Mussels Claim Tight Victory Over Blue Jays 3-2

FORT MYERS, Fla. (July 22, 2022) - The Mighty Mussels claimed a back-and-forth one-run win over the Dunedin Blue Jays 3-2 Friday night at TD Ballpark.

Marco Raya started the game and tossed four scoreless innings for Fort Myers (49-34, 8-11), allowing just two hits while striking out five. He exited after four innings because of a rain delay.

The Mussels grabbed the lead in the top of the fifth when Mikey Perez stole home on a first-and-third play.

After the one-hour rain delay, Fort Myers tacked on a run on a two-out double from Noah Cardenas in the sixth.

The Blue Jays (39-48, 11-10) battled back in the bottom of the inning when Estiven Machado walked with one out. The next batter was Roque Salinas, who slashed a double to the left field gap to make it 2-1.

Still trailing by that margin in the seventh, Adriel Sotolongo walked before advancing to third on a Victor Mesia double. Sotolongo then raced home on a wild pitch to tie the game 2-2.

In a tie game in the top of the eighth, Keoni Cavaco tripled to right center to start the inning. The next batter was Kala'i Rosario, who crushed a double off the wall in left center to give Fort Myers a 3-2 lead.

Jackson Hicks and Malik Barrington worked a perfect eighth and ninth inning respectively to nail down the win. Barrington earned his third save.

The Mussels and D-Jays will play a doubleheader at 5 p.m. on Saturday. LHP Steve Hajjar (2-1, 2.08) is set to start Game 1 for Fort Myers, with RHP Mike Paredes (5-2, 2.15) scheduled to go in Game 2. Coverage begins at 4:45 p.m. on the Mighty Mussels Baseball Network.