---Borner Retires from Baseball after Six Seasons

Curve pitcher Brady Borner has decided to call it quits and retire from professional baseball after pitching six seasons in the Pirates' minor league system, including all or parts of four with the Curve
"I've always considered myself as a family guy, and it came to a point when I really needed to evaluate my situation and whether or not it was best for my family” said Borner
Borner, 27, was the Curve’s Pitcher of the Year and an Eastern League All-Star in 2005, when he spent the entire campaign with the Curve, going 6-1 with a 2.08 ERA in 48 relief appearances
This season, the left-hander got off to a slow start, posting a 7.11 ERA in 13 games
The resident of Omaha, NE made his final appearance in a Curve uniform on May 22nd at Blair County Ballpark
The 5-10, 198 pound southpaw was selected as the Pittsburgh’s 31st round pick in the 2001 June draft
Despite being a late-round selection, Borner became the first pitcher from the Pirates’ 2001 draft class to reach Double-A when he opened the 2003 season with Altoona
Since that inaugural season with Altoona, Borner developed a relationship with the Curve fans and family that is truly unique and something not seen everyday in professional sports
“I truly appreciate the hospitality given to me from the Curve fans and everyone else involved with the Altoona Curve
I am going to miss the great atmosphere at Blair County Ballpark and the people I have come to know associated with the Curve” said Borner before his departure
“Without question I am going to enjoy spending quality time with my family, time which has been missing for the past six years"

New Faces

With LHP Josh Shortslef on the disabled list, RHP Chad Blackwell took his spot on the roster out of extended Spring Training
The 23-year-old was acquired from Kansas City along with RHP Jonah Bayliss in the off-season for LHP Mark Redman
Since joining the Curve, Blackwell has struggled in two appearances, allowing three runs in three innings

Among the Current Eastern League Leaders

1B/OF Brett Roneberg (3rd/.313) and OF Vic Buttler (4th/.305) rank among the top four in the E.L. in batting
1B Simon Pond is third in the league with 36 RBI
Buttler leads the E.L. in triples (10) and ranks 2nd in slugging (.548)
2B Craig Stansberry ranks tied for 2nd in runs scored (33)

Hangin' in There

Despite losing six out of their last ten, the Curve are only 1/2 game out of first place in the E.L. South
The five-game losing streak the club suffered last week was the club’s longest such skid since May 30-June 4, 2003
The Curve did gain momentum however, defeating New Hampshire 3-1, Sunday night, before they headed to New England for series in Portland and in New Hampshire

May Flowers

The Curve will hope the offensive explosion they had in May will continue through the month of June
In 30 games during May, Curve batters had a collective .275 average with 21 total home runs, 42 doubles and a league-high 154 runs
Through four games in June however, the team is batting a dismal .193 with only 12 runs

The Result
Sea Dogs - 13 runs to 8

The Curve - Year-to-Date
34 won and 24 lost

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

At the end of the Game
1 hit from 3 at-bats - single, 2 x runs scored, 2 x walks, 1 x strike out, 1 x stolen base

Brett's at-bats
First at-bat
Righthanded pitcher
Runner at first base - one down
Ball
Swing and a miss - "and Roneberg was way out ahead of that off speed pitch"
Called strike - "the runner is off and here comes the throw ...... and he's out at second base!!! ...... and the bases are now empty"
Ball - low
Ball - "that's inside at the thighs and has Roneberg jumping out of the way"
Ball - just outside
Walk
"The runner is off on that pitch and the Sea Dogs' catcher loses it when changing the ball from his glove to his throwing hand and Brett is in at second base with a stolen base"
Advanced to third on a 'hit-batter' pitch
Scored on a walk
Second at-bat
Righthanded pitcher
Runner at first base - two down
Swing and a miss
Called strike - on the inside corner
"Brett takes the pitcher the other way and drives the ball into leftfield for a base hit"
Single to leftfield
Runner advanced to second base
Brett advanced to second base on a walk
Scored on a Grand Slam
Third at-bat
Righthanded pitcher
Runners at first and second base - two down
Called strike - on the outside corner
Ball - breaking ball - inside
Ball - just outside
Foul ball - lifted down the leftfield line
Swing and a miss
Strike out
Fourth at-bat
Righthanded pitcher
Bases empty - two down
Ball
Ball - inside
Foul ball
Foul ball - up the first base line
Ball - inside - "and the question is asked - 'Did he go around???' ...... and the call is no!!!"
Ball - "and that pitch was way inside and Roneberg had to dance to get out of the way"
Walk
Left stranded at the end of the innings
Fifth at-bat
Lefthanded pitcher
Bases empty - one down
Ball - low
Called strike
Ball - change up
"That ball is bounced towards the Sea Dogs second-baseman who gathers it up and throws to first base to make the out"
Ground out to second base - 4 to 3

