READING, Penn. – Patrick Murphy just cannot get a win.
The New Hampshire Fisher Cats hurler threw a gem on Sunday, coming just shy of what would have been a complete game if he had gotten more run support. Instead, he earned a no decision in what ultimately was an 11th inning 2-1 walk-off win for the Reading Fightin’ Phils.
Murphy’s only major mistake came on a hanging 1-0 pitch in the fourth to Mickey Moniak, which turned into a line drive triple to right. He escaped unscathed there, but a walk to Paul Rivas in the eighth set the scene for his undoing.
Quickly, Rivas stole second and then made it to third on a wild pitch. All he’d need to come home was an Austin Bossart sacrifice fly.
That negated a Kevin Smith RBI single in the fourth and served as epitaph for Murphy’s brilliant, but frustrating, evening.
Murphy left allowing just two hits and that run, walking two and striking out seven before his departure at the end of the eighth.
Neither team could break the deadlock until a Luke Williams double in the 11th brought Bossart home and finally clinched the win.
Ty Tice allowed that double on what was his second batter faced of the night, retiring Jose Antequera to start off the 11th. Tice is now 1-3 while Jeff Singer is now 1-0 for his perfect 10th and 11th inning results.
Like Saturday, New Hampshire got nine hits in total, but this time they were scattered. Chad Spanberger, Alberto Mineo and Forrest Wall each grabbed two hits, with Spanberger and Mineo recording extra-base hits.
On Monday, the Fisher Cats begin a three-game set in Trenton at 7 p.m. Hector Perez (1-1, 8.78 ERA) is slated to face Trenton’s Brady Koerner (0-1, 1.80 ERA).
