Daytona Makes Jays Blue, Win 7-6

DAYTONA BEACH, FL -The Dunedin Blue Jays left the tying run at third base in each of the final two innings of their loss, 7-6, against the Daytona Tortugas Saturday night at Jackie Robinson Ballpark. TJ Friedl finished a home run shy of the cycle, as the Tortugas pushed their first place lead to two games.
Daytona got the scoring started in the bottom of the first. After Friedl led off the inning with a triple, Jose Siri would drive him in with a single to left field to go up 1-0. Later in the frame, Siri and Taylor Trammell committed a double steal, and Siri came in to score on a dropped catch from Bradley Jones at third, putting Daytona up 2-0.
In the second, the Tortugas would add another run. With two outs, Calten Daal extended the inning with a double on the first pitch he saw. Two pitches later, Friedl drove him in with a single, his second hit in as many innings.
When the fourth inning rolled around, the Blue Jays were still looking for their first hit. Logan Warmoth led the inning off with a single and moved to second on a Jones single. Warmoth would score the first Dunedin run on a Riley Adams double a batter later. Kacy Clemens then came up and drove in Jones with a sacrifice fly to make it 3-2. The Blue Jays would tie it on an Ivan Castillo double, scoring Adams.
In the bottom of the fifth, Daytona would retake the lead. Friedl led off the inning with a double, moved to third on a wild pitch, and came in to score on a Siri sacrifice fly to go up 4-3.
In the seventh, Dunedin would tie it right back up. RHP Aaron Fossas hit Castillo to start the inning, he then moved to second on a fielder's choice, and, with two outs, came in to score from second on a Eduard Pinto single to left.  
In the bottom half, Daytona sent eight men to the plate and scored three unearned runs. First, with runners on the corners and one out, Trammell drove in Daal from third with a ground ball hit to Castillo at second that he misplayed, allowing Siri to move from first to third. Siri taking the extra base would pay off, as he came in to score on a wild pitch a batter later. Then, with Trammell standing on third and two outs, Mitch Nay would drive him in with a single.
The Nay RBI proved to be the difference maker, as in the eighth Dunedin would score two more off Fossas with a Riley Adams two-run HR to left to round out the scoring at 7-6.
Fossas would strand the tying run at third base in the eighth, after he got there with no outs. With Kacy Clemens standing on third, Fossas fanned Castillo, induced a pop up from DJ Davis, and got Nash Knight to ground out to first to end the threat.
In the ninth, RHP Joel Kuhnel would retire two of the first three batters he faced, before a Nay bobble at third pushed the tying run to second base and the go-ahead run to first. Following Kuhnel's first wild pitch of the year, he would strike out Clemens, stranding two in scoring position. 
Fossas (1-0) takes the win in relief. He allowed four hits and three runs in two innings, while striking out two. RHP Conner Eller (1-2) was handed the loss, allowing three hits and three unearned runs in one inning. Kuhnel picked up his fifth consecutive save.
In the rubber match Sunday, Daytona will send LHP Ty Boyles (2-2, 6.93 ERA) to the mound, against LHP Taylor Saucedo (2-2, 4.37).
First pitch Sunday is scheduled for 5:35 PM, with coverage beginning at 5:20 PM with The Metcare Pregame Show on AM 1230, AM 1490, and FM 106.9 WSBB.
NOTES: Prior to Saturday, the Tortugas had allowed their opponent to score first in nine straight games… TJ Frield hit for the cycle in the span of five at-bats, over two… Friedl recorded his third three-hit game of the year, tying Tyler Stephenson, who did so in Friday nights game, for the most for the Tortugas in 2018… Jose Siri recorded his fourth multi-hit game in his nine games with Daytona… Calten Daal recorded his first multi-hit game and first double since 5/23/16, when he was with Pensacola (AA)… Daytona is now 21-1 when leading after six innings and 16-0 when leading after eight.