Sea Dogs Out-FOXed by Senators 4-1

For the second night in a row the Sea Dogs starting pitcher had a solid outing. For the second night in a row that pitcher earned little run support in a losing effort. For the second night in a row the Harrisburg Senators beat the Sea Dogs 4-1. Adam Fox drove in all 4 runs and Daniel Rosenbaum dominated for 7 innings for Harrisburg.

Matt Rusch's second start of the season for Portland was much better than his first. After giving up 6 runs in 5 1/3 innings in his debut after being acquired from the independent leagues, the righty adjusted to the Double-A game. Three straight hits from the Senators in the second inning was the only real blemish for Rusch, but that was enough to give Harrisburg a lead they would never surrender. Archie Gilbert and Fox sandwiched singles around Tim Pahuta's double, with Fox's single driving in the first 2 runners.

The Sea Dogs would get one of those runs back in the bottom of the second. Reynaldo Rodriguez doubled on a dropping liner past LF Gilbert to lead off the inning. He would move to 2nd when Mark Wagner flied out to right. He would then score on a wild pitch with Dan Butler to give Portland its only run of the game in a most unconventional of ways.

Rosenbaum was both efficient and filthy in his 7 innings of work. He didn't allow multiple base runners until the seventh, when Alex Hassan and Rodriguez had back to back singles to lead off the inning. Rosenbaum would get out of the jam as expected, getting a fly out and a line out before setting Mitch Dening down swinging for his 8th and final strikeout.

Fox would strike again off Michael Lee in the top of the seventh inning. He smacked a 2-run home run just over the leaping arm of Jeremy Hazelbaker in center field. It was only his 4th home run of the season, and his 4 RBIs increased his season total to 19.


Rosenbaum improved to 3-0 in 4 starts in Double-A. His ERA dropped slightly to 1.37, as he has shown no signs of growing pains yet.

Hassan Pena pitched a scoreless ninth for his 8th save of the year. He allowed a lead-off single to Oscar Tejeda and had a strikeout.

Rusch pitched 6 solid innings, giving up 2 runs on 4 hits. He struck out 3 and walked 1, but a pitch count of 103 after 6 innings did him in.

The two teams face off in the series finale tomorrow at noon. Jeremy Kehrt takes the mound for the Sea Dogs and will face former major leaguer Oliver Perez for Harrisburg.

Pahuta Powers Senators Past Portland 4-1

Harrisburg starter Tanner Rourk had a no-hitter going against the Sea Dogs into the sixth inning before Ryan Khoury and Jeremy Hazelbaker hit back to back doubles to end the bid and give Portland the lead. The Senators tied the game up in the eighth inning off Sea Dogs reliever Blake Maxwell, then took the lead for good on a 3-run home run by Tim Pahuta later in the inning as Harrisburg won 4-1.

Roark made it through the Portland lineup twice without allowing a hit, and a walk to Alex Hassan and a hit by pitch to Jon Hee were his only blemishes. Then Khoury stepped to the plate with two outs and laced the Sea Dogs first hit over the 3rd baseman's head for a double. Jeremy Hazelbaker then hit a fly ball towards the left-field foul pole that dropped fair then bounced into the stands for an RBI ground rule double. Roark went from no-hitter to losing pitcher of record in two batters.

The reason Harrisburg couldn't score for most of the game was the outstanding pitching of Chris Balcolm-Miller. The righty scattered 7 hits over a season-high 7 innings, and didn't allow a walk until his second to last batter. Just to keep the theme going, Balcolm-Miller struck out 7 batters, all of them on a swinging third strike.

Balcolm-Miller's quality outing was wasted quickly in the top of the eighth, when Blake Maxwell continued his late-season fall. The first batter he faced, Josh Johnson, chopped a ball right towards him, and he threw it well past 1st baseman Jon Hee and into the stands, bringing Johnson to 2nd. Derek Norris then dropped down a sacrifice bunt to move Johnson to 3rd. Tyler Moore then singled up the middle to tie the game 1-1. After Maxwell walked a batter and struck out a batter, Pahuta smashed his 10th home run of the season into the pavilion seats in right field to give Harrisburg a 4-1 lead. Maxwell then gave up another single before getting Chris McConnell to ironically ground out to the pitcher to end the inning.

