Curve fall to Yard Goats despite potent offensive performance
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See below the highlights from tonight's game vs. the Yard Goats!
A five-run fifth inning pushed the Hartford Yard Goats to a 9-6 win over the Altoona Curve Friday night in front of 4,076 fans at PNG Field.
Despite the loss, it was a solid night for the Curve as they scattered 10 hits against the Yard Goats.
"I thought we came out really good tonight," Altoona manager Callix Crabbe said. "We just fell a little short today. It just didn't work out, but we fought hard so I'm pleased with the effort."
Leading the charge for the Curve was center fielder Matt Fraizer, who was 2-for-4 with three RBI and scored twice.
Fraizer is now 7-for-16 against Hartford this series and his batting average is up 26 points from .232 to .258 as a result.
Altoona got on the board early after yielding a run in the top of the first with Fraizer's solo homer in the bottom of the inning. Drew Maggi followed that up with an RBI single in the second to put the Curve up 2-1.
That lead held until the fifth inning when Hartford's Hunter Goodman took Justin Meis deep for a three-run shot.
Fraizer doubled in the bottom of the fifth to score Liover Peguero and Dylan Shockley. Matt Gorski would knock Fraizer home a few pitches later to give the Curve a 5-4 lead.
The sixth inning saw knuckleballer Matt Eckelman give up five runs to cap off their rally.
"Eckelman didn't have his perfect stuff tonight. The knuckleball just wasn't doing what he was hoping that it would do and just didn't work out," Crabbe said.
Bullpen blues
Curve reliever Tahnaj Thomas started the game and allowed a run in the first inning before Meis took over in the second inning.
Meis went three shutout innings before yielding the three-run homer to Goodman.
Eckelman took over in the sixth and struggled with command, throwing only 10 of his 22 pitches for strikes. The knuckleballer gave up five runs on three hits and two walks.
Junker deals
Altoona's Cameron Junker was the lone bright spot in a rough night for the Curve bullpen.
Junker went 2.2 shutout innings while not allowing a hit and striking out three.
Next up
Jared Jones goes for Altoona on Saturday, sporting an 0-2 record and 3.00 ERA. It will be Jones' sixth start of the season.
On Sunday, it will be Sean Sullivan who gets the nod for the Curve. Sullivan is 1-0 with a 2.60 ERA. Sullivan went seven innings, scattering seven hits and three runs against the Yard Goats on Tuesday.