Portland concludes their six-game homestand on Sunday afternoon against the Altoona Curve.

PEDRO MARTINEZ VIDEO INTERVIEW

HOMERS FROM MAY 31ST MONTAGE

Coverage begins at 12:40 PM on the U.S. Cellular Sea Dogs Radio Network

Pre-Game Guest: Kevin Boles

Portland Lineup: Wilkerson 8, Bogaerts 6, Thomas 7, Almanzar DH, Linares 9, Shaw 5, Spring 3, Vazquez 2, Meneses 4, Barnes RHP

Altoona Lineup: Rojas Jr. 8, Dickerson 9, Cutler 2, Lambo DH, Cunningham 4, Santos 5, Howard 3, Vasquez 7, Ngoepe 6, Sadler RHP

Brandon Workman worked a career-high eight innings on Saturday night.

Preview of today’s notes

IT ENDS TODAY: Portland has dropped three of five on their current homestand, which wraps up this afternoon against the Altoona Curve at Hadlock Field…The Sea Dogs won the opener from the Curve on Friday night 7-3…Right-hander Matt Barnes (3-1, 4.50) makes his 11^th start of the season and the 36^th of his professional career…Barnes has a no-decision in four consecutive starts…Altoona starter Casey Sadler has worked at least six innings in six straight starts.

NOT MANY: The Altoona Curve took game two of the series from the Sea Dogs 2-1 on Saturday night; in a game that featured three solo-homers…Mel Rojas Jr. snapped the tie, blasting a leadoff homer in the ninth inning off losing pitcher Miguel Celestino (1-2)…Portland tied the game in the seventh when Michael Almanzar started the frame with a home run over the Maine Monster…Charlie Cutler led of the visitor’s seventh with a homer off Brandon Workman…Ethan Hollingsworth (2-3) worked four innings on three hits and one run to earn the win…Nate Baker pitched a perfect ninth for his second save.

EIGHT WASN’T ENOUGH: Workman pitched a career-high eight innings on Saturday, scattering five hits, one run, two walks and five strikeouts…Portland’s starters are 2-1, 1.95 ERA (7 ER/32.1 IP) on the homestand…The outing was the longest by a Portland pitcher since Charlie Haeger worked eight innings on August 30, 2011 at Harrisburg…Last five Portland pitchers to go at least 8 IP.

1. Workman 8.0 IP (June 1 vs. Altoona)
2. Haeger 8.0 IP (August 30, 2011 at Harrisburg)
3. Adam Mills 8.0 IP (August 6, 2009 vs. Altoona)
4. Clay Buchholz 8.0 IP (August 30, 2008 vs. New Hampshire)
5. Charlie Zink 9.0 IP (June 19, 2007 at Connecticut)…Zink has the franchise’s last 9-inning complete game.

WRAPPING UP THE MONTH: Portland went 16-14 in May, their best record in May since going 16-13 in 2008…Portland fanned 262 times in May, the most for any month in franchise history…38 stolen bases established a team record for May…13 triples tied a May record…On the pitching end, 128 walks and 34 wild pitches are new monthly records…251 strikeouts is a new May record…Haeger tied a franchise record for most wild pitches in a month (8) and tied a May record for hits batsmen (5).

WHAT’S ON DECK: The Sea Dogs are off on Monday and open up a six-game roadtrip on Tuesday night against the Erie SeaWolves (Tigers affiliate)…On Friday night, the ‘Dogs begin a three-game series in Akron, Ohio against the Aeros…Portland is 1-1 during a 15-game stretch against the Western Division.

Portland opens up a three-game series against the Altoona Curve (Pirates affiliate) on Friday night at Hadlock Field.

PEDRO MARTINEZ VIDEO INTERVIEW

Coverage begins at 5:40 PM on the U.S. Cellular Sea Dogs Radio Network

Pre-Game Guest: Charlie Haeger

Portland Lineup: Wilkerson 8, Bogaerts 6, Thomas DH, Almanzar 5, Linares 9, Shaw 3, Vazquez 2, Vitek 7, Meneses 4, Workman RHP

Altoona Lineup: Rojas Jr. 8, Dickerson 9, Cutler DH, Lambo 7, Cunningham 4, Ngoepe 6, Maggi 5, Brown 3, Paulino 2, McDonald RHP

Preview of today’s notes

NOW THE WEST: The Sea Dogs began their 15-game stretch against the Western Division with a win on Friday night…Portland and Altoona continue their three-game series on Saturday night at Hadlock Field…The Sea Dogs need to win the final two games to clinch a winning homestand…Portland finished May 16-14, and reached 30 wins, 22 days quicker than they did in 2012…RHP Brandon Workman tossed six scoreless frames on two hits in his Double-A debut against Altoona on August 14, 2012.