Corey VanAllen and Rafael Martin each took a turn making Sea Dog batters look foolish in the eighth and ninth innings to close out the game. Martin struck out the side in the ninth for his 12th save of the year.

VanAllen picked up the win, his 4th of the year. he finished off the seventh inning for Roark by getting Mitch Dening to strike out looking.

Maxwell picked up his 5th blown save of the year, and his record fell to 3-4.

Eammon Portice pitched an efficient ninth inning, getting 3 quick outs on 5 pitches, 4 for strikes.

Game 2 of the 3-game series is tomorrow at 6pm. Matt Rusch will be making his 2nd appearance of the season for Portland, and will be looking for his first win.

Wednesday's series finale will be at noon, with former major league pitcher Oliver Perez starting for Harrisburg.

#SeaDogs Road Trip Mercifully Ends

The Portland Sea Dogs will be eager to return home, as their four-game series against the Harrisburg Senators was one to forget. After dropping the first three games, Portland lost Sunday afternoon's finale in extra innings, as Devin Ivany hit a solo home run in the bottom of the eleventh, lifting Harrisburg to a 12-11 win, as well as a series sweep.

For the fifth time in seven games on the road trip, the Sea Dogs got on the board in the top of the first. Che-Hsuan Lin started the game by reaching on an error, and Yamaico Navarro followed with a double. After Nate Spears struck out, Luis Exposito knocked in a run with a grounder to third, and Anthony Rizzo singled in a run as well.

Portland stayed in the lead until the third inning, when the Senators put up a crooked number. With one out, Harrisburg had five straight hitters reach base, starting with back-to-back doubles by Marvin Lowrance and Chris Marrero. A single by Tim Pahuta and a walk to Adam Fox loaded the bases for Edgardo Baez, who crushed a grand slam to right field.

After seeing their starter give up a five-run inning, the Sea Dogs' hitters responded with a six-run inning of their own. After Ryan Lavarnway grounded out, Jorge Padron, Ryan Khoury, and Matt Sheely all singled. Che-Hsuan Lin followed with a walk, setting up a two-run single by Yamaico Navarro. Nate Spears put the visitors on top with a sacrifice fly, before consecutive doubles by Luis Exposito and Anthony Rizzo gave Portland an 8-5 lead.

The Senators came back with two runs in their half of the fourth on an RBI double by Marvin Lowrance and a sacrifice fly by Chris Marrero. However, Portland matched that half inning with two runs in the sixth. With one out, Yamaico Navarro doubled and Nate Spears singled, setting the table for Luis Exposito. The Sea Dogs' cleanup hitter whacked a double to left field, driving in both runners. The visitors added another run in the seventh on a Yamaico Navarro RBI double, taking an 11-7 lead.

Once again, Harrisburg came back, ultimately tying the game at eleven. In the bottom of the seventh, the Senators got runs on an Adam Fox RBI single, an Edgardo Baez groundout, and a wild pitch. The tying run came in the eighth inning, when Chris Marrero launched a home run to left field.

The game stayed tied until the eleventh inning, when Devin Ivany hit a walkoff home run with two outs, giving the Senators a 12-11 win.

Rafael Martin (4-2) was the winning pitcher, as he pitched three scoreless innings for Harrisburg. Ryne Lawson (5-5) suffered his second loss of the series for Portland, allowing one run in one and two-thirds innings.

The Sea Dogs will have Monday off, before returning to Hadlock Field on Tuesday for a three-game series against the Bowie Baysox. Stephen Fife (6-3, 3.94) will make the start in the series opener for Portland, while Eddie Gamboa (3-4, 2.93) will get the call for Bowie.

