Tortugas Fall in Sunday Series Finale
JUPITER, FL—The Daytona Tortugas were held to just five hits and a late comeback came up short as the Palm Beach Cardinals finished off the series with a 6-2 win on Sunday afternoon at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium. Palm Beach (16-11) finished the series with five wins in six games
JUPITER, FL—The Daytona Tortugas were held to just five hits and a late comeback came up short as the Palm Beach Cardinals finished off the series with a 6-2 win on Sunday afternoon at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium.
Palm Beach (16-11) finished the series with five wins in six games as Daytona (9-18) dropped five of six for a second straight trip.
After both teams went down scoreless in the first, Palm Beach took the lead in the second inning against Kenya Huggins. Joshua Baez led off with a walk, then stole second. With two outs, Brandon Hernandez rolled a single through the left side to bring home Baez with the first run, putting Palm Beach ahead 1-0.
In the third, Palm Beach broke out the power-hitting sticks. With one out, Michael Curriale, R.J. Yeager, and Won-Bin Cho stroked consecutive doubles. The last two each scored a run and that spelled the end of the day for Huggins, as the Cardinals lead was now 3-0.
Zach Maxwell entered the game after the string of doubles and went five-up, five-down to stabilize things before giving way to Chris McElvain, who turned in scoreless fifth and sixth frames.
On the other side, Daytona did little against Palm Beach starter Cade Winquest, who went 5.0 scoreless innings and allowing just one hit and one walk.
In the sixth, though, Daytona found some offense against the Cardinal bullpen. Malvin Valdez led off with a bloop double, moved to third on an infield single, and scored on a fielder’s choice for Daytona’s first run.
The Tortugas drew even closer in the seventh as a walk and a Cade Hunter single opened the inning. After a fielder’s choice moved Ariel Almonte to third, Michel Triana lined a sacrifice fly to right to bring home Almonte to close the gap to 3-2.
However, Palm Beach came alive again in the seventh. A leadoff walk and wild pitch set the stage for Curialle. Curialle, who finished a homer shy of the cycle, lined a single to center, his 11th hit of the series, to bring in a run. He then came home all the way from first as a base hit to left was mishandled for an error, making it 5-2.
The Cardinals added an insurance run in the eighth on an Alex Iadisernia double to put the finishing touches on a 6-2 victory.
The Tortugas will have Monday off before returning home on Tuesday for a Silver Sluggers Tuesday and Breast Cancer Awareness Night as Daytona opens a six-game series against the St. Lucie Mets at 6:35 p.m. with gates opening at 5:30. Starters for both teams are still to be determined. 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.