MADE THEM COUNT: Knuckleballer Charlie Haeger tossed 6.1 innings on two hits, two runs, four walks and five strikeouts, as the Sea Dogs beat the Curve 7-3…Portland had six run-scoring hits (seven overall), receiving homers by Xander Bogaerts (2-run), J.C. Linares and Shannon Wilkerson…Michael Almanzar and Tony Thomas had run-scoring doubles in the fourth and Heiker Meneses pitched in with a run-scoring triple in the sixth…Haeger snapped a two-game losing streak and earned his second quality start of the season…Brock Huntzinger closed out the win with a scoreless ninth.

Charlie Haeger earned his second win of the season on Friday night. (photo courtesy of Sitting Still Photography and Kelly O’Connor)

WRAPPING UP THE MONTH: Portland went 16-14 in May, their best record in May since going 16-13 in 2008…Portland fanned 262 times in May, the most for any month in franchise history…38 stolen bases established a team record for May…13 triples tied a May record…On the pitching end, 128 walks and 34 wild pitches are new monthly records…251 strikeouts is a new May record…Haeger tied a franchise record for most wild pitches in a month (8) and tied a May record for hits batsmen (5).

GREAT FOR A WEEK: Shannon Wilkerson extended his season-high hitting streak to eight straight, by blasting a solo-homer in the fifth inning…During the streak, Wilkerson is 11-for-31 (.355)…Bogaerts has hit safely in 10 of 12 games: 17-for-51 (.333), 3 HR, 14 RBI, 2 2B and tied career-highs with 2 HR & 5 RBI on May 29^th vs. New Hampshire…Bogaerts has three homers this homestand.

MAJOR HELP FOR THE VISITORS: Altoona’s starter James McDonald is making a Major League Rehab Assignment on Saturday night…McDonald is making his second rehab start for the Curve, he lasted only 2/3 of an inning on May 27^th vs. Richmond, giving up three runs on two hits and four walks…McDonald is currently on Pittsburgh’s disabled list due to shoulder issues.

WHAT’S ON DECK: Portland and Altoona Curve (Pirates affiliate) wrap up their three-game series on Sunday afternoon at 1:00 PM…The Sea Dogs are off on Monday and open up a six-game roadtrip on Tuesday night against the Erie SeaWolves (Tigers affiliate)…Portland is 1-0 during a 15-game stretch against the Western Division.

Shannon Wilkerson has a season-high seven game hitting streak.

Portland opens up a three-game series against the Altoona Curve (Pirates affiliate) on Friday night at Hadlock Field.

PEDRO MARTINEZ VIDEO INTERVIEW

Coverage begins at 5:40 PM on the U.S. Cellular Sea Dogs Radio Network

Pre-Game Guest: Bob Kipper

Portland Lineup: Wilkerson 8, Bogaerts DH, Thomas 7, Almanzar 3, Linares 9, Vazquez 2, Gibson 4, Meneses 6, Dent, 5, Haeger RHP

Altoona Lineup: Santos 5, Rojas Jr. 8, Cutler DH, Lambo 7, Cunningham 4, Dickerson 9, Howard 3, Paulino 2, Ngoepe 6, Bromberg RHP

NOW THE WEST: After dropping two of three to the New Hampshire Fisher Cats, the ‘Dogs open up a three-game series against the Altoona Curve (Pirates affiliate) on Friday night…Portland is playing their first game of the season against the Western Division…Altoona has dropped six of nine against the East…Knuckleballer Charlie Haeger makes his second career start against the Curve…The first came in his Sea Dogs debut on July 29, 2011, earning the win in a rain-shortened six-inning game.

ONE INNING DID IT: New Hampshire scored five times off losing pitcher Drake Britton (3-5) in the second inning, and took the rubber game of a three-game series, 7-2 on Thursday night at Hadlock…Marcus Walden (4-5) tossed six strong innings on four hits and one run, beating the Sea Dogs for the third time in as many starts…Kevin Ahrens went 4-for-4 with 2 RBI and 2 doubles…Britton gave up seven hits, five runs (one earned) on seven strikeouts over five innings pitched…Michael Almanzar and Xander Bogaerts had RBI’s for Portland…Matt Spring went 2-for-4.

