Breaking News
Altoona Curve

Curve drop fifth straight game as late-inning rally falls short

2 min read
Mirror photo by Patrick Waksmunski Curve shortstop Kervin Pichardo looks at his empty glove as Akron's Christian Cairo points to the ball in left field after Cairo was initially called out on his stolen base.

From Mirror reports

Kervin Pichardo connected on his first home run of the season for Altoona on Wednesday afternoon, but the late surge from the Curve was not enough to avoid dropping a fifth-straight game in an 8-7 loss to the Akron RubberDucks at Peoples Natural Gas Field.

The Curve have now lost nine of their last 10 games played and have dropped five in a row for the first time since August of 2021, when Altoona lost seven consecutive games. Altoona is 5-11 and in last place in the Eastern League, behind, in order, Erie, Bowie, Akron, Richmond and Harrisburg.

Down 7-1 at the time, the Curve scored two runs in the bottom of the fifth inning after Tsung-Che Cheng drew a bases-loaded walk and Joe Perez reached on an infield single against RubberDucks starter Tommy Mace.

Mace earned the win after tossing 5• innings in his longest start of the season. In the sixth, Jase Bowen scored from third base after relief pitcher Andrew Walters dropped a throw back from the catcher Kody Huff, making it an 8-4 game.

Pichardo's three-run home run came in the eighth inning after Bowen and Seth Beer each singled to open the frame. Beer picked up Altoona's first four-hit game of the season with a perfect 4-for-4 day at the plate.

Starter Bubba Chandler took the loss after he walked a pair and hit a batter before hitting his hard pitch limit in the first inning of 34 pitches. Chandler picked up one strikeout and left with the bases loaded and two out.

Reliever Valentin Linarez permitted two inherited runners to score on a base hit from Milan Tolentino to take an early 2-0 lead for the RubberDucks.

Linarez tossed 2• innings out of the Curve bullpen and contributed three strikeouts to Altoona's 11 total in the game. Justin Meis struck out four in three innings of relief, allowing four runs on five hits and one walk.

Isaac Mattson worked three scoreless innings of relief, his longest outing of the season, to hold the line as Altoona built its comeback bid. Trey Benton earned a save for Akron with a 1-2-3 ninth inning.

Altoona continues its series tonight at 6 p.m. Altoona will send righty Sean Sullivan to the mound to face southpaw Rodney Boone for Akron.

Starting at /week.