Heard during the game

(#01) During the game, the commentator mentioned - "Coming in to tonight's game, Brett was third in the Eastern League with a batting average of 313 ...... he is actually in second place because Adam Boeve, who is listed in that spot, is now playing for Indiamapolis in the 'AAA' League"

Email from Brett

Game Reports

Ray Sadler belted a second-inning grand slam to give Altoona an early five-run lead, but the Portland Sea Dogs used a seven-run fourth inning to roar back and claim a series-opening 13-8 victory over the Curve Tuesday night at Hadlock Field in Portland, Maine

Sadler's slam - the Curve's third of the season - came after Dave Parrish opened the frame with a solo shot and gave Altoona an early 6-1 lead

After Portland answered with two runs in the bottom of the second, Rafael Alvarez restored the Curve's five-run lead in the fourth with a two-run homer to make it an 8-3 game

However, the Curve lead would disappear in the bottom of the frame with starter Matt Peterson on the mound
The right-hander, who had a 7.68 ERA over his previous eight starts, allowed a lead-off homer to Jeremy West, which opened the flood gates for the Sea Dogs
Portland would add three more runs against Peterson before Luis Jimenez touched up reliever Jonathan Albaladejo for a three-run home run to give the 'Dogs a 10-8 lead

Albaladejo (1-2) was tagged with the loss after being on the mound when the Sea Dogs grabbed the lead for good in the fourth

Peterson was charged with seven runs and seven hits in 3-2/3 innings to raise his season ERA to 6.57

Portland added one run in the sixth and two more in the seventh against reliever Blaine Neal to provide added insurance in their sixth consecutive victory

Jon Searles (3-1), a former Pirates' farmhand, earned the win in relief for Portland despite allowing two runs in just 1-2/3 innings of work

Parrish led the Curve's 11-hit effort by going 4-for-5, while Sadler, Alvarez and Vic Buttler each added two hits in the loss

Altoona (34-24), which was opening a seven-game road trip, lost for the sixth time in seven games and fell to 4-11 in its last 15 contests away from Blair County Ballpark

Portland improved to 33-22 with the win and maintained at least a five-game lead in the E.L. North

The Curve and Sea Dogs will play the middle game of their three-game series Wednesday night at Hadlock Field
Altoona will send right-hander Matt Lorenzo to the mound for his first start of the season
Portland will counter with left-hander Kason Gabbard (6-2, 3.35)
First pitch is set for 6.00pm

Game Notes
Prior to the game, pitcher Chris Rojas was placed on the Disabled List with a shoulder injury - the right-hander left his start in game two of Saturday's doubleheader against New Hampshire in the fourth inning - the extent of his injury is not known
Matt Lorenzo, who will make his Curve debut as a starter Wednesday night, was added to the roster to replace Rojas - the 23-year old was signed as a minor league free agent last month after being released by the Atlanta Braves in spring training - he was a fifth round draft pick of the Texas Rangers in 2003 out of Kent State and went to Atlanta in a trade for RHP Kevin Grybowski last July
Vic Buttler went 2-for-5 in Tuesday's contest and has now hit safely in 20 of his last 22 games, hitting .356 (31-for-87) during that span

