Velez Denies Daytona; Houghton Walks It Off For 2-1 Win

FORT MYERS, Fla. (August 24, 2023) – Ricardo Velez tossed three perfect innings in relief Thursday to lead the Mighty Mussels to a gutsy 2-1 victory in 10 innings over the Daytona Tortugas at Hammond Stadium.

Tied at 1-1 in the bottom of the tenth, Jay Harry pinch ran as the automatic runner at second. After two walks loaded the bases with one out, Maddux Houghton lifted a sacrifice fly to left to score Harry and win the game 2-1. The victory earned the Mussels (57-58, 23-26) their fourth walk-off win of the season, and their first since July 28.

With one out in the top of the first, Dominic Pitelli struck out but reached on a passed ball to open the game. The next hitter was Johnny Ascanio, who doubled on a line drive to right to place runners at second and third. With one out, Cam Collier rolled a grounder to second that brought home Pitelli to give Daytona (52-63, 22-27) a 1-0 lead.

After Tortugas starter Gabriel Aguilera tossed four perfect innings to open the night, Danny De Andrade greeted him with a solo shot to left in the fifth to tie the game at 1-1. The homer traveled 376 feet to tie De Andrade for the team lead with 11 homers.

Mussels’ pitching dominated for the second straight night, and it all started with Miguelangel Boadas, who allowed one unearned run on four hits over 4.2 innings. Velez (4-2) and Wilker Reyes then combined for 5.1 shutout frames, allowing just three hits while fanning eight. Over the first three games this week, Fort Myers has allowed four earned runs in 28 innings.

Leading the series 2-1, the Mussels will send RHP John Klein (1-1, 4.67) to the mound Friday to counter RHP Mason Pelio (2-7, 5.40) of the Tortugas. First pitch is set for 7:00 p.m. with coverage beginning at 6:45 p.m. on the Mighty Mussels Baseball Network.