Skip to main content

Huge night for Pointer helps Reading lock down win

By
Pointer- Tug
Pointer congratulated on a HR this year, image- Tug Haines
In what was likely the top performance by a Phillies minor leaguer this season, outfielder Brian Pointer blasted three home runs in four at bats while driving in five runs and drawing a walk in Reading's 8-5 road win over the Portland Sea Dogs on Saturday.

The 23-year-old Pointer got his big night rolling in the top of the 2nd inning, when he launched a solo shot off of Portland starting pitcher Heri Quevedo. Later in the contest, he connected for a two-run line drive home run to center field off of reliever Mike McCarthy. In the 8th inning, the lefty batter slammed another center field blast off of Miguel Celestino.

Confidence and comfort were big factors in the game, helping Pointer connect for the power trifecta, according to the six-foot tall 190-pounder.

"It was a pretty awesome feeling out there. I was definitely seeing the ball well and had a nice rhythm going on. That really seemed to help me out and got some pretty nice results," Pointer said via text message on Sunday.

Pointer, the Phillies' 28th round draft pick in 2010, had been an occasional contributor as the team's fourth outfielder until recently when an injury to center fielder Roman Quinn and the promotion of Aaron Altherr to Triple-A Lehigh Valley left more at bats available for the Nevada native.


Despite having a tough time breaking into the lineup earlier in the season, Pointer remained positive with the help of encouragement from the Reading coaching staff.

"They told me just keep working on my set up towards the game and keeping consistent with my routine we do in early work," Pointer stated. "Just make sure I'm ready when the time comes and always keeping a positive attitude, because things can change really fast."

According to the team, the last time a Reading player hit three home runs in a game was Jim Deschaine at Erie on July 3rd, 2005.

In 52 games this season, Pointer sports a .269 average with eight homers, 19 RBI and five steals.

In Saturday's game left-hander Jesse Biddle tossed six innings, allowing five runs (four earned). Right reliever Ethan Martin, recently back from a shoulder injury, pitched a scoreless frame to notch his first win of the season. Ryan O'Sullivan went two innings without allowing a run to record his first save.

Outfielder Kelly Dugan went 2-for-4 with two doubles in the contest. The 24-year-old is batting .362 in 12 games with Reading after being activated from the disabled list (broken foot) this month.

At 39-35, the Fightins sit in third place, 1 game back of the Eastern League Eastern division leading New Britain Rock Cats and 1/2 game behind the Trenton Thunder for the division's wild card spot.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Rappers in Phillies Caps

By
Weekend greetings to you phine pholks out there. Today's post features pictures of rappers wearing Phillies caps. Why rappers in Phillies caps, you ask? Because... Any other questions? We will start things off properly by going with a highly recognizable hip hop star. 50 Cent stays constantly relavant by consistantly creating radio friendly material to help sell (G) units, while he "keeps it real" by still rapping about the thug life he lived before becoming the 2nd highest earning black entertainer in America. 50 is seen here in a recent interview rocking a throw-back Phillies cap. Next up we'll use a throw-back screen cap from what may be the very first major appearance by a rapper wearing Phillies gear. Chuck D, of legendary rap group Public Enemy, wore a Phillies cap in the music video for rap anthem Fight The Power in 1989. The song was the lead single from the soundtrack for Spike Lee's film Do The Right Thing . Next up we'll go with some home grown tal...
3 comments
Read more

All in the Family

By
22-year-old pitching prospect Nick Hernandez's father helps him stay fit during the off-season Phillies pitching prospect Nick Hernandez spent much of the 2010 regular season on the disabled list with an injury to his throwing shoulder. The 6'4", 215 pound lefty, who was named a mid-season South Atlantic League all-star with the Class A Lakewood BlueClaws, attempted comebacks twice during the season, making rehab outings for the rookie level Gulf Coast League Phillies, but experienced setbacks that curtailed his return to the mound and kept him from helping his teammates lock down a second consecutive league championship for Lakewood. In 8 starts with the BlueClaws last season, the 12th round draft pick from 2009 posted a 3-1 record with a 1.61 ERA and averaged 7 innings per start. Hernandez's strength is throwing a lot of strikes and he owes some of his success to his father, also named Nick (Dad's full first name is spelled Nicolas, while son's name is spell...
6 comments
Read more

Q&A with Justin De Fratus

By
Justin De Fratus is a 21 year old right handed relief pitcher with the Lakewood BlueClaws. An 11th round draft choice in 2007, Justin had been a starter in his first two seasons in the Phillies organization. Informed this spring that he'd be switched from the rotation to the bullpen, Justin has excelled and become one of the most reliable pitchers on the Lakewood staff. In 19 games this season, Justin is 2-0, with a 1.83 ERA and 0.89 WHIP over 39 1/3 innings pitched. PhoulBallz.com spoke with Justin De Fratus just last night. Here's how that went down... Justin, South Atlantic League all star selections were announced this week, and you were named to the team. Can I get your reaction to that? How excited were you? Very excited about it. Well, especially this year because I just got moved to the bullpen, so this is a new role for me. So, if anything, it's reassuring that I'm doing my job. It's the first time in my pro career that I've been selected as an all star...
7 comments
Read more