Strong Bullpen Effort Leads Reading to Victory

BOX SCORE

(Somerset, NJ) - A stellar effort from the bullpen led the Reading Fightin Phils to a 6-5 victory over the Somerset Patriots on Saturday night. The win cut the Somerset series lead to 3-2, as Reading will go for the series split tomorrow.

The moment of the night for Reading came in the bottom of the eighth inning when Max Kuhns faced runners on second and third with no outs. But, the righty proceeded to retire three-straight Patriots on strikes to escape the jam and preserve the 6-5 Reading lead.

Taylor Lehman then entered in the bottom of the ninth and retired the top three of the Patriots lineup, all top-five in the Yankees system, in order to secure the win and his first save of the save. Lehman's effort capped an excellent effort from the combination of Matt Seelinger, Braden Zarbnisky, Kuhns, and Lehman.

Those four followed R-Phils starter Josh Hendrickson, who got the start and lasted just four innings. He allowed five earned runs on six hits while walking two and striking out a pair of Patriots. Hendrickson allowed three home runs, which matched a career-high for him.

Offensively, Reading used a couple of crooked innings to grab the lead and eventually hold on for the lead. The Fightin Phils scored two in the second inning, thanks to a Madison Stokes two-run home run, his first home run of the season. Reading then added three more in a big fifth inning, which featured a two-run triple from Nick Podkul, who continues to showcase strong hitting out of the leadoff spot. Matthew Kroon also contributed a two-hit game.

For Somerset, Austin Wells, TJ Rumfield, and Brandon Lockridge all blasted home runs to account for much of the Patriots' offense tonight. They were unable to capitalize with the tying run on third and the go-ahead run on second in the eighth inning when Kuhns sent down three straight Somerset hitters on strikes.

Seelinger earned the win for Reading to improve to 1-0 on the season. The loss went to Steven Jennings, who falls to 2-2 for Somerset. Lehman earned his first save of the season for the Fightin Phils.

With the win, Reading improves to 14-23 on the season, while Somerset drops to 23-14 with the loss. The teams return to the field Sunday at 1:05 p.m. to finish this week's six-game series. LHP David Parkinson is scheduled to get the start for Reading, and he will go opposite Somerset's RHP Blane Abeyta. The game can also be watched on MiLB TV or the Bally Live App.

The Fightin Phils return home on Tuesday, May 23, at 11 a.m. to begin a six-game series against the Harrisburg Senators (Nationals). Tuesday is a school kid game, Thursday and Friday feature postgame fireworks and Sunday showcases an appearance from the Philly Phanatic. Tickets to all games remain available and can be purchased at rphils.com/tickets, by calling 610-370-BALL or in person at the Customers Bank Ticket Office.

The 2023 R-Phils season is presented by Pepsi. Follow the Fightin Phils on Twitter @ReadingFightins, like us on Facebook or follow us on Instagram @Fightins.