NOW I’M IN THEIR CLASS: Anthony Ranaudo became the league’s third 6-game winner with his win on Tuesday night against the Fisher Cats, joining Mike Wright (Bowie) and Logan Verrett (Binghamton)…The righty is leading the Eastern League in ERA (1.48), WHIP (0.84) and second in average against (.165)…Tomorrow’s starter Brandon Workman is leading the league in strikeouts with 69…Altoona’s Jameson Tailon is second with 68…Brock Huntzinger is tied for second in the league with 11 saves.

GREAT FOR A WEEK: Shannon Wilkerson extended his season-high hitting streak to seven straight: 10-for-28 (.357)…Bogaerts has hit safely in 9 of 12 games: 16-for-48 (.333), 2 HR, 12 RBI, 2 2B and tied career-highs with 2 HR & 5 RBI on May 29^th vs. New Hampshire…Spring has all five homers this month.

MORE ON THE STARTER: Haeger is the fourth knuckleballer in franchise history; joining RHP John Barnes (2007), LHP Joe Rogers (2004) and Charlie Zink (2003-07)… Originally drafted by Chicago (AL) in the 25^th round of the 2001 June draft…Haeger fanned 12 batters April 11, 2010 vs. Florida in his first start of the year with the Los Angeles Dodgers, the most for a Dodger pitcher in his first start of the season in April since Don Drysdale’s 14 strikeouts in 11.0 innings on Opening Day April, 12, 1960.

WHAT’S ON DECK: Portland and Altoona Curve (Pirates affiliate) continue their three-game series on Saturday night at Hadlock Field, game time is 6:00…The series finale is Sunday afternoon beginning at 1:00 PM…Portland begins a 15-game stretch against the Western Division.

Happy Memorial Day! Thanks to all those that serve this country.

Portland and Binghamton conclude their four-game series on Monday afternoon at NYSEG Stadium…Portland is 6-7 during a 17-game stretch against Binghamton and New Hampshire.

Coverage begins at 12:45 PM on the U.S. Cellular Sea Dogs Radio Network

Portland Lineup: Wilkerson 8, Bogaerts 6, Thomas 7, Almanzar 5, Shaw 3, Spring 2, Vitek DH, Meneses 4, Johnson 9, Workman RHP

Binghamton Lineup: Muno 4, Rodriguez 5, Puello 9, Dykstra 3, Vaughn DH, Ceciliani 8, Forsythe 2, Bonfe 7, Tovar 6, deGrom RHP

Preview of today’s notes

DAY BASEBALL TO CLOSE THINGS OUT: The Sea Dogs and Binghamton Mets conclude their four-game series on Monday afternoon at NYSEG Stadium…Portland is 0-1-1 in their last two road series and need a win today to split this four-game set…With last night’s loss, the ‘Dogs hold a one-game lead over the B-Mets for the top spot in the Eastern Division…Right-hander Brandon Workman is making his 10^th appearance (ninth start) of the season and the fourth of his career against Binghamton.

ALL METS: Rafael Montero (5-3) tossed six scoreless innings and two relievers combined on the 4-hit, 5-0 shutout of the Sea Dogs on Sunday night…Charlie Haeger (1-2) tied a team-high with 7 IP, but suffered his second straight loss…Haeger gave up five runs (four earned) on eight hits, four walks and five strikeouts…Binghamton scored single runs early when two Haeger wild pitches allowed Josh Rodriguez to score…In the eighth, Allan Dykstra led off the inning with a solo homer and two batters later, Darrell Ceciliani blasted a two-run shot to right. 

ALL SINGLES: Montero yielded four singles on Sunday night to Michael Almanzar, Matty Johnson, Tony Thomas and Shannon Wilkerson…Lefty Chase Huchingson tossed two perfect innings and Beverly, Mass native Jack Leathersich closed out the game with two strikeouts in the ninth…Portland had second and third nobody out in the first, but Montero retired Thomas, Travis Shaw and Almanzar.

HITTING THE CHARTS: Nick Natoli’s 5-hit game in the series opener was the 13^th in franchise history, the last by Bryce Brentz on May 31, 2012 at Harrisburg…Natoli went 0-for-4 last night, making the start at second base (he played third in the opener)…RF Matty Johnson has hit safely in three of four starts since joining Portland from High-A Salem.

