(Reading, PA) - The Reading Fightin Phils (Philadelphia Phillies, Double-A) are playing host to the Binghamton Rumble Ponies (New York Mets, Double-A) for a six-game from this Tuesday through Sunday. Reading and Binghamton faced off from June 2-7, and the Rumble Ponies took five of six in the series. This will be the first of two series between the two teams at FirstEnergy Stadium this year.
On Tuesday, it’s a Camp Kid Day Game, and all active military and veterans will also get $3 off of box seats thanks to Elliker Financial LLC. Wednesday is the first of four straight nights with postgame fireworks. Wednesday is also Italian Heritage Celebration night. Throwback Thursday will feature the Reading Phillies Throwback uniforms with a postgame fireworks show after this evening’s contest. Friday will be a sight to see for wrestling fans, as AEW Champion Orange Cassidy will be at the stadium for a free autograph and photo session. The R-Phils will be wearing their Baseballtown Connect Tribute Uniforms. Saturday will feature a Mega Blast Fireworks show, serving as the largest fireworks show in stadium history. The series will wrap up on Sunday, and the first 2,000 kids to walk through the gates will get an R-Phils Mascot Band T-Shirt celebrating 25 years of the Mascot Band.
Reading (16-11, 46-50) is fresh off of a 3-3 series split against the Harrisburg Senators. Jean Cabrera dazzled on Tuesday, tossing his first shutout start of the season. The 24-year-old right-handed pitcher fired six scoreless innings, allowing just four hits and a walk with four strikeouts for the win. Phillies no. 16 prospect Bryan Rincon had a remarkable weekend, going 3-for-8 with three home runs and seven runs batted in over the final two games. Right-handed pitcher Reese Dutton made his Double-A debut on Sunday, dealing 3.2 innings of shutout baseball for his first win with Reading.
Reading’s offense has continued to slug, as the team is tied for the second-most home runs (124) in the Eastern League. The Somerset Patriots lead the charge with 140 long balls, and the Portland Sea Dogs are tied with the Fightins in the league rankings. Al Pedrique’s squad hit a total of 118 a year ago. The R-Phils have also drawn the second-most amount of walks (84) in the month of July.
Alex Binelas leads the Fightin Phils on offense, throttling 20 home runs and 56 runs batted in with a .281 batting average. This is Binelas’ first time hitting 20 homers in a season since he hit 25 in 2022 (High-A Greenville, Double-A Portland).
Binghamton (9-18, 36-60) just earned a series split with Portland this last week. The Rumble Ponies found themselves down three games to one to the Sea Dogs before winning the final two contests 5-0 and 8-4. Jonathan Santucci (Mets’ no. 2 prospect) fired five innings of scoreless baseball on Saturday, allowing two hits and three walks with six strikeouts. Santucci has since been promoted to Triple-A Syracuse.
Field Manager Michael Collins leads the 2025 Eastern League champions out onto the field. They’ve drawn 417 walks, the third-highest total in the league. On the contrary, the team’s pitching staff has allowed a league-high 430 walks.
Chris Suero paces the team’s offense, hitting 12 home runs and driving in 34 runs over 78 games. Suero has also stolen 24 bases in 29 tries, fresh off of swiping a career-best 35 a year ago.
The pitching matchups for this week are as follows:
- Tuesday: RHP Channing Austin (0-1, 4.82 ERA) vs. RHP Jean Cabrera (3-4, 7.23 ERA)
- Wednesday: RHP Dakota Hawkins (1-1, 11.25 ERA) vs. RHP Luke Russo (8-6, 4.22 ERA)
- Thursday: RHP R.J. Gordon (1-7, 6.42 ERA) vs. LHP Adam Seminaris (9-6, 2.72 ERA)
- Friday: TBA vs. RHP Gage Wood (0-1, 3.86 ERA)
- Saturday: RHP Bryce Conley (1-5, 6.41 ERA) vs. RHP Braydon Tucker (6-6, 3.22 ERA)
- Sunday: RHP Channing Austin (0-1, 4.82 ERA) vs. RHP Jean Cabrera (3-4, 7.23 ERA)
The Mets top 30 prospects (per MLB.com) on the Rumble Ponies roster are as follows:
- No. 4 - Jacob Reimer - 3B/1B
- No. 5 - Mitch Voit - SS/2B
- No. 11 - Will Watson - RHP
- No. 12 - Eli Serrano III - OF
- No. 13 - Chris Suero - C/OF/1B
- No. 30 - R.J. Gordon - RHP
The 2026 R-Phils season is presented by Pepsi. Follow the Fightin Phils on Twitter @ReadingFightins, like us on Facebook, or follow us on Instagram @Fightins.