Sea Dogs win suspended game, Story homers and Kluber pitches well

PORTLAND- The Portland Sea Dogs built a big lead on Friday night that included a towering three-run homerun by Trevor Story, but the New Hampshire Fisher Cats came back to even the score in the ninth inning before the game was suspended by rain with one out and the bases still loaded. The contest resumed Saturday evening, and after Ryan Miller helped pitch through a jam, Tyler Dearden hit a leadoff homer in the bottom half for a 7-6 Double A Eastern League walkoff win for the Sea Dogs at Hadlock Field.

In the action that began on Friday evening, Portland bolted out to a six run lead through five innings. Story, playing shortstop and in his first at bat of the entire 2023 season and first since last September with the Red Sox, drew a first inning walk and would score on a triple by Marcelo Mayer. Corey Rosier led off the last of the third with a solo homerun into the Giffords Pavilion in rightfield on a 1-2 pitch to make it 2-0 Sea Dogs. After Blaze Jordan lifted a sacrifice fly for another run in the fourth, Story stepped up with two men on and nobody out in the fifth and hammered a 3-2 pitch over the Maine Monster in left for a three-run homerun to double the advantage to 6-0. Corey Kluber, also on a rehab assignment, pitched the second and third innings giving up just an infield single walking none and striking out one throwing 35 pitches with 22 of them for strikes. New Hampshire got two back in the sixth on RBI singles by Trevor Schwecke and Rainer Nunez. The Fisher Cats tied it in the ninth inning as the real heavy rains moved in on a one out RBI single by Steward Berroa, followed by a walk that loaded the bases. The next three batters then all reached to make it 6-6 on a hit by pitch, a catchers interference on Nathan Hickey, and another walk. The game was then haulted until Saturday evening. Upon continuation of play with one out and the bases still loaded for the guests, Miller came on to pitch and struckout both Will Robertson and Miguel Hiraldo swinging to escape anymore damage. Dearden leading off the bottom half took an 0-1 pitch from reliever Mason Fluharty over the fence in centerfield for the walkoff win.

Philip Sikes and Corey Rosier had two hits each for Portland. Story went 1-2 with a walk and the three-run homer. Joe Jones pitched 1.0 scoreless inning to start the game, Kluber tossed 2.0 scoreless, and Hunter Dobbins ate up most of the innings by firing 5.0 frames allowing two runs on eight hits with no walks and eight strikeouts. Miller (4-2) picked up the win in relief. Berroa had four hits in the loss for New Hampshire, who falls to 40-45 overall on the season and 5-12 so far in the second half. Chad Dallas started on the mound for the Fisher Cats (Toronto Blue Jays) and allowed six runs on seven hits in 5.0 innings in the no-decision, with Fluharty (2-4) being tagged with the defeat. Portland is 14-5 in their second half of the season and in first place in the Northern Division (54-34 overall). The two teams played the regularly scheduled game five of their series also on Saturday evening, and NH used another four run ninth inning to this time steal a 6-4 victory. The final game of the six game set is Sunday afternoon.

Recap/Photos/Videos by Chris Lessner