July 2-3

As the calendar moved from Sunday to Monday the midpoint of the year came and went, in a non-leap year July 2 would be the hump day but not in 2012. Monday began as usual with lunch at the mall, in the afternoon I was back at the ballpark in Reading. As expected the roster moves made on Sunday were reversed as the guys loaned to Lehigh Valley were back in town and Kyle Simon was transferred to Clearwater. It was somewhat cooler at game time than it has been lately, a mere 84 degrees at 7:05. For the second consecutive night the R-Phils fell into a deep early hole and could not climb out as New Hampshire won it 6-3. Leandro Castro's three-run home run was the lone offensive highlight as Julio Rodriguez took the loss. Jenny was in town on Tuesday for business, we met and had lunch at the local sub shop. In the evening the homestand ended in ugly fashion as the wheels came off in a 14-2 defeat. The pattern continued as the Fisher Cats scored early and often, the only R-Phils runs scored on infield groundouts by Cesar Hernandez and Miguel Abreu. Jordan Whatcott made another spot start in place of the ailing Jonathan Pettibone and took the loss. The ballclub's mark stands at 46-37 (25-19 at home), they take to the road for six days leading into the All-Star break. Both Monday and Tuesday were fireworks nights, all the better for me to bid adieu. The ballclub in Lancaster is at home through Sunday, I haven't been there in a month. Take care, thanks for reading.