The Tampa Tarpons defeated the Daytona Tortugas 9-3 on Friday night at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, Fla. The Tampa Tarpons entered the game with a 33-18 record, while the Daytona Tortugas entered at 33-19. Luis Escudero went 2-for-4 and recorded his sixth straight multi-hit performance, raising his August batting average to .357.
J.T. Etheridge earned the win after pitching five innings of one-run baseball. He allowed two hits and struck out a career-high eight batters. Brando Mayea opened the scoring with a two-run home run in the bottom of the second inning.
The Tampa Tarpons added five runs in the bottom of the third inning. Anthony Potestio and Tyce Armstrong hit RBI doubles before Blake Cyr hit his first professional home run. Daytona scored its first run in the top of the fourth inning, but Luke Pettitte answered with his second home run of the season in the bottom half.
Anthony Potestio added a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the sixth inning. The Daytona Tortugas scored two runs in the ninth inning, but the Tampa Tarpons held on for the 9-3 victory. The teams are scheduled to continue the series Aug. 22 at GMS Field, with first pitch set for 1 p.m.
Source: Original report