The Fightin Phils (19-11) pursuit of a series sweep fell short on Mother's Day. The Portland Sea Dogs (10-20) won 4-3 as they scored four runs in the top of the second inning. Anthony Vasquez (5-1) suffered his first loss of the season.

Tim Roberson and Jake Romanski reached base on back-to-back walks off Vasquez. They both moved over to second and third base on a sacrifice bunt from Aneury Tavarez. Ryan Court, Derek Miller and Tzu-Wei Lin hit back-to-back RBI singles to give Portland a 3-0 lead. Henry Ramos reached on an error by Angelo Mora that scored Miller and gave Portland a 4-0 lead.

Vasquez left the game after six innings. He allowed four runs (three earned) off five hits and four walks with three strikeouts. After allowing four runs in the second inning, he retired 11 out of the final 15 batters he faced. Jeremy Bleich entered the game in the top of the seventh inning. He pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings in relief. Miguel Nunez entered the game in relief of Bleich.

Sea Dogs starter Justin Haley left the game after seven scoreless innings. Reading nearly came back as they scored three runs off reliever Chandler Shepherd in the bottom of the eighth inning. Roman Quinn led off with a double then scored on a two-run home run by Dylan Cozens. Rhys Hoskins followed with a solo home run that cut Portland's lead to 4-3. J.P. Crawford was called out in the inning on a runners-interference.

Jorge Alfaro's nine-game hitting streak came to an end as he finished the day 0-for-4 with a strikeout.

The Fightin Phils continue their home-stand at 6:35 pm on Monday night as the Binghamton Mets come in to town. Fans can listen to the game on fightins.com beginning at 6:30 pm. Fans can also view the game on MiLB.tv.

Tickets for the 2016 season are available online at Fightins.com, by phone at 610-370-BALL, and in-person at FirstEnergy Stadium.