Castro's Career Day Leads Florida To Rubber Match Victory

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (May 10, 2017) -Carlos Castro set both personal and team records on Wednesday afternoon against the Daytona Tortugas, as the Florida Fire Frogs' designated hitter slugged three home runs and drove in eight to help lead the way to a 14-2 victory at Jackie Robinson Ballpark. The 22-year-old became the first Florida player to record multiple long balls in a game, and broke his and Ronald Acuna's record of five men driven in for a contest.

Daytona (19-15) had an early lead in the first on an RBI double from Shed Long, but Florida (17-17) answered back in a big way in the top of the second.
Tyler Neslony (1x5, 2 R, 2B, RBI, BB) doubled down the line in left for his team-leading, ninth two-bagger, and Castro (5x5, 3 R, 3 HR, 8 RBI) tagged an 0-2 pitch over the wall in left to push the Fire Frogs into the 2-1 lead.
Wigberto Nevarez (1x4, 2 R, BB, SB) drew a free pass in front of a strikeout to Alay Lago (1x5), and Omar Obregon (2x4, R, 2 2B, BB) worked the second walk of the inning from Jesus Reyes (3-1). Anfernee Seymour (3x6, R, RBI) collected his first single of the game to load the bases for Ray-Patrick Didder (0x3, RBI), who lifted a sacrifice fly to right for the third run of the frame.
Castro struck again with another two-run homer on an 0-2 pitch in the third to extend the lead to 5-1.
The Tortugas drove in a run against Drew Harrington (4-2) in the third to pull within four, but the Fire Frogs broke the game open with five runs in the fifth.
Austin Riley (2x4, 3 R, 2B, RBI, 2 BB) singled to left to start the inning and scored on a double down the line in left off the bat of Alex Jackson (2x5, 2 R, 2 2B, RBI, BB). Neslony followed with a walk, prompting a pitching change from Eli Marrero and Daytona.
Juan Martinez tried to throw a first-pitch changeup past Castro, but the hero of the day lined a three-run shot over the wall in left for his first three home run game of his career.
Nevarez and Lago pieced together back-to-back singles to put runners on the corners for Obregon, who went down on strikes for the first out of the inning. Seymour hit into a fielder's choice, plating Nevarez from third for the fifth run of the frame, and 10^th run of the game for the Fire Frogs.
The eight-run cushion for Harrington was plenty of room for the product of Louisville to work with, as the left-hander allowed two unearned runs in his five innings of work with six hits, two walks and six strikeouts on 82 pitches (53 pitches) for his fourth win of the season.
Castro drove in his eighth run of the day on an RBI single in the sixth to give Florida a 12-2 advantage. The native of the Dominican Republic singled on up the middle against Braulio Ortiz in the eighth to record his first career five-hit game.
The Fire Frogs tallied two more runs in the seventh for their final runs of the day, as Obregon scored on a wild pitch and Seymour scored on an RBI double from Riley.
Corbin Clouse shut down the Tortugas in 1.2 innings of work. The native of Grand Ledge, Mich. gave up one hit and walked two, but picked up two strikeouts on the day. Josh Graham tossed the final 2.1 frames, limiting the home team to just one hit and one free pass, while adding a punchout to his line.
Florida continues its road trip with a three-game set against the Lakeland Flying Tigers beginning Thursday night at Publix Field at Joker Marchant Stadium. LHP Ricardo Sánchez (2-3, 3.54) takes the mound for the Fire Frogs in the opener, while LHP Matt Hall (2-3, 6.08) toes the rubber for the Flying Tigers. First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m., with coverage starting at 6:15 a.m. on the Florida Fire Frogs Broadcasting Network.
The Florida Fire Frogs return to Osceola County Stadium on Monday, May 15 to take on the Tampa Yankees. The first game of the four-game series is Margarita Monday in Kissimmee, where fans can enjoy $3 margaritas and $2 empanadas. The series opener will also be Service Industry Night, where members of the service industry can purchase tickets at the gate for a discounted rate.
About the Florida Fire Frogs
The Florida Fire Frogs are the Advanced-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves and compete in the Florida State League. The Fire Frogs play their home games at Osceola County Stadium, located at Osceola Heritage Park in Kissimmee, Fla. For more information, please visit www.FloridaFireFrogs.com, and follow the team on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and YouTube.