Fisher Cats split with Fightin Phils

MANCHESTER – The New Hampshire Fisher Cats (22-15) and the Reading Fightin Phils (19-18) split their Sunday doubleheader at Delta Dental Stadium as the Cats won Game 1, 2-0, and dropped game two, 5-3. Game 1 starter Chris McElvain (W, 3-0) tossed his team-leading third quality start behind six shutout frames with four strikeouts.

Game One Box Score

Game Two Box Score

New Hampshire reliever Conor Larkin (SV, 7) pitched a perfect seventh inning and secured the Cats’ third win of the week. Larkin has 14 career saves with New Hampshire, seven of them in 2026.

In Game 2, Alex Amalfi (L, 1-3) was perfect through three innings, but ran into trouble in the fourth. The righty went a season-long 4-2/3 innings and matched his career-high in strikeouts with seven. RHP Irv Carter IV set down every hitter he faced and punched out four.

Top takeaways:

• Chris McElvain tossed his third quality start of the season behind six scoreless frames.
• Conor Larkin secured his league-leading seventh save of the season in Game 1.
• Patrick Winkel extended his hit streak to six in Game 1.
• Alex Amalfi’s seven strikeouts matched his career-high.

Game One

New Hampshire struck first in bottom of the third. Second baseman Adrian Pinto laced a single. He advanced to second on a passed ball and scored two batters later on an RBI single from centerfielder Victor Arias.

Leading 1-0, right fielder Eddie Micheletti Jr. (6) smashed a sixth-inning solo blast and extended the Cats lead to 2-0.

Game Two

The Fisher Cats opened the scoring in the second. Center fielder Jay Harry led off the frame with a double. Three hitters later, second baseman Nick Goodwin ripped an RBI single and made it 1-0.

Reading battled back in the fourth inning. Right fielder Austin Murr doubled which kicked off the frame. Following back-to-back outs, designated hitter Raylin Heredia tied the game on an RBI single. The next hitter, shortstop Bryson Ware, cracked a double and put the R-Phils ahead, 2-1.

The Fightin Phils scored three runs in the seventh. The first run crossed on a hit by pitch and then second baseman Aroon Escobar blooped a two-run knock which extended the lead to 5-1.

The ‘Cats scored twice in the ninth. An RBI double from Goodwin and an RBI groundout Arias made it 5-3, but New Hampshire fell in the finale.

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