(Reading, PA) - The Reading Fightin Phils (Philadelphia Phillies, Double-A) blasted the Erie SeaWolves (Detroit Tigers, Double-A) by a score of 13-4 to win the team’s first Eastern League Championship since 1995.
Erie wasted no time starting the scoring, as Peyton Graham drew a lead-off walk against Reading starter Ryan Dromboski. Zyhir Hope (Tigers top prospect) then stepped up and drilled a line drive over the right field wall for a two-run homer. This gave the SeaWolves a 2-0 advantage.
Reading entered today with 25 come-from-behind victories when their opposition scores first, 26 including the playoffs.
The Fightins found their answer in the fourth inning. Dante Nori (Phillies No. 7 prospect) slapped a leadoff single through the infield before Aidan Miller (Phillies No. 2 prospect) doubled him home to open the scoring. Miller advanced to third base before taking off for home plate on a wild pitch. This evened the game up at two apiece.
Erie responded with a run of its own in the fifth stanza, as Thayron Liranzo (Phillies No. 14 prospect) reached on a throwing error to score Izaac Pacheco. This lifted the Wolves back to a 3-2 lead.
The R-Phils clawed back yet again. They found themselves with a 30-41 record halfway through the season, and with this game working as a microcosm of the season, they flipped the script in the second half of the contest. Nori, Miller and Raylin Heredia all parlayed singles to load the bases. That warranted a pitching change, as Lucas Elissalt (Tigers No. 25 prospect) left the ball game after five plus innings.
Carson DeMartini drew a walk against SeaWolves reliever Colin Fields, pushing Nori across the plate. Aroon Escobar (Phillies No. 6) struck out before Caleb Ricketts pulled off the swing of his life. The 26-year-old backstop hit a grand slam, clearing the bases and lifting the R-Phils to their first lead of the game. The Fightins put more traffic on the bases before Bryan Rincon (Phillies No. 4 prospect) hit a line drive single to left field, plating Pedro León to make the game 8-3 to conclude a six-run inning.
The R-Phils didn’t stop there. In the seventh inning, Escobar tripled off the right field wall to plate DeMartini. This pushed the team’s nod to 9-3 just a couple of innings from history.
The resilience bridged into the eighth for a team reaching at the top step. DeMartini, who fought back from a two and a half month stint on the injured list, did the unthinkable to serve over 7,000 fans the perfect exclamation point. The Virginia Tech. alum took a 2-1 fastball and swatted it into the night sky. Austin Murr, Nori and Miller all trotted home to break the game wide open with a 13-3 score.
Estibenzon Jimenez stepped on the mound with a 10-run lead, and after an E.J. Exposito home run, the righty reliever fanned Seth Stephenson to etch Reading’s name into history forever.
With the punchout, and with the win, Reading earned an Eastern League title for the first time since the 1995 season.
Sam Carlson (1-0) got the win, tossing an inning of scoreless relief to lock down the sixth inning.
Elissalt (1-1) took the loss for Erie. The SeaWolves starter allowed five runs on seven hits over five innings with five strikeouts.
Every Reading hitter got on base at least once, while Nori, Miller, Heredia, Escobar and Ricketts all logged multi-hit performances.
The Fightins finished the postseason with a perfect 4-0 playoff record. They outscored their opponents a combined 44-12, and they scored 34 runs over two home playoff games.
Al Pedrique got his first above-.500 record in any half of a season, and the team used the second half momentum all the way to a perfect playoff showing.
11,332 days later, Baseballtown has claimed its fifth ever outright title.
The 2026 R-Phils playoffs are presented by Pepsi. Follow the Fightin Phils on Twitter @ReadingFightins, like us on Facebook, or follow us on Instagram @Fightins.