ALMANZAR IN THE MEDIA GUIDE: On Friday, Michael Almanzar became the 7^th player in franchise history to hit an inside-the-park homer (a grand slam), the 3^rd as a Sox affiliate…INF Heiker Meneses hit an inside-the-park homer on April 16^th, ironically in Binghamton…Current Sox Roving Instructor George Lombard, hit an inside-the-park grand slam on 6/24/04 at Erie…INSIDE THE PARK HOMERS AS A MARLINS AFFILIATE: Victor Rodriguez (May 11, 1997 vs. Bowie), Hayward Cook (April 30, 1998 vs. Binghamton), Pablo Ozuna (August 22, 2000 vs. New Haven) & Quincy Foster (September 1, 2000 vs. Norwich).

WHAT’S ON DECK: The Sea Dogs return to Hadlock Field on Monday night to open up a six-game homestand against the New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Blue Jays)…Portland begins a 15-game stretch against the Western Division on Friday night against Altoona…The ‘Dogs are 6-7 during a 17-game stretch against New Hampshire and Binghamton.

Knucklerballer Charlie Haeger is coming off a team-high 127 pitches in his last start (photo courtesy of Kelly O’Connor of Sitting Still Photography)

Portland and Binghamton continue their four-game series on Sunday night at NYSEG Stadium…Portland is 6-6 during a 17-game stretch against Binghamton and New Hampshire.

Coverage begins at 6:15 PM on the U.S. Cellular Sea Dogs Radio Network

Portland Lineup: Wilkerson 8, Bogaerts 6, Thomas DH, Shaw 3, Almanzar 5, Vazquez 2, Vitek 7, Meneses 4, Johnson 9, Haeger RHP

Binghamton Lineup: Muno 4, Rodriguez 5, Puello 9, Dykstra DH, Vaughn 7, Ceciliani 8, Carillo 2, Lucas 3, Tovar 6, Montero RHP

Pre-Game Interview: Kevin Boles

Jason Varitek Interview

Preview of Today’s Notes

FUN SERIES: The Sea Dogs and Binghamton Mets continue their four-game series on Sunday night at NYSEG Stadium…Portland won the series opener on Friday night 10-9, a nine-inning game that lasted 3 hours and 57 minutes…Last night, Portland fell to 3-2 in extra-innings, and holds a two-game lead for the top spot in the Eastern League’s Eastern Division…Knuckleballer Charlie Haeger makes his fifth start of the season for the Sea Dogs, he threw a team-high 127 pitches/66 strikes in his previous start.

STRANGE ENDING: 1B Travis Shaw committed a throwing error on a grounder hit by Allan Dykstra, allowing Danny Muno to score the winning run, as Binghamton topped the Sea Dogs 3-2 in 10-innings…Jeff Walters (1-2) earned his first Double-A win, working two scoreless frames on one walk and three strikeouts…Will Latimer (0-4) took the loss, yielding an unearned run over 1/3 innings and two walks…Portland took a 2-0 lead in the third inning on three consecutive singles by Matty Johnson, Shannon Wilkerson and Xander Bogaerts…Josh Rodriguez tied the game with a two-run homer in the eighth.

PRACTICALLY PERFECT: Binghamton starter Logan Verrett was perfect in six of seven innings last night, yielding three hits, two runs (one earned), no walks and fanning nine…B-Mets’ pitchers recorded 1-2-3 innings in eight of 10 frames…Lefty Drake Britton hurled five scoreless innings on two hits, four walks and four strikeouts…Lefty Rafael Perez made his debut in the Red Sox system, working a perfect sixth.

HITTING THE CHARTS: Nick Natoli’s 5-hit game in the series opener was the 13^th in franchise history, the last by Bryce Brentz on May 31, 2012 at Harrisburg…Natoli went 0-for-4 last night, making the start at second base (he played third in the opener)…RF Matty Johnson has hit safely in three of four starts since joining Portland from High-A Salem.

ALMANZAR IN THE MEDIA GUIDE: On Friday, Michael Almanzar became the 7^th player in franchise history to hit an inside-the-park homer (a grand slam), the 3^rd as a Sox affiliate…INF Heiker Meneses hit an inside-the-park homer on April 16^th, ironically in Binghamton…Current Sox Roving Instructor George Lombard, hit an inside-the-park grand slam on 6/24/04 at Erie…INSIDE THE PARK HOMERS AS A MARLINS AFFILIATE: Victor Rodriguez (May 11, 1997 vs. Bowie), Hayward Cook (April 30, 1998 vs. Binghamton), Pablo Ozuna (August 22, 2000 vs. New Haven) & Quincy Foster (September 1, 2000 vs. Norwich).

