The Result
Curve - 13 runs to 5

The Curve - Year-to-Date
26 won and 14 lost

Brett's Position and the Batting Order
Playing - Leftfield
Batting - #3

At the end of the Game
2 hits from 5 at-bats - single, double, 2 x runs scored, 1 x grounded-into-double-play

Brett's at-bats
First at-bat
Lefthanded pitcher
Runner at first base - one down
Ball - downstairs
Foul ball - "Brett drove that one well the other way but it is slicing away and drops foul by just a couple of inches down the leftfield line"
"That pitch is hit hard but straight at the Phillies second-baseman who is able to handle it and throw to the shortstop who then throws to first base to get Roneberg by a step"
Ground out - double play - 4 to 6 to 3
Second at-bat
Lefthanded pitcher
Runner at first base - one down
Ball - fast ball - way inside
Called strike - curve ball
Ball - curve ball - low
Ball - change up - way high and tight
Foul ball - straight back over the screen
"There's a line drive into leftfield and the fielder can't get to it and Roneberg has a base hit"
Single to leftfield
Runner advanced to third base
Brett went to third base on a hit by the next Curve batter
Scored on another hit
Third at-bat
Righthanded pitcher
Runner at third base - one down
Ball - "that's well inside and Roneberg turns away from it"
"That pitch is popped up on the dirt on the right side and the catch is taken by the first-baseman"
Infield fly out - F3
Fourth at-bat
Righthanded pitcher
Bases empty - two down
Ball - away
Called strike - on the outside corner
Foul ball - back
"Brett drives that into deep rightfield and the fielder is going back and he makes the catch on the warning track"
Fly out to rightfield
Fifth at bat
Righthanded pitcher
Bases empty - two down
Ball - fast ball - low and inside
"There's a drive into the gap in rightfield and the fielder gets around to pick it up but not before Roneberg strolls into second base with a double"
Double to right-centrefield
Scored on a hit by the next Curve batter

Heard during the game

(#01) After Brett's hit in his second at-bat, the commentator said - "Brett has now hit safely in nineteen of the twenty-one games he has played in since joining up with the Curve"

Email from Brett

Game Reports

The Altoona Curve (26-14) took the rubber match of the series against the Reading Phillies (15-22) Wednesday afternoon, breaking out for a season high 18 hits while cruising to a 13-5 victory at Blair County Ballpark

Vic Buttler broke open a 6-3 game in the fifth inning, smashing the Curve’s second grand slam of the season
Buttler, who finished 3-for-5, was a double shy of hitting for Altoona’s first ever cycle and has now hit safely in nine straight games

The Curve took the lead in the second inning and never looked back after new addition, Dave Parrish hit his first RBI in an Altoona uniform, bringing home Brandon Chaves with a single to center
Parrish, who was signed by the Pirates on Sunday after catcher Octavio Martinez broke his right hand, finished 2-for-4 with two runs on the day

Starter Jason Roach (4-2) lasted 4-1/3 innings for the Curve, giving up four runs on three hits
Only one of those runs was earned however, as the right-hander received a no-decision

Brady Borner (2-0) pitched 2-1/3 innings of relief in picking up the win for the Curve
Borner only allowed one run on two hits in his twelfth appearance of the year

Withstanding a 21-minute rain delay in the top of the fourth, Reading closed a 4-0 gap with three runs
After leadoff batter Carlos Leon reached on an error, the next three batters singled safely, leading to a three-run inning
Roach induced a 4-6-3 double play to Reading first baseman Brandon Gemoll to end the threat

Altoona benefited from production at nearly every spot in its lineup, as eight different players hit safely

The Curve recorded seven extra base hits and scored in six consecutive innings, running away with their 26th victory of the year

Javier Guzman joined Buttler and also extended his hitting streak to nine games with a third inning single to left field
The shortstop finished the day 2-for-5 with three runs scored

Brett Roneberg has now hit safely in 19 of his 21 games with Altoona this season
The Australian native went 2-for-5 on Wednesday, scoring two runs

The Curve will enjoy an off day Thursday before heading to Binghamton on Friday for the opener of a three-game set
Mike Connolly (3-3, 4.99) is slated to start for Altoona against a Mets pitcher to be announced later
Altoona swept the Mets in four games last week during the Curve's six-game win streak

Vic Buttler drove in six runs as the Altoona Curve defeated the Reading Phillies 13-5 Wednesday afternoon at Blair County Ballpark

Buttler hit a grand slam to cap a five-run fifth inning
He also had a two-run triple in the fourth
Buttler's seven three-base hits lead the Eastern League

