Aguilera Spins Gem, but St. Lucie Claims 3-2 Victory

PORT ST. LUCIE, FL—Gabriel Aguilera spun 5.0 scoreless innings, but a three-run sixth was enough for the St. Lucie Mets to squeak out a 3-2 victory over the Daytona Tortugas in the penultimate game of the 2023 season on Saturday night.

St. Lucie (20-42, 44-83) secured a series victory with the win, as Daytona (26-36, 55-72) suffered their league-high 23^rd one-run loss, going 0-for-10 with runners on scoring position.

Both teams started off strong on the mound as Calvin Ziegler got the first for St. Lucie, striking out the side before giving way to Nolan McLean, who followed with scoreless second and third innings.

Aguilera, meanwhile, allowed a leadoff single in the first, but erased it with a double play, before brushing aside a leadoff hit batter in the second. He then struck out two in a 1-2-3 third frame.

In the fourth, Douglas Orellana entered for St. Lucie and issued a walk to Ricardo Cabrera and Ethan O’Donnell singled to put two on with no outs. Orellana locked down, striking out the next three batters to end the inning. Orellana then struck out the first two batters in a 1-2-3 fifth, running his streak to five straight punchouts.

Aguilera, meanwhile finished off his outing strong. He erased a single and walk in the fourth with a pickoff a 5-4-3 double play, then followed it up with a scoreless fifth, striking out two more batters.

Aguilera finished 5.0 scoreless innings with two hits allowed, walking one, hitting two and striking out a season-high seven batters.

Thanks to an unearned run in the sixth, Aguilera also left with a lead. A one-out single by Cabrera was followed by a fielder’s choice, putting O’Donnell on first. He promptly stole second and went to third when the throw sailed into center field. Orellana then fired a pitch to the backstop, bringing home O’Donnell on a wild pitch to stake Daytona to a 1-0 lead.

However, that lead quickly evaporated in the bottom of the sixth. St. Lucie greeted Bryce Hubbart with consecutive singles. Nick Morabito then yanked a double down the third base line to score a run, tying the game. Ronald Hernandez followed with another double inside the third-base line to score two runs, giving St. Lucie a 3-1 lead.

Daytona answered back in the seventh as Cam Collier led off with a single, stole second, then went to third on a groundout. Dominic Pitelli followed with a high chopper to the mound which was enough for Collier to scoot home, trimming the deficit to 3-2.

The score held there as Hubbart bounced back with a scoreless seventh, which was followed by a scoreless eighth in the professional debut of Simon Miller.

Daytona, meanwhile, had opportunities to tie the game. Donovan Antonia led off the eighth with a single and moved to second on a wild pitch, but Dakota Hawkins retired the next three hitters to end the threat.

Hawkins returned for the ninth and allowed a one-out double to Collier to again put the tying run in scoring position. After a lineout, Hawkins was lifted fot Eric Foggo, who induced a sharp groundout off the bat of Pitelli to end the game with St. Lucie victorious, 3-2.

Daytona will finish the season Sunday afternoon against the St. Lucie Mets. First pitch will be at 12:10 p.m. with pregame coverage from Clover Park in Port St. Lucie with the voice of the Tortugas, Brennan Mense beginning at 11:55 p.m. on the Tortugas Radio Network.

ABOUT THE DAYTONA TORTUGAS

The Daytona Tortugas are the Single-A Affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds and a member of Minor League Baseball’s Florida State League. The Tortugas play at Jackie Robinson Ballpark in downtown Daytona Beach, Fla. Jackie Robinson Ballpark also plays host to Bethune-Cookman University, the Jackie Robinson Ballpark Museum, and many community events and initiatives of all sizes throughout the year.