Tortugas Quieted in Shutout Loss as Hammerheads Even Series

DAYTONA BEACH—The Daytona Tortugas were held to just three hits and the Jupiter Hammerheads broke the game open with a five-run seventh as the Tortugas were blanked 7-0 on Wednesday night at Jackie Robinson Ballpark.

Jupiter (32-27) controlled the game from the start, evening the series as Daytona (25-34) was blanked for the fourth time this season.

The Hammerheads came on swinging against Daytona starter Tanner Cooper, which they converted into a quick run. Brett Roberts led off the game with a triple to left-center on the first pitch of the game. Paul McIntosh followed with a double to the same spot and just like that, Jupiter was on top 1-0.

Cooper managed to limit the damage to just that in the first, but the Hammerheads came out hammering again in the second. Chase Luttrell led off and deposited the second pitch of the inning over the left field wall for his fourth home run of the season, doubling the Jupiter advantage to 2-0.

Cooper worked around a pair of baserunners in the third before handing things off to Jacob Heatherly in the fourth, who walked a pair to begin the inning, but retired the next three men to spin a scoreless frame of his own.

Jupiter starter Holt Jones, meanwhile, cruised through the first 3.2 innings with little trouble, allowing just one hit and one walk. However, he departed with an injury in the bottom of the fourth for Chris Mokma, who picked right up for Jones with the final out and a 1-2-3 fifth.

On the other side, Ryan Cardona entered for Daytona in the fifth and allowed a leadoff single, but he quickly locked in, setting down the next six hitters, three by strikeout, to finish a pair of scoreless frames.

In the bottom of the sixth, Daytona put together a two-out threat. Hector Rodriguez singled with two outs and Carlos Jorge reached on an error. Sal Stewart followed with a rocket back to the mound that Mokma deflected to second baseman Javier Sanoja, who threw out Stewart to end the inning.

The game immediately turned after that play as Jupiter blew the game wide open in the seventh. An infield single began the inning before Paul McIntosh demolished Cardona’s first offering for a 431-foot home run off the scoreboard in left-center field, doubling the lead. Jupiter was far from done, though, as back-to-back doubles brought in another run, with two more singles bringing in a couple more runs.

When the dust settled, Jupiter had sent ten batters to the plate, scoring five runs on seven hits to run out to a 7-0 lead.

After that point, the Tortugas settled things down as Joseph Menefee threw 2.1 scoreless innings to finish off the game. However, Daytona mustered only one baserunner in the final three innings as Jupiter cruised to the finish with the 7-0 victory.

The Tortugas will play game three against the Jupiter Hammerheads on Thursday night. RHP Arij Fransen (2-3, 5.11) will get the ball for Daytona against RHP Jacob Miller (1-2, 4.65) for Jupiter. Tomorrow is a Thirsty Thursday with $1 and $2 drink specials all night long. Plus, it’s Bark in the Park and we will have live music from The Copper Piano. Gates open at 5:30 with first pitch scheduled for 6:35 p.m. Pregame coverage on the Tortugas Radio Network with the Voice of the Tortugas Brennan Mense begins 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.