Altoona Curve still waiting to officially clinch second-half division title
EL baseball
Trending
ERIE -- Working behind starter Wilber Dotel, lefty Dominic Perachi fired six innings of one-run relief in a 6-1 loss to the Erie SeaWolves.
The Curve remain one win shy of officially clinching the second-half championship over Erie with three games remaining in the regular season, which ends Sunday.
Erie scored twice in the third inning against Dotel and Perachi. John Peck singled home a run and after Dotel was lifted, Kevin McGonigle added a sacrifice fly to make it 2-0.
Dotel was limited to 40 pitches in his final tune-up ahead of the postseason. His 131 total strikeouts this season rank fourth in franchise history in a single season, just behind Rudy Owens' 2010 season in which he struck out 132.
The Wolves added an insurance run in the fifth inning on a double from Thayron Liranzo against Perachi. The 24-year-old left-hander Perachi scattered four hits and three walks over his six innings with three strikeouts.
Termarr Johnson recorded his 32nd multi-hit game of the season in the loss. Johnson finished the game 2-for-3 with a single in the fourth and a double in the eighth. Konnor Griffin also recorded two hits for Altoona.
Griffin has hits in 15-of-18 games at the Double-A level. Duce Gourson drew two walks and doubled in his first three plate appearances.
Altoona continues its series with the Wolves tonight at 6 p.m. at UPMC Park. Righty Antwone Kelly takes the ball for Altoona, with fellow righty Max Alba slated to start for the Wolves.