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Haverford's Tommy Bergjans Settling In At Reading

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- It was a good night on Tuesday for Tommy Bergjans.

The former Haverford College star made his second start of the season for the Phillies Double-A squad the Reading Fightin Phils and really threw the ball well. In six innings against the Akron RubberDucks, the 24-year-old right-hander allowed just two runs on three hits, he had just one walk and struck out seven, picking up his first Double-A victory.

"Felt good," Bergjans tells KYW Newsradio. "Felt healthy. Fastball and curve ball were working pretty well today and (catcher) Chace Numata called a really good game. So basically just had to follow along with the game plan and everything went pretty smoothly."

Bergjans started the game by striking out the side in the first inning and he actually had a no-hitter after five innings.

"I was aware of it (the no-hitter)," Bergjans says. "It didn't really affect my approach. Even leading into the sixth inning, I would basically just attack, be aggressive, throw my pitches for strikes, try to get them to make outs on themselves and try to get some swings and misses, too."

Bergjans started the season in extended spring training as he worked his way through a bit of an elbow issue. But he has looked good now in his first two starts with Reading - he allowed two runs in five innings in his first - and he's enjoying his stay in "Baseballtown."

"Feel comfortable, everybody's been really welcoming," he says.

Bergjans, a native of California, was originally drafted by the Dodgers in the 8th round back in 2015 after an outstanding career at Division III Haverford where he rewrote the Ford's record book. The Phillies acquired him in the Carlos Ruiz trade last summer. He talks about returning to play close to his college stomping grounds.

"Yeah, definitely is really cool," he says. "When I got the news (about being traded) there were some mixed emotions. But I was getting flooded with text messages from friends who live in the Northeast, diehard Phillies fans, and also guys who still live in the Philly and New York area. So the fact that they could come out to games, along with my coaches, was really cool."

Bergjans seems to have made a strong impression so far in his brief time at Reading. He talks about his goals as the summer rolls on.

"Goals right now are to stay healthy, obviously and just continue to compete at a high level," he says. "Continue to develop all three of my pitches, being able to throw them basically in any count comfortably."

Reading continues its home series with Akron tonight.

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