Tortugas drop nail-biter in penultimate game of the regular season
JUPITER, Fla—Alfredo Duno and Alfredo Alcantara homered while JP Ortiz spun 4.0 shutout frames, but the Palm Beach Cardinals stymied the rest of the Daytona Tortugas offense in a 3-2 defeat on Saturday night at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium.
Palm Beach (30-34, 62-67) earned their second win in a row, as Daytona (36-28, 65-65) will need to win the last game of the regular season tomorrow to earn their first winning season since 2018.
Palm Beach started Cardinals’ first-round selection Liam Doyle, who was making his professional debut. After a strikeout to start the game, Duno obliterated a 2-1 slider and crushed it over the left-field fence for a solo homer, his second homer in as many nights, third of the series, and 18th of the season.
Ortiz was sharp out of the gate, allowing a two-out single in the first, but picking off the runner to end the inning. He also allowed a two-out hit in the second, but struck out two in that frame, then threw a 1-2-3 third.
Ortiz finished his night with another 1-2-3 frame in the fourth, as he finished his night with 4.0 shutout innings, allowing two hits and no walks, while striking out five in his final start of the season.
In the bottom of the fifth, Palm Beach came to life against the Daytona bullpen. A leadoff double was followed by a single that brought in the tying run. Two more walks then loaded the bases with no outs. A pair of strikeouts had the Tortugas on the verge of minimizing the damage, but Trevor Haskins hit an infield single to deep short that was compounded by a throwing error, scoring two runs to give Palm Beach a 3-1 lead.
Drew Pestka came on and stabilized the pitching side for the Tortugas, picking up a strikeout to end the fifth, then put up scoreless sixth, seventh, and eighth frames, including two 1-2-3 innings. Pestka finished with a career-high 3.1 scoreless innings, striking out three and allowing just one hit and no walks.
Daytona was unable to muster any offense until the ninth, when Alcantara connected on a 1-1 pitch from Bruno Lopez and launched it 376 feet into the left-field bullpen for a solo home run, his sixth of the season. However, that was as close as the Tortugas would get in a 3-2 defeat.
The Tortugas will finish the 2025 regular season against the Palm Beach Cardinals on Sunday afternoon. First pitch from Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium will be at 12:30 p.m. with pregame coverage with the Voice of the Tortugas, Brennan Mense, on the Tortugas Radio Network beginning at 12:20.
Playoff tickets for Tuesday, September 9 at 6:35 p.m. at Jackie Robinson Ballpark against the St. Lucie Mets are on sale now. They can be purchased here, by calling 386-257-3172, or visiting the Tortugas 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.
