July 14: Ducks rally, but Fightin Phils walk off, 7-6

July 14, 2024 RubberDucks Game Recap | Box Score

Reading Fightin Phils (6-12, 37-49) 7, Akron RubberDucks (13-5, 50-37) 6

WP: Daniel Harper (1-0) LP: Bradley Hanner (7-3) Save: none

Summary

The Akron RubberDucks rallied from a 4-0 deficit to take 5-4 and 6-5 leads on respective homers by catcher Kody Huff and first baseman Aaron Bracho, but Reading rallied for a walk-off win on right fielder Ethan Wilson’s ninth-inning single for a 7-6 Fightin Phils win in the finale of a six-game series at FirstEnergy Stadium Sunday night.

A 5⃣-run 7th for the lead!@Kodyhuff2 CRUSHES his 5⃣th Western Reserve Distillers🍸HOME RUN to give us the lead!

101 mph🚀372 feet

TOP 7 | Akron 5 | Reading 4 pic.twitter.com/7oyThyDOzq

— Akron RubberDucks (@AkronRubberDuck) July 14, 2024

BIG-TIME BRACHO!

GO-AHEAD Western Reserve Distillers HOME RUN!
102 mph🚀405 feet

TOP 9 | Akron 6 | Reading 5 pic.twitter.com/eeFsEIZQyd

— Akron RubberDucks (@AkronRubberDuck) July 15, 2024

Turning Point

With Akron leading, 6-5, in the bottom of the ninth inning, designated hitter Josh Breaux hit a leadoff double to left field against right-hander Bradley Hanner. Left fielder Baron Radcliff hit a game-tying double to left field, and after shortstop Trevor Schwecke singled to right field, Wilson delivered his walk-off single to deep center field for a 7-6 Reading win.

Mound Presence

Akron right-hander Tommy Mace allowed a two-out, two-run homer in the first inning to third baseman Otto Kemp before holding Reading without another run through the fourth inning. He allowed another two-out, two-run homer to second baseman Robert Moore in the fifth inning that made it 4-0. Mace retired the first two batters of the sixth inning before departing after 5 2/3 innings, allowing six hits and no walks with four strikeouts. Right-hander Jack Leftwich got the final out of the sixth inning, but he allowed Radcliff’s game-tying home run in the seventh. Right-hander Mason Hickman worked around a hit in a scoreless eighth inning, before Hanner began the ninth.

Duck Tales

Akron went scoreless through six innings against Reading left-hander Matt Osterberg. In the seventh, with right-hander Efrain Contreras inheriting a 4-0 lead, designated hitter C.J. Kayfus hit a one-out double, center fielder Petey Halpin reached on a third-strike wild pitch, and right fielder Alexfri Planez hit an RBI single, before Bracho hit a two-run double. With two outs, Huff hit a 372-foot, go-ahead, two-run home run to right-center field off right-hander Carlos Francisco. In a 5-5 tie in the ninth, Bracho drilled a 405-feet homer to right-center field for a 6-5 advantage.

Alexfri Planez drives home @CJK_3121

TOP 7 | Reading 4 | Akron 1 pic.twitter.com/DiBfDuXzw6

— Akron RubberDucks (@AkronRubberDuck) July 14, 2024

Aaron Bracho extends a 🔟-game hitting streak with a 2-run double!

TOP 7 | Reading 4 | Akron 3 pic.twitter.com/GRTx7O6UvB

— Akron RubberDucks (@AkronRubberDuck) July 14, 2024

Notebook

Mace enters the All-Star Break with 98 1/3 innings pitched, leading the Eastern League, in 17 starts, tied for most in the league…Bracho extended his season-high 10-game hitting streak (16-for-41)…In the second half, he has a .382 average and eight multi-hit games, reaching base in each of his 13 games…Planez had nine hits in the series…Huff and Kayfus each had eight hits in the series, while Akron hit .312 as a team in the six games…Game Time: 2:35…Attendance: 5,390.

On the Pond

Following the All-Star Break, the RubberDucks start a nine-game homestand with the opener of a three-game series against Richmond at 7:05 p.m. Friday at Canal Park. The game broadcast is on 640 WHLO, the 640 WHLO iHeartRadio channel, and akronrubberducks.com, and available on Bally Live. Tickets for RubberDucks home games are available at akronrubberducks.com/tickets.