Portland battles but lose 4-2 in Harrisburg!

(Harrisburg, PA) - Harrisburg RHP Jeff Mandel (2-0) won his second Double-A start in the Senators (48-57) 4-2 win over the Portland Sea Dogs (51-55) in the middle game of the series on Saturday night at Metro Bank Park. Portland is 2-4 on the roadtrip and looks to win their first series against the South tomorrow afternoon.

LHP Felix Doubront (6-3) labored through four innings, yielding six hits, three runs, two walks but fanned five. The lefty stranded six runners and had 4 of his 5 strikeouts with runners-in-scoring position but suffered his second consecutive loss. Harrisburg took a 3-0 lead in the third inning with a 3-spot off Doubront. SS Freddie Bynum led off with a single and scored on a 2-run shot by CF Edgardo Baez. After a walk and a hit batter, 2B Ofilio Castro nailed a run-scoring single to right-center field.

C Juan Apodaca extended his season-high hitting streak to 5-games with a solo homer off Mandel in the fifth inning, cutting the deficit to 3-1. In the sixth inning, LF Ryan Kalish and 3B Jorge Jimenez began the inning with singles. DH Jon Still knocked in his 71st run with a ground out to the shortstop.

Harrisburg, who finished the game 1-for-12 with runners-in-scoring position, added the insurance run in the eighth inning off LHP Andrew Dobies. With one out, C Luke Montz doubled, advanced to third base on a wild pitch and scored on DH Sean Rooney's sac-fly. The Senators twice had runners at second and third with nobody out and failed to score. RHP Chad Rhoades and LHP Dustin Richardson combined to work 3 scoreless frames on 3 hits and 3 strikeouts.

LHP Justin Jones worked 1.1 innings and allowed a lead-off double to Jimenez in the ninth inning but RHP Clint Everts retired the final three batters to earn his 3rd save of the year.

Sea Dogs and Senators wrap up their 3-game series on Sunday afternoon from Metro Bank Park beginning at 2:00 PM. RHP Blake Maxwell (3-6, 5.94) takes on RHP Luis Atilano (5-7, 4.87) Catch all the action on the U.S. Cellular Sea Dogs Radio Network beginning at 1:30 PM with the Pre-Game Show built by CorrectDeck.

Notes...Doubront has suffered two losses on the trip but Portland starters have an ERA of 2.28 (21 ER/83 IP) over the last 16 games...Jimenez picked up his team-leading 32nd multi-hit game of the season...Kalish has hit safely in 12 of 13 games: 19-for-51 (.373)...Still's 71 RBI's leads the Red Sox system...Maxwell will make the start one day after his 25th birthday.