The Curve (26-14) took two of the three games in the series
They have won seven of their last eight games

The Phillies (15-22) have lost eight of their last ten games

Brandon Chaves also contributed to the Curve's season-high 18-hit attack
He was 3-for-3 with a double, two runs scored and three RBI

Carlos Leon had two doubles for the Phillies
He scored one run and knocked in another

Joey Hammond added two hits and an RBI for Reading and Tim Gradoville extended his hitting streak to seven games

Brady Borner (2-0) allowed a run in 1-2/3 innings of relief to pick up his second win of the series

Reading starter Daniel Haigwood (1-2) allowed 11 hits and six earned runs in 3-1/3 innings to take the loss

In most cases, Brandon Chaves and Adam Boeve would have qualified for the Altoona Curve’s offensive star of the game Wednesday
Chaves drove in three runs with a double and two singles and Boeve knocked in two with a double and two singles as the Curve hammered the Reading Phillies 13-5 before a School Days’ crowd of 5,860 at Blair County Ballpark

However, the exploits of Chaves and Boeve took a back seat to teammate Vic Buttler, who had a career day
Buttler smashed a grand slam homer and two-run triple for six RBIs as the Curve won for the seventh time in eight games
Buttler also had a single as Altoona ran its overall record to 26-14 in the Eastern League’s Southern Division

The R-Phils, who lost two of three here this week, fell to 15-22

‘‘I had a grand slam back in 2003 (at Class A Lynchburg vs. Potomac), but I don’t remember how many RBIs I had’’ Buttler said after his big day
‘‘I think this might be my high’’
It was
Actually, he had four RBIs that day in 2003, so Wednesday’s six-RBI performance was a personal best for the 25-year-old outfielder

Buttler has been on a tear recently
He was the EL’s player of the week last week after hitting .393 (11x28) with a double, four triples, four RBIs and five runs scored
Wednesday’s 3-for-5 effort boosted his average to .321

‘‘I’ve been working a lot with B Mo’’ Buttler said of hitting coach Brandon Moore
‘‘I’ve been doing some early work in the cages and just sticking with my approach
I’ve been trying to hit the ball the other way, and reacting to some things’’

Buttler’s 2-run triple gave the Curve a 6-3 lead in the fourth, and his grand slam in the fifth made it 11-3 and put the game away

‘‘He’s getting himself into a great position to hit everytime’’ Curve manager Tim Leiper said
‘‘He’s getting the barrel of the bat to the baseball, and I can’t really say he’s hot
He’s just real solid with his mechanics, and he’s playing the game with intensity and confidence
He hit four triples last week and another today, and then he hit the grand slam, which was unbelievable’’

Buttler deferred some of the praise to his teammates
‘‘From the top of the lineup to the bottom - even the pitchers are getting their hits’’ Buttler said
‘‘It’s fun and we definitely have some momentum going right now
‘We’re going to continue to play hard and play to win’’

The Curve banged out a season-best 18 hits, chalking up at least one hit in all eight innings they were at the plate
Butler, Chaves and Boeve all collected three hits while Javier Guzman, Brett Roneberg, Taber Lee and David Parrish all had two safeties
Relief pitcher Chris Hernandez even got into the act with an eighth-inning single

‘‘Today was great’’ Leiper said
‘‘Reading is pretty good - they have a good offensive club
But, we did a lot on the offensive end today
Actually, we did a lot of the little things
We executed and pitched real good in the middle innings
We really grinded to get to that fifth inning and then did a nice job after the rain delay’’

Jason Roach started for the Curve, but a 22-minute rain delay in the fourth inning seem to effect him and he was lifted with one out in the fifth inning

Javier Vasquez came on to get one key out, then Brady Borner worked two and one-third frames to pick up his second win

Hernandez retired six straight batters over the last two innings

‘‘Today was an interesting situation with the rain delay’’ Borner noted
‘‘It was kind of up and down for a little while and I really had to work hard on pacing myself
It felt good when I came in
I’ve been getting used a lot more and I feel a lot sharper
The other guys (in the bullpen) are getting innings, too, and everytime we go out there, we’re sharp’’

Around the Curve
Besides Buttler, Guzman extended his hitting streak to nine straight games
Curve, who won six of seven on the home stand, are off Thursday before traveling to Binghamton for a three-game weekend series
First baseman Simon Pond sat out Wednesday’s game with a foot injury, but Lee made his first start at 1b and had two hits
Leiper expects Pond to be ready for the Binghamton series
Curve return to BCB next Monday for a four-game set with the Bowie Baysox