The Sea Dogs used a seven-run fourth inning to beat the Altoona Curve, 13-8 on Tuesday night at Hadlock Field

Portland’s win streak improves to a season high six games, and maintains a five-game lead in the Northern Division

Luis Jimenez highlighted the fourth inning for Portland, blasting a three-run homer on the first pitch from Jonathan Albaladejo (1-2), giving the Sea Dogs a 10-8 lead

Portland scored the final ten runs of the game

Jimenez added a sacrifice fly in the sixth and Chris Durbin pounded a two-run double in the eighth

Jon Searles (3-1) picked up the win for the Sea Dogs, allowing two runs on a two-run homer by Rafael Alvarez in the fourth inning

Altoona had two leads of five runs, 6-1 and 8-3, knocking Jose Vaquedano out of the game in the third inning

Ray Sadler gave Altoona a 6-1 lead with a grand slam off Vaquedano in the second

Portland scored twice in the second inning on back-to-back, two-out, run-scoring singles by David Bacani and Zach Borowiak

The same duo would knock in two during Portland's 7-run fourth

Chad Spann cut the deficit to 8-7 with an RBI single on a 0-2 pitch

Devern Hansack fired three scoreless innings in relief of Searles, allowing one hit, one walk and fanning five

Randy Beam pitched a perfect eighth and Jon Searles closed out the game with a scoreless ninth

Matt Peterson struggled for the second straight start against Portland
Tyler Minges hit the first pitch of the first inning over the left field wall

Peterson left the game in the fourth inning after allowing seven runs on seven hits
Jeremy West had hit a lead off home run in the fourth innings and he and finished the game with two hits

Notes
Portland scored eight runs with two outs, Altoona scored five
Jose Vaquedano had the shortest appearance for a starter this season (2.1 IP)
Thirteen runs was a season high for the Sea Dogs
All nine starters reached base
Tyler Minges left the game after being on the helmet by a pitch from Blaine Neal
Allied Home Mortgage Big Dog of the Game - Luis Jimenez

Luis Jimenez homered and drove in four runs as Portland slugged its way to a 13-8 win over Altoona on Tuesday

Jimenez hit a three-run blast during a seven-run fourth inning for the Sea Dogs, who erased an 8-3 deficit during the frame
He added a sacrifice fly in the sixth for Portland (33-22), which rallied for its sixth straight win

Jeremy West and Tyler Minges also went deep for the Sea Dogs, who have outscored their opponents, 44-16, during the winning streak

Reliever Jonathan Searles (3-1) picked up the victory after allowing two runs on two hits and a walk while striking out two in 1-2/3 innings

David Parrish went 4-for-5 with a homer and fell a triple shy of the cycle for the Curve (34-24), who have dropped six of seven

Ray Sadler hit a grand slam in the second and Rafael Alvarez belted a two-run shot in the fourth for Altoona

Jonathan Albaladejo (1-2) took the loss after surrendering three runs on four hits over 1-1/3 frames of relief

The tough times just keep on coming for the Curve’s pitching staff

On a day when it lost yet another starter to the disabled list, Altoona also received a 13-8 lashing at the hands of Portland on Tuesday at Hadlock Field

The Curve have lost six of their last seven games, surrendering 54 runs in that span, while the Sea Dogs have won six in a row

Altoona’s team ERA is now 3.75, ranking next to last in the Eastern League

Curve reliever Jonathan Albaladejo (1-2) picked up the loss when he could not contain Portland during a seven-run, fourth-inning rally
Albaladejo allowed three runs over his 1-1/3 innings of work

Jonathan Searles (3-1) earned the win with 1-2/3 innings of relief for Portland

Before the game, Altoona placed right-handed starter Chris Rojas on the disabled list with a shoulder injury

The team’s pitching woes continued throughout the game

Starter Matt Peterson struggled for his fourth consecutive start, surrendering seven runs in a season-low 3-2/3 innings
The outing bloated his ERA to 6.57