--Mike Antonellis--

Box Score and Recap

Audio Recap

LUIS EXPOSITO HOMERS TWICE, BUT DOGS LOSE 10 - 5 #portlandseadogs #redsox

OFFICIAL PORTLAND SEA DOGS RECAP
Luis Exposito did all he could for the Portland Sea Dogs on Thursday night, as he hit two home runs and drove in five. However, the Harrisburg Senators got a two-run homer from Marvin Lowrance, a three-run shot by Danny Espinosa, and a two-run double by Adam Fox, as they won the series opener 10-5 at Metro Bank Park.

Once again, the Sea Dogs got off to a good start in the top of the first. With two outs, Ray Chang gave the visitors some hope with a single up the middle. On the very next pitch, Luis Exposito introduced himself to the city of Harrisburg, bashing a two-run shot to left field.

SEA DOGS GET BLASTED BY SENATORS 10 - 3 #redsox #redsox

OFFICIAL PORTLAND SEA DOGS GAME WRAP

The Sea Dogs dropped their third game in a row as well as the series to the Harrisburg Senators.  Senators’ southpaw Tom Milone combined with relievers Hassan Pena and Joe Bisenius to defeat the Sea Dogs 10-3 on Sunday afternoon at Hadlock Field in front of a crowd of 7,104.

Sea Dogs starter Jeremy Kehrt struggled through five innings giving up five runs (four earned) on 12 hits. Eammon Portice did not help the Sea Dogs’ cause as he gave up three runs in his two innings of work. Bryce Cox also gave up two runs to put the Sea Dogs in an even deeper hole. Kehrt (2-8) takes the loss.

The Senators got off to an early start when Marvin Lowrance hit a home run in the first inning. They scored at least one run in all but two innings. The Senators’ 17 hits were the most against Portland this season.

WEILAND PITCHES GEM IN 2 –1 SEA DOGS LOSS #redsox #portlandseadogs

WEILAND ALLOWED ONLY 1 HIT IN 7 IP

OFFICIAL PORTLAND SEA DOGS GAME WRAP
On a foggy night in Portland when the Sea Dogs offense was relatively quiet, Kyle Weiland did everything he could to keep his team in the game. His best outing of the season was spoiled when Jason Rice couldn’t hold on to the Sea Dogs’ 1-0 lead in the top of the eighth. The Sea Dogs lost 2-1 on Friday night in front of a crowd of 6,869.

After hitting a season-high of three batters in his last outing against New Hampshire, Kyle Weiland rediscovered his control. He stifled the Senators’ offense, allowing only a double to Jesus Valdez in the first inning. After that hit, Weiland never looked back. He retired the next 20 batters he faced.

SEA DOGS WIN 6TH STRAIGHT #redsox #portlandseadogs #hburgsenators #nats

CLICK PHOTO FOR SLIDESHOW

NEWEST SEA DOG, RYAN LAVARNWAY

HADLOCK HEADLINES GAME STORY
The Portland Sea Dogs returned home on a tear, winning the last 5 games. Part of the reason is new call up, catcher Ryan Lavarnway. In his first five road games with the Sea Dogs, Lavarnway has 11 RBI.

He didn't dissapoint Dogs fans at home Thursday, going 3-5 with 3 RBI. He started his night with the game tying RBI single in the 4th inning. Continued in the 6th, plating Luis Exposito on a single off reliever Zach Dials and completed his night by plating Exposito again, this time with a 2 out double deep to centerfield for his 3rd RBI. Lavarnway is now 12-27 for a .444 AVG and 14 RBI.

PORTLAND SEA DOGS VS HARRISBURG GM 3 #portlandseadogs #redsox #hsbSenators #nats

CLICK HERE FOR 2ND GALLERY
CLICK PHOTO FOR 1ST GALLERY

GARY DISARCINA AND JOSE IGLESIAS

Kyle Weiland overcame a couple early long balls to hold the Senators to 4 runs on 5 hits. Weiland gets his 4th win.

