final run. And while it took more than three innings for the offense to come around, Darick Hall opened the scoring with a 410-foot home run that made it 5-1.

Austin Bossart led off the fifth inning with a bunt single, and after Romero reached on a fielder's choice, Luke Williams hit his first triple of the season to score the second run. In a full count, Mickey Moniak lined a single into left to cut the lead to 5-3 and chase starter Alfred Gutierrez after just 4.1 innings. Romero's night ended at the same point, but starting with the last out in the first inning, the Phillies #2 pitching prospect (Baseball America) retired 10 of the last 14 Flying Squirrels he faced.

The final blow against Romero (0-1) came on a Chris Shaw run-scoring single to push the lead back to 6-3. Garrett Cleavinger earned the last two outs in the fifth, and shortly thereafter, the R-Phils answered with a quick response. Austin Listi led off with his first triple, and two batters later Arquimedes Gamboa laced a triple down the right field line to get within a pair at 6-4. Connor Overton's (3-0) two strikeouts ended the threat, and with Jakob Hernandez on for long relief, the Squirrels got two huge runs during the lefthander's second inning in the home seventh.

Shaw's second hit was a one-out double that sliced the gap in right-center, and on a 2-0 pitch, third baseman Jonah Arenado snuck a bullet inside the left field foul pole for his third home run to double the lead. Trailing 8-4 at the start of the ninth, the Fightins made things very interesting against Ryan Halstead.

Pinch-hitter Josh Stephen guided a single to left to lead off the inning, but things quickly turned when Williams bounced into a 5-4-3 double play that was started by Arenado. A two-out rally started when Moniak singled to the opposite field for the second time, after which Adam Haseley reached on an error during a bang-bang play at first base. A walk to Hall brought out Adon for his fifth save chance with Austin Listi coming up as the tying run with the bases loaded. On a 2-0 pitch, a deep drive to left was run down by Shaw just shy of the track to end the ballgame and cap any hopes of a comeback.

America's Classic Ballpark is proud to be a part of Pennsylvania's Americana Region. Season tickets for the 2019 season are available online at Fightins.com, by phone at 610-370-BALL, and in-person at the Weidenhammer Ticket Office at FirstEnergy Stadium. Follow the Fightin Phils on Twitter at @ReadingFightins, Instagram at @fightins, and like them on Facebook via www.facebook.com/fightins.

Check out the Reading Fightin Phils Statistics



Eastern League Stories from May 21, 2019


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.

Other Recent Reading Fightin Phils Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central