HARRISBURG, Pa. – The Reading Fightin Phils (14-11, 44-50) failed to score against the Harrisburg Senators (14-9, 48-44), falling 3-0 at FNB Field on Friday night. This is the second night in a row the Fightins have been shut out.
Reading had a chance to strike in the first inning, as Bryan Rincon drew a walk on major league rehabber Jake Irvin and advanced to third with one out. Irvin was able to strand the runner in scoring position, forcing a Raylin Heredia groundout and Alex Binelas lineout to end the half inning.
Irvin finished his day tossing 3.2 innings of shutout, hitless baseball with a walk and four punchouts. He threw 63 pitches, 38 of them for strikes.
Harrisburg scored in the bottom half of the inning, notching two of their three runs in the opening inning. Kervin Pichardo singled on a line drive to center field, scoring both Devin Fitz-Gerald and Branden Boissiere to give the Senators an early 2-0 advantage.
Reading had opportunities, with the largest one coming in the seventh inning. Luke Ritter, Kehden Hettiger and Jordan Dissin all drew walks with a Riley Tirotta strikeout sandwiched in between the sequence.
Harrisburg reliever Alex Clemmey then managed to wiggle out of the inning, striking out both Rincon and Pedro León to escape the bases loaded jam. The R-Phils finished the day going 0-for-10 with runners in scoring position.
The Nationals’ Double-A affiliate managed to tack on an insurance run in the eighth inning, as Pichardo laced an RBI double down the left field line to score Boissiere. This pushed the Sens’ lead to 3-0, where the score would remain.
Harrisburg reliever Sandy Gaston (2-3) got the win after recording a strikeout on just one pitch in relief of the starter, Irvin, who exited the game mid at-bat.
Adam Seminaris (9-6) took the loss despite recording a quality start. The lefty dealt six innings of two-run ball, striking out seven in the outing. Seminaris threw 100 pitches, a season-high and one pitch short of a career-high that he set back in 2023.
Clemmey (1) got the five-inning save, allowing just one hit along with four walks while fanning six hitters. Senators pitching recorded 11 punchouts in their second shutout win in a row.
Harrisburg now leads Reading 3-1 in this six-game set.
The Fightin Phils return to the field on Saturday evening against the Harrisburg Senators, Double-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals, at 6:00 p.m. RHP Gage Wood (0-1, 3.58 ERA) will take the mound for Reading, as RHP Josh Randall (3-3, 4.41 ERA) gets the ball for Harrisburg.