WHAT’S ON DECK: The Sea Dogs and Binghamton Mets conclude their four-game series tomorrow afternoon at NYSEG Stadium, game time is 1:35…Portland has won six of 11 from the B-Mets this season…The ‘Dogs are 6-6 during a 17-game stretch against New Hampshire and Binghamton.

Portland opens up a four-game weekend series on Friday night against the Binghamton Mets from NYSEG Stadium…Portland is 5-5 during a 17-game stretch against Binghamton and New Hampshire.

Coverage begins at 6:45 PM on the U.S. Cellular Sea Dogs Radio Network

Portland Lineup: Wilkerson 8, Bogaerts 6, Thomas 7, Shaw 3, Almanzar 5, Spring 2, Natoli 4, Vitek DH, Johnson 9, Britton LHP

Binghamton Lineup: Muno 4, Rodriguez 5, Puello 9, Dykstra DH, Vaughn 7, Ceciliani 8, Forsythe 2, Lucas 3, Tovar 6, Verrett RHP

Pre-Game Interview: Nick Natoli

Rafael Perez was signed by the Red Sox as a minor league free agent and assigned to Portland

THAT WAS ACT 1: The Sea Dogs and Binghamton Mets played a nine-inning, 3 hour and 57 minute contest on Friday, and resume their four-game series on Saturday night at NYSEG Stadium…Portland has won four straight and holds a three-game lead over the Binghamton Mets for the top spot in the Eastern Division…Left-hander Drake Britton is 0-4, 5.59 ERA in four career starts against the Mets…Righty Logan Verrett is one of two 6-game winners in the Eastern League.

ABOUT THE NEW GUY: Perez was released by the Minnesota Twins earlier this week and signed by the Boston Red Sox as a minor league free agent…The lefty was 1-0, 2.25 ERA (ER/4.0 IP) in 4 games with Triple-A Rochester (International League)…Perez has 338 games in the Major Leagues with the Cleveland Indians from 2006-12, going 21-12, 3.64 ERA (133 ER/329.0 IP) in 338 games, all as a reliever…Perez missed most of last season due to shoulder surgery, appearing in just 8 games with Cleveland…Perez pitched with the Akron Aeros in 2005-06, 12, and earned the win (beat Charlie Zink) in Game 2 of the E.L.C.S versus Portland in 2005 at Hadlock Field.

JUST KEPT FIGHTING: Portland had leads of 5-0 and 7-2 but need two runs in the ninth inning to beat the Binghamton Mets 10-9 in the series opener…Michael Almanzar hit a first-inning, inside-the-park grand slam, the 7^th inside the park homer in team history and the second that was a grand slam…Nick Natoli had a career-high five hits, finishing 5-for-5, with 2 RBI, including the game-winning RBI…Trailing 8-3, Binghamton scored four times in the seventh inning off Miguel Celestino…Keith Couch (3-1) allowed the tying run to score but earn the win…Brock Huntzinger allowed a run in the ninth but earned his 11^th save.

ALMANZAR IN THE MEDIA GUIDE: Almanzar is the 7^th player in franchise history to hit an inside-the-park homer, the third as a Red Sox affiliate…Infielder Heiker Meneses hit an inside-the-park homer on April 16^th, ironically in Binghamton…Current Red Sox Roving Instructor George Lombard, hit an inside-the-park grand slam on June 24, 2004 at Erie…INSIDE THE PARK HOMERS AS A MARLINS AFFILIATE: Victor Rodriguez (May 11, 1997 vs. Bowie), Hayward Cook (April 30, 1998 vs. Binghamton), Pablo Ozuna (August 22, 2000 vs. New Haven) and Quincy Foster (September 1, 2000 vs. Norwich).

HITTING THE CHARTS: Natoli’s 5-hit game was the 13^th in franchise history, the last by Bryce Brentz on May 31, 2012 at Harrisburg…Last night was the longest 9-inning game for Portland since 3 hours and 44 minutes on May 25, 2012 vs. New Britain.

YOU LEFT THIS OUT: In addition to Almanzar’s inside-the-park homer, he led off the ninth inning with a triple off the right-fielder’s glove and scored the go-ahead run on a wild pitch…Portland is leading the Eastern League with 24 triples.

BEEN SAVING THE DAY: Brock Huntzinger made it 11-for-12 in save chances with his save in yesterday’s game…Huntzinger

WHAT’S ON DECK: The Sea Dogs and Binghamton Mets continue their four-game series tomorrow night at NYSEG Stadium, game time is 6:35…Portland has won six of 10 from the B-Mets this season…The ‘Dogs are 6-5 during a 17-game stretch against New Hampshire and Binghamton.