Hunter Homers Twice, but Tortugas Fall on Saturday Night
JUPITER, FL—Cade Hunter homered twice, but an early three-run lead was undone by a five-run fifth as the Palm Beach Cardinals defeat the Daytona Tortugas 7-4 on Saturday night at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium. Palm Beach (29-21) bounced back after being swept in a doubleheader on Friday, as Daytona (21-29)
JUPITER, FL—Cade Hunter homered twice, but an early three-run lead was undone by a five-run fifth as the Palm Beach Cardinals defeat the Daytona Tortugas 7-4 on Saturday night at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium.
Palm Beach (29-21) bounced back after being swept in a doubleheader on Friday, as Daytona (21-29) will look to split the series on Sunday afternoon.
After both pitchers twirled scoreless first frames, Daytona struck first against Palm Beach starter Cade Winquest. Leadoff off the second, Hunter deposited a full-count fastball from Winquest 359 feet down the right field line for a solo home run, his third of the season.
An inning later, Daytona struck again with two outs. Sal Stewart singled up the middle to bring up Hunter. On a 3-1 delivery, Hunter ripped a 381-foot drive that just cleared the wall in right-center for his second home run in as many innings, extending the lead to 3-0, producing the first multi-home run game by a Tortuga this season.
So nice he did it twice! @cadehunter17 homers for the second straight inning to bring home @stewart_sal with him!
— Daytona Tortugas (@daytonatortugas) June 3, 2023
3-0 Daytona in the 3rd! pic.twitter.com/xMOkkouxNL
Arij Fransen allowed hits in the first three frames, but escaped all three innings without allowing a run. In the fourth, though, he wasn’t so lucky, as three straight one-out hits brought home a run. An error then loaded the bases, but Fransen induced a 4-6-3 double play to end the inning and keep it at 3-1.
The fifth, though, was not as kind. After a strikeout, a double and error brought home a run. After a single, Fransen (2-3) was lifted for Bryce Hubbart, who came on with a 3-2 lead. After a flyout, three straight walks followed, the last two of which brought in runs to give Palm Beach the lead. Alex Iadisernia followed with a two-run single to cap off a five-run frame which put the Cardinals ahead 6-3.
In the sixth, Daytona made a comeback bid as Hunter drew a leadoff walk. With two outs, Yassel Pino blasted a double to deep left-center to trim the deficit to 6-4. At that point, though, Jose Davila came in and slammed the door.
Daytona had one more scoring opportunity, with Malvin Valdez leading off the seventh with a double, but Davila set down the next three hitters to strand the runner.
Palm Beach restored the three-run advantage in the seventh as Iadisernia ripped an RBI double. Davila followed with 1-2-3 eighth and ninth innings, retiring the final nine hitters to earn a save as Palm Beach won 7-4.
The Tortugas will finish the series against the Palm Beach Cardinals on Sunday afternoon. Daytona will throw RHP Kevin Abel (0-1, 5.66) while Palm Beach will throw RHP Max Rajcic (4-2, 2.04). First pitch is scheduled for noon. with pregame on the Tortugas Radio Network with the Voice of the Tortugas Brennan Mense at 11:45 a.m. from Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium.
Daytona Tortugas single-game tickets and ticket packages are on sale now at daytonatortugas.com, (386) 257-3172, or the box office at 110 East Orange Ave.
ABOUT THE DAYTONA TORTUGAS
The Daytona Tortugas are the Single-A Affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds and a member of Minor League Baseball’s Florida State League. The Tortugas play at Jackie Robinson Ballpark in downtown Daytona Beach, Fla. Jackie Robinson Ballpark also plays host to Bethune-Cookman University, the Jackie Robinson Ballpark Museum, and many community events and initiatives of all sizes throughout the year.