Meanwhile, the Curve wasted a good showing from their hitters

The Sea Dogs’ pitching staff entered the game sporting a league-leading 2.97 ERA, but Altoona hammered its starter, Jose Vaquedano, for six runs in 2-1/3 innings

Dave Parrish and Ray Sadler each belted a home run in the second inning
Sadler’s shot was a grand slam that gave the Curve a 6-1 lead
Parrish finished 4-for-5 and a triple shy of the cycle

Trailing 8-3 in the fourth inning, however, Portland sent ten batters to the plate and scored seven times to take the lead for good
Albaladejo entered the game with Curve leading, 8-6, and with two outs and a runner on
He gave up three straight hits, including Chad Spann’s RBI single and Luis Jimenez’s three-run homer

Altoona never recovered

The Curve, who have been in first place most of the season, now trail first-place Akron by 1-1/2 games in the Southern Division

When a team is in first place and on a win streak, what is a five-run deficit?
The Portland Sea Dogs overcame such a gap and beat the Altoona Curve 13-8 Tuesday night at Hadlock Field

Portland (33-22) won its sixth straight game and extended its lead in the Eastern League Northern Division to 5-1/2 games

"Everyone is swinging the bat well. That's how it is" said first baseman Luis Jimenez, whose three-run homer capped a seven-run fourth inning
"We just had to keep working"

When Jimenez said "we," he meant it
In the decisive fourth inning, every player in the Sea Dogs' lineup either scored or knocked in a run

Jimenez finished with four RBI
Chris Durbin went 2 for 5 and knocked in two runs, as did David Bacani, who was 2 for 3, and Zack Borowiak, who went 1 for 3
Tyler Minge, who was 2 for 3, and Jeremy West, who went 2 for 4, each had a solo home run

"We didn't give any at-bats away" Portland Manager Todd Claus said

Portland starter Jose Vaquedano struggled against Altoona (34-24), especially in the second inning when he gave up a solo homer to David Parish and a grand slam to Ray Sadler as the Curve took a 6-1 lead

In April when Portland was hitting .219, this would have been a problem
But the Sea Dogs are now hitting .248 and have 10-plus hits in six of their last 11 games

So what if they were trailing 6-1?

"Our attitude was that we had to keep getting good at-bats" Bacani said
"We're very confident
We're on an even keel, but we come out every day with the attitude that we're going to win"

Minges got Portland started with a leadoff homer against Altoona starter Matt Peterson

The Sea Dogs got two more in the second on RBI singles by Bacani and Borowiak

Rafael Alvarez's two-run homer in the fourth gave Altoona an 8-3 lead, but then the Sea Dogs came up to bat
West led off with a home run
Brandon Moss singled and Alberto Concepcion was hit by pitch
They advanced on a wild pitch before Bacani grounded out to score Moss and Borowiak's sacrifice fly drove in Concepcion to make it 8-6
Minges' single chased Peterson
Durbin singled off reliever Jonathan Albaladejo (1-2)
Chad Spann singled to score Minges, closing Portland to 8-7 and bringing Jimenez to the plate
"He threw a change-up and he missed his spot" said Jimenez, who did not miss the pitch
His blast to right gave Portland a 10-8 lead

Portland later added to the lead and got scoreless relief pitching from Devern Hansack, Randy Beam and Victor Ramos

Notes
Minges was hit on the head in the sixth inning by a 92-mph fastball from Blaine Neal - Minges left the game, but Claus said he is fine
Blaine Neal is one of three former Sea Dogs on the Curve roster, along with reliever James Johnson and first baseman Brett Roneberg
Altoona's Parish, who was 4 for 5, is the son of former major-league catcher Lance Parish
The paid attendance was 5,119
Jonathan Papelbon bobblehead dolls will be given to the first 1,000 fans through the gates for today's 6.00pm game
Gates open at 4.30pm