Offense sputters after delayed start in third loss of series
JUPITER, Fla—The Daytona Tortugas had no answers for the Jupiter Hammerheads’ pitching staff as the Tortugas were held to just five hits in a 4-1 loss on Thursday night at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium.
Jupiter (16-23, 46-59) has now won three of the first four games of the series as Daytona (18-21, 47-58) struck out 13 times and went 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position.
After waiting out a 1-hour, 12-minute pregame rain delay, Daytona started off each of the first two innings with a leadoff hit, including putting Kyle Henley on third with one out in the first, but the Tortugas could not turn either into a run.
In the bottom of the second, Jupiter took the lead when Esmil Valencia lined a leadoff home run down the left field line off Daytona starter Adrian Herrera that put the Hammerheads in front 1-0.
The Tortugas struggled to find an equalizer against Jupiter starter Liomar Martinez, who followed those first two frames with a 1-2-3 third, then worked around a leadoff walk and one-out single in the fourth and fifth frames, respectively.
Meanwhile, the Tortugas held the line as Herrera bounced back nicely after the home run, striking outa pair of batters in each of the second and third frames. The right-hander allowed only the solo home run, while striking out five over 3.0 strong innings.
Ben Brutti entered in the fourth and was effective as well, navigating around a leadoff infield hit in the fourth, then throwing a 1-2-3 fifth.
However, in the sixth Jupiter extended their lead. A leadoff single was followed by a stolen base and a groundout. A walk and another steal put runners at second and third. A balk then brought home Starlyn Caba, then a groundout brought Dillon Head home, pushing Jupiter’s lead to 3-0.
Martinez shut down the Tortugas once more in the sixth, throwing 6.0 shutout innings and allowing just four hits and a walk with seven strikeouts before hanging the ball off to the bullpen to start the seventh.
In that seventh frame, Daytona scraped together their first true rally of the night. With one out, a walk, hit batter and stolen base put runners on the corners with one out. After a strikeout, another hit batter loaded the bases, but a second strikeout ended the inning and the Tortugas failed to score.
Jupiter turned around and added to the lead. A leadoff error turned into an unearned run when Caba stroked a two-out RBI single to stretch the lead to 4-0.
Daytona finally pushed across a run in the eighth when Tyson Lewis walked with two outs, then came all the way home on an RBI double to right-center by Arnaldo Lantigua, trimming the deficit to 4-1.
However, the Tortugas did not record another baserunner at that point, as Jupiter cruised to a 4-1 victory.
Daytona will play game five against the Jupiter Hammerheads on Friday evening at 6:30 p.m. Pregame coverage from Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium with the Voice of the Tortugas, Brennan Mense, will begin on MiLB.tv and the Tortugas Radio Network at 6:20 p.m.
Tickets for every Tortugas home game are available on our website, by calling 386-257-3172, or by visiting the Jackie Robinson Ballpark box office at 110 E. Orange Avenue.
ABOUT THE DAYTONA TORTUGAS
The Daytona Tortugas are in their tenth season as the Single-A Affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds and a member of Minor League Baseball’s Florida State League. The Tortugas play at historic Jackie Robinson Ballpark in Daytona Beach, Florida that was recently designated a National Commemorative Site. 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.
