Aaron Watson earned the victory in his Single-A debut as the Daytona Tortugas split a doubleheader with the St. Lucie Mets on Aug. 5 at Clover Park in Port St. Lucie, Florida. Daytona won the opener 8-4 before St. Lucie rallied for an 11-10 victory in 10 innings in the second game.
The split moved Daytona to 44-58 overall and 23-13 in the second half. The second-game loss ended Daytona’s season-high seven-game winning streak, leaving the Tortugas one victory short of tying the franchise record. Daytona is 3-1 in August, while St. Lucie leads the season series 9-4.
Watson delivers in Single-A debut
Watson pitched 5.0 innings in the first game, allowing two runs on eight hits with four strikeouts. He tied his career high for innings pitched, and Luis Pimentel pitched the final two innings for Daytona. The Tortugas secured the victory after building an early lead and adding runs throughout the game.
Steele Hall drew a leadoff walk before Arnaldo Lantigua singled, and two St. Lucie throwing errors allowed both runners to score. Adolfo Sanchez hit a solo home run in the fourth inning, while Bernard Moon, Rafhlmil Torres, Ichiro Cano and Drew Davies contributed to a four-run inning. Torres doubled and scored in the sixth, and Lantigua hit a solo home run in the seventh.
Lantigua recorded his 14th multi-hit game of the season. Torres also recorded multiple hits in the opener, including his fourth three-hit game and 18th two-hit game of the season.
St. Lucie wins 10-inning nightcap
Iker Redona made his Single-A debut in the second game as the St. Lucie Mets took a 3-0 lead through two innings. Daytona tied the game in the fourth without recording a hit, with Ian Francis forcing in a run with a walk and Jalen Hairston adding a sacrifice fly. Francis recorded his first multi-RBI game of the season.
Braden Osbolt pitched 5.0 innings in relief, allowing two runs, one earned, with six strikeouts. He threw first-pitch strikes to 23 of the 24 batters he faced and helped keep St. Lucie scoreless through the sixth inning.
Daytona took a 6-3 lead in the seventh when Dylan King hit a two-run single. King added a two-run homer in the ninth inning, drove in a career-high four RBIs and extended his on-base streak to 10 games. St. Lucie answered with a three-run seventh and a two-run homer from Julio Zayas in the ninth to tie the game.
Rafhlmil Torres singled in the 10th inning to bring home automatic runner Adolfo Sanchez and give Daytona a 10-9 lead. John Smith III then hit a two-run walk-off single for St. Lucie, completing the 11-10 victory and ending the Tortugas’ winning streak. Daytona is 3-3 in extra-inning games and 3-5 in doubleheaders.
Torres extends hitting streak
Torres recorded multiple hits in both games and extended his hitting streak to nine games. His performance included his fourth three-hit game and 18th two-hit game of the season. King also recorded his second multi-RBI game of the season.
The Daytona Tortugas continue their six-game series against the St. Lucie Mets on Thursday, Aug. 6, at Clover Park. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. ET.
Source: Original report