Curtis, Bradenton shut down Dunedin bats

DUNEDIN, FL – Bradenton starter Khristian Curtis delivered six shutout innings, keeping the Blue Jays hitless through four innings to set the tone for a 4-1 Dunedin loss to the Marauders on Saturday night at TD Ballpark.

With the defeat, the Blue Jays fall to 32-30 with four games remaining in the first half of the season.

Omar Alfonzo drove in the go-ahead run for Bradenton all by his own doing in the first inning, lifting an opposite-field solo homer against Jays’ starter Nolan Perry.

Perry didn’t allow any further damage, striking out a season-high seven in four innings of work.

On the other side of the scorebook, Curtis kept Dunedin out of the hit column through four and a thirds innings, before Tucker Toman ripped a double. With two outs, the Jays came within inches of tying the game, as Adrian Meza singled to right field. Toman got the wave around third base but was thrown out by right fielder Solomon Maguire in a bang-bang play at the plate.

In the sixth, Dunedin threatened again with runners on second and third, but Curtis capped his night with his ninth strikeout to end the threat.

After stranding runners in scoring position in the sixth and seventh innings, the Marauders broke through in the eighth, tallying three runs on four hits against Keiner Leon, capped by a two-run homer from Esmerlyn Valdez to push the lead to 4-0.

Dunedin averted the shutout in the bottom of the eighth, as Jean Joseph poked an RBI single, but the Jays stranded men on the corners to end the inning. Nic Deschamps singled in the bottom of the ninth, but the comeback was halted there.

With the series now standing at three games to two in favor of Dunedin, a series split is still in play in Sunday’s finale. First pitch is set for Noon. The first 500 fans will receive a free D-Jays cap to celebrate Father’s Day. Tickets are available now at DunedinBlueJays.com.