PORTLAND SEA DOGS OFFICIAL GAME WRAP
The Portland Sea Dogs (39-38) collected six doubles as they defeated the Harrisburg Senators 7-4 on Wednesday evening at Hadlock Field in front of 5,555 fans.

Down 3-2 in the fifth inning, the Sea Dogs had six consecutive batters reach base as they put up a four spot to grab a 6-3 lead.  Luis Exposito, Anthony Rizzo, and Yamaico Navarro all contributed with RBI doubles in the inning.

The Sea Dogs scored six of their seven runs off the Washington Nationals Opening Day starter from 2010 and 2009, John Lannan.  Lannan (1-1) suffered the loss, surrendering six runs on ten hits (six for extra bases) in six innings on the mound.

Kyle Weiland (4-5) picks-up the winning yielding four runs on four hits in five innings of work.  Weiland struck out the side in the first and finished the evening with six punchouts.

Jason Rice pitched the ninth earning his ninth save of the year.  Santo Luis picked-up a hold tossing three innings of scoreless relief. Luis has only yielded on run in his last 11 outings.

Harrisburg got off to the early lead in the second with a Edgardo Baez two-out two-run double scoring Marvin Lowrance and Jesus Valdez giving the Senators a 2-0 lead.  Brad Coon led off the third with a home run extending the lead to 3-0.

Ray Chang collected his team leading 21st double in the third to get the scoring started for Portland.  Exposito followed with a single scoring Chang bringing the Sea Dogs within a run 3-2.

The six doubles ties a season high for the Sea Dogs.  Chang (2-for-4, 2B, 2 R, RBI, HBP) raised his team leading batting average to .304.  Exposito (2-for-3, 2B, 3 RBI, BB) increased his team high RBI total to 56.  Nate Spears earned his Eastern League leading 54th walk in the win.

The Sea Dogs travel to Binghamton, New York for a four day/ five game weekend series against the Mets starting Thursday night at 6:35 PM.  Casey Kelly (1-3, 5.05) gets the start at NYSEG Stadium for the Sea Dogs.  Lefty Mark Cohoon (1-0, 7.94) will be on the mound for the BMets.  The Sea Dogs will return to Hadlock Field for an eight game homestand on Monday, July 5th at 6:00 PM, a post-game fireworks show is scheduled for July 5th.

GAME HIGHLIGHTS COURTESY US CELLULAR SEA DOGS RADIO NETWORK

DOGS VS HARRISBURG GM 1 #portlandseadogs #sblog #redsox

CLICK PHOTO FOR GALLERY COURTESY MR SPARKY

JOSE IGLESIAS SPORTING A NEW HAIR STYLE

ANTHONY RIZZO SAVES SEA DOGS FROM A NO HITTER
Anthony Rizzo has struggled from the plate of late, but stopped the Portland Sea Dogs from becoming Harrisburg's second no hit victim in 18 days.

Rizzo came the plate with 1 out in the 9th with the Senators Zech Zinicola on the mound. Rizzo lined a pitch down the right field line for a double to break Harrisburg's spell on Sea Dogs bats. The Dogs still lost 3 - 0, but had 5 solid innings from starter Jeremy Kehrt.

Kehrt allowed 5 hits over 5 innings allowing only a single run. The Dogs meet the Senators Tuesday night right back at Hadlock Field.

JEFF SCHOOLS

OFFICIAL PORTLAND SEA DOGS GAME WRAP

It was a near historical night at Hadlock Field on Monday night, as Aaron Thompson and three relievers combined to throw 8.1 no-hit innings for the Harrisburg Senators against the Portland Sea Dogs en route to a 3-0 victory.  The no-hit bid was spoiled by Anthony Rizzo in the bottom of the ninth, when he laced a double down the right-field line to produce the only Sea Dogs’ hit of the night.