The Result
Curve - 8 runs to 3

The Curve - Year-to-Date
2 wins and 3 losses

Brett's Position and the Batting Order
Playing - Leftfield
Batting - #5

Brett's at-bats
First plate appearance
Righthanded pitcher
Runner at second base - two down
Ball - outside
Called strike
"Roneberg taps that out towards second base and it's fielded on the hop and thrown to first base for the final out of the innings"
Ground out to second base - 4 to 3
Second plate appearance
Righthanded pitcher
Runner at second base - two down
"Brett goes after the first pitch and tags it into deep centrefield but the fielder is going back and makes the catch just shy of the warning track and the innings is over"
Fly out to centrefield - F8
Third plate appearance
Righthanded pitcher
Bases empty - two down
"That ball is driven deep into leftfield and the fielder is backing up and makes the catch to end the innings ... for a while there it looked like the Curve may have had back-to-back home runs"
Fly out to leftfield - F7
Fourth plate appearance
Righthanded pitcher
Runner at first base - one down
Foul ball - "That is belted down the first base line ... Brett got all of that but it is just foul"
Foul ball - "Again that is well hit down the rightfield line but it's slicing foul and into the Curve bullpen"
"There's a ground ball to the shortstop and it should be a doubleplay ... there's the first out and here comes the relay throw ... and it's wide of the base and pulls the fielder away and Roneberg is able to avoid the tag and he is safe at first base"
Ground out to shortstop - safe on a fielder's choice play - 6 to 4
Left stranded at the end of the innings

At the end of the Game
0 hit from 4 at-bats

Heard during the game

(01) During Brett's fourth plate appearance, the commentator said - "Brett has made some good contact tonight for no result"

Email from Brett

Game Reports

A shakeup in the Curve lineup seemed to bring things together for the team, and for Andrew McCutchen, as the top-rated prospect in the Pirates’ system collected three hits in an 8-3 Altoona triumph over Reading

On Friday, Curve manager Tim Leiper moved McCutchen to the second spot in the Altoona order after he had started the year 0-for-15 in a leadoff role
The move paid dividends, but McCutchen’s outstanding night certainly wasn’t the only one for the Curve

Fellow top-prospect Neil Walker also had three hits, and a big start to the year for Randy Ruiz continued with his third home run and four runs driven in

On the mound, Luis Munoz made his first start at the double-A level a memorable one throwing six solid innings allowing just four hits and two earned runs
Munoz picked up his first double-A win for his troubles to improve to (1-0)

It was McCutchen who got the Curve started in the first inning, singling up the middle off of Kyle Kendrick and later scoring on the first of five Reading errors to make it 1-0 Curve

Altoona used more sloppy play by the R-Phils to pick up an unearned run in the second, but Reading answered when Greg Jacobs supplied the only blemish of the evening for Curve starter Luis Munoz by driving a two-run double to the wall in right field to tie the game at two

Enter Neil Walker and Randy Ruiz

With McCutchen aboard with his second single off of Kyle Kendrick in the fourth, Walker singled to move McCutchen to third
Ruiz drove him in with a sacrifice fly to give the lead back to Altoona at 3-2

In the fifth, Walker was on with his second hit of the night as Ruiz sent his third home run of the year over the left field fence to put the Curve up for good at 5-2

Following Munoz’s departure, Alay Soler came on for Altoona
He hurled the final three innings, allowing just one run to pick up his first save of the season

McCutchen, Walker and Ruiz fittingly all had a hand in putting the game away in the seventh inning
With Taber Lee on at second and Javier Guzman on at first, McCutchen doubled into the corner in left field to bring home Lee
Walker drove home Guzman with his third single of the night, and Ruiz capped the scoring by flying out to score McCutchen

Kyle Kendrick took the loss for the Phillies to fall to (1-1)

The series continues tomorrow night with game three at 5.05pm
LHP Josh Shortslef will start for the Curve
RHP Heath Totten will get the ball for the Reading

Randy Ruiz homered and drove in four runs as Altoona topped visiting Reading, 8-3, on Friday

Ruiz connected for his third homer of the year, a two-run blast in the fifth inning
He also singled in the first and lifted sacrifice flies in the third and seventh

Andrew McCutchen went 3-for-4 with an RBI and three runs scored, while Neil Walker also collected three hits and drove in a run for the Curve (2-3)

McCutchen started the season 0-for-15 in the leadoff spot but was dropped to second in the lineup against the Phillies

Altoona's Luis Munoz (1-0) won his first Double-A start after allowing two runs on four hits and two walks with five strikeouts in six innings

Alay Soler recorded his first professional save, despite yielding a run on five hits over three frames

Phillies starter Kyle Kendrick (1-1) surrendered five runs - three earned - on eight hits and a walk with two strikeouts in six innings

Greg Jacobs went 2-for-3 with three RBIs for the Phillies (5-3)

