Tortugas Edged in 3-1 Pitchers' Duel

JUPITER, FL—Carlos Jorge lined two hits, but the Daytona Tortugas were stymied for 8.0 innings by Palm Beach’s Hansel Rincon as they were held to just three hits in a 3-1 defeat against the Palm Beach Cardinals on Friday evening at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium.

Palm Beach (14-11) has now won three of four in the series against Daytona (9-15), taking a contest that lasted just 1 hour, 42 minutes—the shortest nine-inning contest in the Florida State League this year and the shortest nine-inning contest for Daytona since 2016.

The early innings had the makings of a pitchers’ duel. For Palm Beach, Rincon was locked in early, setting down the first nine Tortugas hitters over the first three innings.

On the other side, Tanner Cooper allowed a two-out walk in the first and a single with two down in the second, but no more each time, as he matched zeroes with Rincon.

In the fourth, Daytona managed to scratch across the first run. With one out, Jorge rolled a grounder in the hole on the right side. He beat the throw, which also was errant, allowing Jorge to take second. He then went to third on a wild pitch before coming on a chopper to short from Sal Stewart.

However, Palm Beach answered immediately. With one out, Leonardo Bernal singled and motored home on an RBI triple from R.J. Yeager to tie the game. Cooper buckled down with a strikeout and a flyout, though, to keep the score at 1-1.

Cooper gave way to Arij Fransen in the fifth after 4.0 innings of one-run ball on three hits with two strikeouts. Rincon, meanwhile, kept going.

After Rincon faced the minimum in the fifth and sixth innings, the seventh began with a double down the right field line, his second hit of the night. However, Rincon struck out the next two hitters before coaxing a groundout to end the inning.

In the bottom of the frame, Palm Beach pulled ahead against Fransen (1-2). A one-out single, balk, and a groundout moved Darlin Moquete to third. With two outs, Chris Rotondo singled up the middle to break the deadlock and pull ahead 2-1.

In the eighth, Palm Beach began the inning with consecutive doubles from Alex Iadesernia and Bernal, adding an insurance run.

On the other side, Rincon (4-1) finished the eighth, going 8.0 innings and allowing only an unearned run on three hits with no walks and five strikeouts. Edwin Nunez came on and tossed a 1-2-3 ninth to nail down a 3-1 Palm Beach victory.

The Tortugas will play game five against the Palm Beach Cardinals at 6:00 on Saturday night. Daytona will send RHP Johnathan Harmon (1-1, 6.38) while Palm Beach counters with LHP Brycen Mautz (1-1, 4.64). Pregame on the Tortugas Radio Network and Bally Live with the Voice of the Tortugas Brennan Mense at 5:45 from Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium in Jupiter.

Daytona Tortugas single-game tickets and ticket packages are on sale now at daytonatortugas.com, (386) 257-3172, or the box office at 110 East Orange Ave.

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.