Tortugas bang out 14 hits to support Martinez’s magnificent relief effort
LAKELAND, Fla—Alfredo Duno reached base four times and drove in three runs, while Juan Martinez threw 6.0 shutout innings in relief as the Daytona Tortugas led wire-to-wire in an 11-3 rout of the Lakeland Flying Tigers on Thursday night at Publix Field at Joker Marchant Stadium.
Daytona (24-30) won their second in a row behind a season high-tying 14 hits, as Lakeland (31-22) starter R.J. Sales did not make it out of the first inning and the bullpen was left to play catch up the rest of the night.
Daytona got the night off to a quick start offensively. Walks to Kyle Henley and Duno put two on with one out for Carlos Sanchez, who lined a ground-rule double to left, scoring Henley. Bernard Moon then reached on an error that scored Duno before Luis Reyes capped off a three-run inning with a sacrifice fly.
Lakeland, though, answered right back. Two walks sandwiched around a single loaded the bases with one out. A wild pitch brought in one run before Stephen Hrustich brought in a second with a groundout, making the score 3-2, Daytona after one inning.
The Tortugas responded in the top of the second as Henley singled with one out and went to second on a balk. With two outs, Duno turned on a 3-0 fastball and lined it into left for a RBI single that put Daytona up 4-2.
In the bottom of the inning, Mike Villani made his Tortugas debut in relief and allowed a walk and single with one out, but gutted through the inning, as Henley ran down a deep flyout with two on to end the inning.
In the third, Martinez entered and was sharp from the start, retiring his first eight batters, including scoreless third and fourth frames. He allowed a walk and single with two outs in the fifth, but induced a flyout to end his third inning on the hill.
In the sixth, Daytona began to pull away. Malvin Valdez and Henley singled with one out, with Henley’s 30th steal of the season moving him into scoring position. With two outs, Duno singled to right-center, driving in both men with his second and third RBIs of the night, doubling the lead to 6-2.
The Tortugas pulled away with a four-run, five-hit seventh. Bernard Moon led off with a single and scored two batters later on Reyes’ RBI single, his second RBI of the night. Two more singles loaded the bases for Henley, who drove in one with a fielder’s choice. Sammy Stafura then blasted a 405-foot double to left-center scoring two more to stretch the advantage to 10-2.
Daytona added their final run in the eight as Iverson Espinoza doubled off the bench, went to third on a grounder, then scored on Jacob Friend’s sacrifice fly.
All the while, Martinez continued to hold Lakeland off the board. The right-hander threw a 1-2-3 seventh, then stranded two more two-out runners in the seventh. He returned for the eighth and allowed a one-out single, but induced a 6-4-3 double play to end the inning.
Martinez (2-3) threw 6.0 scoreless innings in relief, allowing three hits and two walks with three strikeouts. He turned in the longest outing for a Tortuga this year and the longest relief effort for Daytona since 2018. He also ran his personal scoreless streak to 15.0 consecutive innings.
In the ninth, Lakeland scored a run, but Trent Hodgdon struck out two in the inning and finished off a commanding 11-3 victory to give Daytona the upper hand in the series.
Daytona plays game four of a six-game series against the Lakeland Flying Tigers on Friday night. Pregame coverage from Joker Marchant Stadium on Tuesday with the Voice of the Tortugas, Brennan Mense, will begin on the Tortugas Radio Network and MiLB.TV at 6:20 with first pitch at 6:30 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.