Tim Gradoville went 3-for-3 with two runs scored

Randy Ruiz haunted his former team on Friday the 13th, homering and driving in four runs in the Altoona Curve's 8-3 victory over the Reading Phillies at Blair County Ballpark

Ruiz, who hit .349 for the R-Phils two seasons ago, had sacrifice flies in the third and seventh innings and a two-run homer in the fifth

Luis Munoz (1-0) allowed two runs in six innings for his first Double-A victory

Former New York Met Alay Soler allowed a run in three innings to get his first save of the season

Kyle Kendrick (1-1) allowed five runs, only three earned, in six innings to take the loss

The Phillies (5-3) committed a season-high five errors in the game

Greg Jacobs knocked in all three Reading runs with a two-run double and an RBI single

Tim Gradoville was 3-for-3 and scored two of the Reading runs

Javon Moran continued his torrid start with three more hits, a steal and a run scored

Altoona (2-3) received offensive support from Andrew McCutchen and Neil Walker, the top two prospects in the Pittsburgh organization
Each had three hits and an RBI
McCutchen scored three times and Walker crossed the plate once

Andrew McCutchen, who was batting second against Reading instead of leadoff, reached third base in the third inning shortly after his second hit, and manager Tim Leiper had to ask a question
“He asked me ‘So, you want to be the leadoff now?’” McCutchen said
“I said ‘Oh no, oh no’
He started laughing
I saw him two more times at third and he asked me the same thing
I said ‘Nah, I think I’ll stay here’
I believe that’s where I’ll be for now”

Why mess with success?
McCutchen, the Pirates’ 2006 Minor League Player of the Year, was 0-for-15 entering Friday night’s game before an announced 3,607 brave souls at a chilly Blair County Ballpark, but he broke out in a big way in the Curve’s 8-3 win
He went 3-for-4 with a double, RBI, three runs scored and one tremendous over-the-shoulder catch in deep center field

“It felt good to finally get out there and get that hit” said McCutchen, who hiked his batting average to .238
“That first hit is always like you’re going to be on a roll after that
I kind of felt like that was where I was at in this game
I knew eventually it would come around, and today, it came around”

“It worked out well” Leiper said of dropping McCutchen to the second slot
“It probably took a little bit of pressure off him
His first four games, his at-bats were so good, but kept getting his walks
Tonight, he got the pitches and did stuff with them”

With Javier Guzman in the leadoff spot for the Curve (2-3), the 2-3-4 slots in the order was potent against Reading pitchers Kyle Kendrick and Nate Johnson
No. 3 hitter Neil Walker went 3-for-4 with an RBI, and cleanup hitter Randy Ruiz did just that - clean up
The 6-foot-3, 235-pounder from the Bronx went 2-for-2 with a two-run home run, two sacrifice flys and four RBI's

“My job is to drive in runs” Ruiz said
“I was just happy to have the opportunity to drive in some runs today so I can give my ballclub a chance to win”

“We’re five games in, and any time we’ve needed a big hit and he comes up, he’s gotten it” Leiper said
“I had never seen him play before
I heard he was a clutch performer
He thrives in that situation”

Even though he was hitless coming in, McCutchen has taken pitchers deep into the count
On Friday night, all three of his hits came with two strikes on him

He scored in the first on a Ruiz infield hit
In the third, MCutchen reached on a bloop single to right, moved to third on a Walker single and scored on Ruiz’s first sac fly

In between, Leiper did something that was uncharacteristic for him
With Adam Boeve on third and one out in the second, he had Milver Reyes to squeeze bunt
It worked perfectly as Boeve scored
It was the first time Leiper has ever called for a squeeze
“Milver did a great job getting the squeeze down” Leiper said
“It seemed like a good time to do it, and it worked out”

With two outs in the fifth, Walker reached on an infield hit and Ruiz belted a Kendrick offering into the back row of the left field bleachers
“The first two pitches, I took some crazy swings” Ruiz said
“But the next thing you know, I just settled down, got something good to hit and drove it”

All three of the hitting stars kept producing late in the game
In the seventh, McCutchen plated Taber Lee with a double to left field
Walker chased Guzman home with a single to right
Ruiz sent McCutchen home with a sacrifice fly to center field

“When there’s a guy on third base and less than two outs, you’re trying to get the ball up in the air somewhere to get the guy in from third” Ruiz said
“I’m just happy I had Cutch, a guy that can run
The fly balls were shallow, but he’s got some wheels”

McCutchen showed he had a glove in the sixth as he hauled in Pete Shier’s rope to deep center
“First of all, I just have to commend the outfield coaches” McCutchen said
“Ever since I stepped into a Pirate uniform they’ve always been out there working with me working on my routes
I guess you could say I made it look easy, taking a good route on the ball, getting back to the fence, sticking my glove up and catching it
You kind of look at it as the fans have faith in you now
You get all good hits, you play good defense and they start to see the true Andrew McCutchen
Hopefully, I can get the hits everywhere I go”