Goats Silence Dogs, Before Record-tying Crowd

Hartford, CT- Playing before a record-tying crowd of 6,850, the Hartford Yard Goats surged to a 5-2 victory over the Portland Sea Dogs Sunday night at Dunkin' Donuts Park. Home runs by Drew Weeks and Brian Mundell, along with clutch pitching by starter Ryan Castellanni and relievers D.J. Johnson and Shane Broyles helped the Goats snap a three-game losing streak. Hartford pounded out 12 hits to beat the Red Sox affiliate for the first time in six tries at home.

The attendance tied the Yard Goats record set on Opening Night at Dunkin' Donuts Park on April 13. It also lifted the season attendance to 206,414 and marked the 17th sellout of the season. The Yard Goats, who have performed before sellout crowds the last four weekends they have been home, are playing to 87 percent capacity at their new ballpark. Hartford is averaging 5,293 fans per game, third best in the Eastern League.
The Yard Goats jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning against former Red Sox first round draft choice Trey Ball. Weeks' two-run homer and a solo blast by Brian Munhall, his first in the Eastern League, highlighted the frame. An RBI-single by Jan Vasquez in the fifth inning made it 4-0.
Portland cut the lead in half with a two-run single by Chad De La Guerra in the 7th inning, chasing Castellani after his 100th pitch. Johnson came on to retire top prospect Rafael Devers, the tying run, on a bouncer back to the mound. Johnson then retired the side in order in the eighth and closer Broyles nailed down his ninth save with a scoreless ninth inning.
Mundell led the 12-hit onslaught with three hits, including a homer and two RBI. Weeks had two hits and two RBI, while Vasquez had two hits and one RBI and Max White two hits.
Castellani turned in another solid outing, pitching 6.2 innings, allowing two runs and seven hits. He did not walk anybody and struck out four.
The home stand wraps up Monday afternoon at 1:35 p.m. and Hartford needs a win to earn a split of the four-game series. Righthander Yency Almonte will pitch for the Yard Goats, while righthander Travis Lankins will pitch for the Sea Dogs. The game can be heard on AM 1410 WPOP and on iHeart Radio.