The Result
Phillies - 13 to 2

Sea Dogs - Year-to-Date
13 wins - 21 losses

Brett's Position and the Batting Order
Playing rightfield
Batting #3

At the end of the Game
2 hits from 4 at-bats - single, double, 1 x strike out

Brett's at-bats
First at-bat
Righthanded pitcher
Bases empty - two down
Ball - down and in
Ball - low
Called strike - on the outside corner
Swing&miss - change-up
Foul ball - back
Ball - down and in
Swing&miss - change-up - down and in - "and Roneberg may have swung at ball-four"
Strike out
Second at-bat
Righthanded pitcher
Runners at first and third base - two down
(Did not hear - the radio disconnected!!!)
The commentator said later in the game that "the Sea Dogs had runners at the corners but Roneberg grounded out to end the innings"
Out ?-to-3
Third at-bat
Righthanded pitcher
Led off the innings
Ball - outside
Foul ball - down the leftfield line
Called strike - outside corner - "and that was a late-strike call by the plate umpire"
Ball - curve ball - "just high and a close call"
Ball - up and away
Hit into centrefield - "and that is sinking fast and the fielder is charging in but cannot make the catch"
Single
Out at second base on a double-play hit by the next Sea Dogs batter
Fourth at-bat
Righthanded pitcher
Bases empty - two down
Ball - low
Ball - outside
"That pitch is blistered into the alley at right-centrefield and goes all the way to the wall"
Double
Left stranded at the end of the innings

Hitting Streak
As he announced the starting line-ups for each team, the commentator gave the following details and information on Brett's hitting streak
(1) The streak is now at 17 games
(2) It is the 6th longest in Sea Dogs history
(3) It is the longest by a Sea Dog player since 1998
AND
(4) At 17 games, it is the longest 'active' hitting streak in all of professional baseball - both the Majors and the Minors - at the present time!!!
(5) It is the longest streak in the Eastern League this season
(6) There has been a 19 game streak in the Major Leagues earlier this year

He said that during the streak Brett is batting 0.343

Streak now at 18 games!!!

After his hit in his third at-bat, the commentator said that "Brett is now tied for fourth for the longest hitting streak in Sea Dogs history"

Heard during the game
N/A

Email from Brett
N/A

Game Reports

Sea Dogs' struggles continue

The loudest ovations at Hadlock Field Saturday afternoon came after the home runs.
But what the fans actually were applauding were video board replays of homers by David Ortiz and former Sea Dogs third baseman Kevin Youkilis during Boston's win at Toronto.

Back on the field, the sun-drenched crowd of 6,291 had little to applaud as the Reading Phillies routed the Sea Dogs, 13-2.

Portland dropped to 13-21, falling eight games out of first place in the Eastern League Northern Division.
Reading, also 13-21, had lost 13 of 16 before coming to Portland.

Now, the Phillies have won two straight and go for their first three-game winning streak of the season at 1 p.m. today at Hadlock.

The Sea Dogs have lost four straight.
They have 46 hits in that span, but have stranded 41 runners.
And the pitching and defense have allowed 37 runs, 11 unearned.

"It's coming down to us not stopping them," Sea Dogs Manager Ron Johnson said.
"It's a game of momentum. You have to put pressure on the opposition, and we're not doing that. It's tough to win like that."

Portland got nine hits, but left nine on base while hitting into two double plays.

Meanwhile, the pitching did not hold up.

Sea Dogs starter Chris Smith (3-1) suffered his first loss, allowing six runs and nine hits in five innings.
He coasted through three innings, allowing a single, but then the Phillies began to tee off, finished by Ryan Howard's two-run homer off the message board in left-center in the fifth.

Howard, 6-foot-4 and 230 pounds, is a prized first base prospect for the Phillies.
He showed it in the eighth with his second home run, over the wall behind the Sea Dogs' bullpen in right field.

Portland stayed close early with two runs in the fourth, but it could have been more.
The Sea Dogs loaded the bases on an error, John Hattig's double and Mike O'Keefe's walk.
Sheldon Fulse walked in a run, and Edgar Martinez singled in another.
But the next three batters made harmless outs and Portland trailed, 3-2.

