Brandon Douglas sparked a stagnant Erie SeaWolves offense this afternoon with a two-out, bases-loaded bunt that scored two runs as Erie rallied to beat Altoona 5-2 and earn a series split in front of 1,051 fans at sunny Jerry Uht Park.

Erie (2-2) trailed 2-1 in the bottom of the seventh inning with runners on first and second and two outs. Marcus Lemon reached on an infield single before Douglas laid down a perfect bunt to the third base side. Altoona (2-2) pitcher Jason Townsend fielded the bunt but his throw went down the right field line allowing two runs to score. Hernan Perez followed with his ninth hit of the season, a two-run double, to give the SeaWolves a 5-2 lead.

Justin Souza recorded Erie’s first save of the season with a perfect ninth inning after starter Warwick Saupold allowed one hit over five innings and Matt Crouse added three scoreless innings in relief.

Erie welcomes in Binghamton for a three-game set beginning Monday.

– Tom Reisenweber

The Erie SeaWolves couldn’t overcome an early deficit for the second straight game and Pittsburgh Pirates prospect Jameson Taillon pitched well as the Altoona Curve hung on for a 6-3 win in front of 1,131 fans at Jerry Uht Park.

Taillon, despite allowing five stolen bases, allowed only four hits and struck out four in five innings of work. The Curve (2-1) bullpen allowed three runs over the final four innings but Altoona scored enough runs to secure the win.

Hernan Perez continued his hot start for Erie (1-2) with three hits, including a solo home run, and two stolen bases. He is 8-of-13 in three games this season. Brandon Douglas added two hits for the SeaWolves.

Adalberto Santos and Andrew Lambo each had three hits for the Curve, including a home run in the ninth inning by Lambo.

– Tom Reisenweber

The Erie SeaWolves struggled to string hits together tonight as Altoona used an early three-run inning to pick up its first win of the season 4-1 in front of 1,006 fans at Jerry Uht Park.

Matt Curry and Andrew Lambo drilled RBI singles and Carlos Paulino drove in a run with a bases-loaded walk to give Altoona (1-1) a 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning. Mel Rojas tacked on a run in the fourth inning on an inside-the-park home run. Rojas, Curry, Lambo, Paulino and Jarek Cunningham each had two hits for the Curve.

Altoona retired 12 SeaWolves hitters in a row late in the game in a dominant pitching effort.

Erie (1-1) starter Patrick Cooper lasted just two-plus innings but the SeaWolves’ bullpen pitched seven strong innings to keep the game close.

Hernan Perez led Erie with three hits and James McCann had two.

– Tom Reisenweber

The Erie SeaWolves erupted for 12 hits, including seven extra-base hits, to dominate Altoona’s pitching in a 10-6 win to open the 2013 season in front of 3,689 fans at Jerry Uht Park.

Ramon Cabrera, who played for the Curve last season before coming over in a trade for Andy Oliver, finished with three hits, including two doubles. Luis Castillo had a two-run double and Daniel Fields crushed a grand slam in the sixth inning to help the Erie onslaught. Hernan Perez and Fields each had two hits for the SeaWolves and Wade Gaynor had three.

Kyle Lobstein was effective in five innings on the mound to pick up his first win with the SeaWolves. Lobstein allowed three runs on three hits and struck out six.

Alex Dickerson and Jarek Cunningham collected two hits each for Altoona.

– Tom Reisenweber

0 days to go: The long wait is over.

Today is opening day for the Erie SeaWolves. The ‘Wolves meet the Altoona Curve for four games, with tonight’s action starting at 6:35 p.m.

Altoona is expected to send right-hander Brandon Cumpton (12-11, 3.84) to the mound. Lefty Kyle Lobstein (8-7, 4.06) is expected to start for Erie.

Thanks for following the countdown the past month.

Good luck ‘Wolves. Let’s start a countdown to the playoffs later this summer.

– Rick Green (follow me @ETNrgreen)

16 days until the season begins: Like it warm for baseball?

There are 16 games scheduled at Jerry Uht Park this season in August and the beginning of September.

The Altoona Curve and Akron Aeros are on the schedule. The ‘Wolves close the season with four games against the Bowie Baysox.

– Rick Green (follow me @ETNrgreen)

17 days to go: There’s no question that there are Pittsburgh Pirates fans and Cleveland Indians fans in the Erie area.

What better way to see young players from each team than going to a game at Jerry Uht Park this season.

The Erie SeaWolves have 17 home games scheduled against the Akron Aeros and Altoona Curve this season.

The ‘Wolves open the season with four games against the Curve.

– Rick Green (follow me @ETNrgreen)

MLB.com writer Jonathan Mayo is releasing the Top 10 prospects by position every day over the next week. The right-handed pitching prospects were released recently with four of the top 10 pitching in the Eastern League last year. Dylan Bundy in the Baltimore Orioles organization is the No. 1 prospect among right-handed pitchers. He was 2-0 with a 3.24 ERA in three starts with the Bowie Baysox in 2012.

Zack Wheeler (New York Mets) is No. 4 along with No. 5 Gerrit Cole (Pittsburgh Pirates) and No. 6 Jameson Taillon (Pittsburgh Pirates). Wheeler went 10-6 with a 3.26 ERA for the Binghamton Mets, while Cole and Taillon were teammates for the Altoona Curve. Cole was 3-6 with a 2.90 ERA for the Curve and Taillon made only three starts for Altoona but went 3-0 with a 1.59 ERA.

Click here for the list of right-handed pitching prospects. None of the Top 10 left-handed pitching prospects competed in the Eastern League in 2012.

–Tom Reisenweber

Former Pittsburgh Pirates all-star Carlos Garcia is the new manager of the Altoona Curve. He is the seventh manage in team history. Garcia, 45, managed the High-A Bradenton Marauders over the past two seasons and is the second former Pirate to manage the curve. Dale Sveum also managed the Curve from 2001-03.

Click here for more on the hire.

–Tom Reisenweber