Ruiz Delivers Walk Off Single as Mussels Top Cardinals 1-0

FORT MYERS, Fla. (April 23, 2024) – Down in the count 0-2 with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, Poncho Ruiz fouled off a pair of pitches before lacing a single up the middle to give Fort Myers its first walk off win of the season, a 1-0 victory over the Palm Beach Cardinals.

The ninth inning rally was started by shortstop Brandon Winokur, who led off the inning with a single to left field. Winokur then stole second and advanced to third on a ground out to set the table for Ruiz.

Ruiz reached base in three of his four plate appearances, recording a pair of singles and a walk to pace the Mussels’ (7-9) offense in the series opener. The Fort Myers’ catcher led his pitching staff to its second shutout of the season.

Ross Dunn started for the Mussels and was excellent in his fourth outing of the year. The lefty located with both his fastball and changeup, striking out eight Cardinals (10-6) while allowing just two hits and walking one across five quality frames. He used his changeup on 36 percent of his offerings, inducing 10 whiffs by Cardinals hitters.

Palm Beach starter Juan Salas matched Dunn nearly pitch for pitch as he struck out nine Mussels across six shutout innings, walking one and allowing three hits.

Fort Myers received solid work from the bullpen, as Samuel Perez spun two scoreless frames in relief of Dunn. Julio Bonilla (1-0) faced the minimum over two scoreless innings to earn his first Low-A win.

The Mussels outhit the Cardinals 5-4 with each team stranding five runners while playing errorless defense. Walks were at a premium as the pitching staffs combined to issue just three walks throughout the game.

The Mussels return to action on Wednesday at 7:05 p.m. Right-hander Jeremy Lee (1-1, 2.63) takes the ball for Fort Myers, opposite Darlin Saladin (1-0, 4.82) who toes the rubber for Palm Beach. Coverage begins at 6:45 p.m. on the Mighty Mussels Baseball Network.

WALK-OFF WINNERS✅✅✅

Poncho Ruiz shoots one through the middle to lift Fort Myers to victory in game one of the series💪

Final | Mussels 1, Cardinals 0 pic.twitter.com/wweLNmCpaO

— Fort Myers Mighty Mussels (@MightyMussels) April 24, 2024