Flaherty Dominates as SeaWolves Take Second Half Opener

ERIE, PA - Detroit Tigers' starting pitcher Jack Flaherty owned the mound in his MLB Rehab appearance to bolster a strong night at the plate as the Erie SeaWolves (1-0 second half, 37-32 overall) powered their way to a double-digit offensive performance and 10-2 victory against the Binghamton Rumble Ponies (0-1 second half, 27-43 overall).

The excitement at UPMC Park was palpable with Jack Flaherty making the first MLB rehab start in Erie since 2016. The right-hander did not disappoint in his 5.2 innings of work. Flaherty allowed a home run to Nick Lorusso in the first inning but did not allow another hit to the following 11 batters he faced. The California native would exit the game after surrendering one more homer but striking out seven hitters and walking just one.

The Erie bats seemed to be in for a challenge early as Binghamton starter Bryce Conley retired the first 11 batters he faced, but the second time through proved to be more of a challenge to the right-hander on the mound. With two outs in the fourth, Thayron Liranzo crushed his ninth home run of the season over the right field wall to open Erie's scoring. Chris Meyers followed that up with a double before he was sent home on a two-run homer from Garrett Pennington, the first long ball of his SeaWolves career while in his Double-A debut. Izaac Pacheco hammered the third home run of the inning and EJ Exposito would mash the fourth out to left field. The four home runs marked the most by the SeaWolves in an inning since at least 2005. Erie went to the fifth with a commanding 6-1 lead.

The offense managed four more runs through the final four frames at the plate to bring in double-digit runs for the eighth time this season, Meanwhile, the Erie bullpen picked up where Flaherty left off. Dariel Fregio recorded just one out to finish off the sixth inning and handed it over to starter Lael Lockhart who pitched the final three innings without allowing a run.

Garrett Pennington left a lasting impression in his debut. After his fourth-inning homer, the Kansan collected two more RBIs on a line drive single in the seventh.

Jack Flaherty earned the win in his first ever start in the Eastern League. Erie returns to action tomorrow for game two of the second half. Hayden Minton makes his SeaWolves debut against Jonathan Santucci. First pitch is scheduled for 6:05 PM.

Single-game tickets, suites, picnics, The Club by Synchrony events, and Bud Light Party Deck groups are now available by visiting SeaWolves.com, calling 814-456-1300, or visiting the UPMC Park Box Office in person.