Tortugas Fall 9-1 to Finish Off Trip

BRADENTON, FL—The Daytona Tortugas struggled on Sunday afternoon as the Bradenton Marauders came away with a 9-1 victory in the series finale at LECOM Park.

Bradenton (10-5) struck out 14 Tortugas hitters as Daytona (6-9) now has lost nine of their last ten, dropping five of six in their only visit to LECOM Park this season.

For the second straight game, the Marauders took the lead right away. In the first inning, Tortugas starter Rob Hensey labored, walking a pair of hitters. With two outs, Javier Rivas lined an RBI single to center to score the first run of the game, putting Bradenton ahead 1-0.

For Bradenton, starter J.P. Massey was sharp early, setting down the first six men he faced with three strikeouts. In the third, Logan Tanner led off with a walk and was replaced at first on a fielder’s choice by Michel Triana. Triana then stole second and moved to third on a wild pitch. However, Massey struck out the next two hitters to end the threat and keep the Marauders in front.

In the bottom of the third, Bradenton did come up with the clutch hits. With two on and two outs, Alexander Mojica dumped a single into shallow left for an RBI single. Jauri Custodio followed by lacing a double into the left field corner from Jauri Custodio to score another run, staking the Marauders to a 3-0 advantage.

In the fourth, Daytona’s bats began to wake up as consecutive singles from Hector Rodriguez and Leo Balcazar opened the inning. However, Massey struck out the next man before inducing a 6-4-3 double play to extinguish the rally.

After Massey (1-1) threw a scoreless fifth to finish off an outing of 5.0 scoreless innings, Bradenton proceeded to blow the game open. In the inning, four Marauders walked and a fifth was hit. Deivis Nadal drove in one with a bases-loaded walk, before Tremarr Johnson ripped a two-run single two batters later. After a pitching change, Nadal took off from third and executed a straight steal of home to put Bradenton ahead 7-0.

Jacob Heatherly stemmed the tide after that, setting down the next seven men he faced with three strikeouts in that span.

Daytona, meanwhile, got on the board in the seventh. A mini-rally with two outs resulted in a single from Sal Stewart, a walk, and an RBI single from Logan Tanner brought a run in to trim the deficit to 7-1.

However, that was all for the Tortugas offensively. Bradenton tacked on a couple more runs in the eighth inning, putting the bow on top of an 9-1 victory.

The Tortugas will have Monday off before returning home to begin a six-game series against the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels on Tuesday night. Tuesday is our first Silver Sluggers of the season and Breast Cancer Awareness Night. First pitch is at 6:35 with gates opening at 5:30. Starters for both teams are still to be announced. Pregame on the Tortugas Radio Network and Bally Live with the Voice of the Tortugas Brennan Mense at 6:20 from Jackie Robinson Ballpark.

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.