"I was kind of hoping for the big inning," Johnson said.
"But we got two and I was happy with that. We're back in the ballgame.
"And then we gave up three just like that, and you can feel (the momentum switch) out there."

Reading scored three in the fifth with four hits, including Howard's blast, and the Sea Dogs did not get another runner to third base.

Reading made it 13-2 with a seven-run eighth inning.
Only two runs were earned, as a throwing error kept the inning alive.

Reliever Juan Perez yielded four hits and five runs.

Hattig led Portland with two doubles.

Brett Roneberg hit a double and single to extend his hitting streak to 18 games, but he was far from happy after the game.
"Not too much you can say. Losing is not fun," Roneberg said.

The normally optimistic Johnson said it was hard to find a bright spot.
"But they say you've got to hit bottom before you can get up," he said.
"Maybe this is it."

NOTES
Infielder Joe Kilburg was promoted to Triple-A Pawtucket to replace Youkilis, who was called up to Boston Saturday.
Youkilis became the 99th Sea Dog to play in the major leagues.
Outfielder Eric Johnson, who was on the disabled list with a cut on his hand, was activated to replace Kilburg.
Roneberg's 18-game hitting streak is the longest current streak in pro baseball.
It is also the longest Sea Dogs streak since Mike Gulan hit in 20 straight in 1998.
This was Reading's first two-game winning streak since the opening week of the season.

PORTLAND LOSES 4TH STRAIGHT
Reading Pounds Sea Dogs, 13-2

Ryan Howard hit his Eastern League-leading 10th and 11th home runs and drove in five runs as Reading earned its first series win of the season with a 13-2 win over the Portland Sea Dogs on Saturday afternoon.

Portland's Chris Smith (3-1) failed in his attempt to become the first Sea Dog since Kevin Olsen in 2001 to win four straight starts.
Smith, who retired 10 of the first 11 R-Phils, allowed six combined runs in the fourth and fifth innings.

Reading put it away with seven runs in the eighth inning against the Sea Dogs bullpen.

The Sea Dogs conclude the series Sunday afternoon.

Eastern League Game Summary - Reading at Portland

Ryan Howard drove in five runs and Danny Gonzalez chipped in three RBI, as the Reading Phillies routed the Portland Sea Dogs, 13-2.

With the win, the Phillies improved to 13-21, while the Sea Dogs dropped to 13-21.

Howard drove in two of his five runs on a home run in the fifth inning.
He followed in the eighth inning with a three-run homer, his 11th of the year.

Gonzalez drove in one on a ground out and knocked in two more on a single in the eighth.

Kevin Barker and Kurt Keene each drove in two runs in the win.

John Castellano went 4-for-5 with two runs scored and a double for the Phillies.

Portland's Chris Smith was rocked in five innings of work.
He allowed nine hits, six earned runs, one walk and struck out four to suffer his first loss of the year.
He is 3-1.

Reading's Layne Dawson earned his first win of the year.
In six innings, he gave up six hits, two runs - one of them earned - three walks and struck out six Sea Dogs' batter's.

Brian Sanches recorded his first save of the year.

Sheldon Fuse and Edgar Martinez each drove in a run in the loss.

Phillies 13, Sea Dogs 2

Ryan Howard knocked in five runs with a pair of homers and Danny Gonzalez had three RBIs as the Reading Phillies beat the Portland Sea Dogs 13-2 Saturday in the Eastern League.

Kevin Barker and Kurt Keene drove in two runs apiece as the Phillies handed the Sea Dogs their fourth straight loss.
After three scoreless innings, Barker´s RBI double and Keene´s two-run single sparked three runs for the Phillies (13-21) in the top of the fourth.

John Hattig´s double was the key hit as Portland (13-21) responded with two in the bottom half of the inning.

The Phillies padded their lead with three runs in the fifth and seven in the eighth.

Reading starting pitcher Layne Dawson struck out six and gave up two runs - one earned and one unearned - over six innings to win his first Double-A outing of the season.