Cabrera Blasts Late Homer, but Bradenton Swipes 12-Inning Win

BRADENTON, Fla—Ricardo Cabrera blasted a go-ahead, two-run homer in the top of the 12^th, but Javier Rivas crushed a two-out, three-run walk-off double to send the Bradenton Marauders to a 4-3 victory in 12 innings on Wednesday at LECOM Park.

Bradenton (2-9) snapped a seven-game losing skid and overcame 16 strikeouts from Daytona (5-6) pitching, as the Tortugas fell to 0-3 in extra-inning games this season with the crushing defeat.

Both pitchers were rock-solid out of the gate as Bradenton starter Hung-Leng Chang retired the first six men he faced, while Brian Edgington did the same with four strikeouts for Daytona, including striking out the side in the second.

Daytona mounted a threat in the third as Dominic Pitelli led off with a single and went to second on a wild pitch before Trey Faltine walked to put two on with one out. However, Chang induced a double play to end the inning and with it, the scoring threat.

In back-to-back innings, Daytona moved a runner to third. In the fourth, Ricardo Cabrera singled, stole second, and moved to third on a flyout with one out. However, Chang finished his outing with a strikeout and groundout to extinguish the threat.

In the fifth against Ben Heller, Pitelli legged out a hustle double, then moved to third on a wild pitch. However, Heller buckled down and finished the inning with Pitelli stranded 90 feet away.

Edgington was sharp throughout his outing, working around a pair of third-inning runners and a two-out double in the fourth, before tossing a 1-2-3 fifth. He went 5.0 innings for a second straight start, allowing no runs on two hits and no walks with five strikeouts.

Anyer Laureano entered in the sixth and issued two walks, but managed to strike out two in a scoreless frame before striking out the side in the seventh.

Jonah Hurney then came on in the eighth and struck out the first two, but then allowed a pair of two-out hits to put two on with two outs. However, Trey Faltine ran down a drive in deep center to end the inning and keep the game scoreless.

Daytona, meanwhile, struggled against the Bradenton bullpen, as the Tortugas did not have a runner reach base in the final four innings of regulation, sending the game to extras at zero.

In the tenth, the Tortugas pushed automatic runner Alfredo Duno to third with one out, but couldn’t bring him home. However, Hurney successfully retired all three batters in the bottom half of the inning to send the game to the 11^th.

In the 11^th frame, Pitelli led off and launched a drive off left field wall to score Yerlin Confidan to finally break the scoreless deadlock. However, the Tortugas couldn’t add on, and a sacrifice bunt followed by a sacrifice fly from Jeral Toledo in the bottom of the frame tied it back at 1-1.

In the 12^th, Cabrera led off and deposited a 1-0 pitch from Yoldin De La Paz 399 feet away over the left field fence to put Daytona in front 3-1. The Tortugas left two more runners on base, but still were in position to win the game.

In the bottom half, Alexander Johnson came on and recorded the first two outs without incidence. Jeral Perez came up and lifted a pop-up into foul ground near third base, but the ball was lost in the sun and fell untouched, extending his at-bat and the game. He then walked, as did Jack Herman to load the bases.

Javier Rivas then stepped up and lined a 1-0 pitch into the left field corner. The first two runners scored with ease, while the relay throw from Carlos Sanchez appeared to beat Herman. However, the call at home was safe and with it, all three runners scored on the hit to give Bradenton an improbable 4-3 victory in 12 innings.

The Tortugas will play game three against the Bradenton Marauders from LECOM Park in Bradenton on Thursday evening. Daytona will throw RHP Gabriel Aguilera (0-0, 2.35) while Bradenton will counter with RHP Antwone Kelly (0-2, 15.00). First pitch on Thursday is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. with pregame coverage on the Tortugas Radio network with Brennan Mense beginning at 6:15 p.m.