TAMPA, Fla. -- Nick Green combined with three relievers to skunk the Dunedin Blue Jays (16-22) as the Tampa Tarpons (22-17) cruised to a 4-0 victory on Wednesday night at George M. Steinbrenner Field.Tampa pitchers lead the Florida State League with six shutout wins.Dunedin began the game with back-to-back singles,
TAMPA, Fla. -- Nick Green combined with three relievers to skunk the Dunedin Blue Jays (16-22) as the Tampa Tarpons (22-17) cruised to a 4-0 victory on Wednesday night at George M. Steinbrenner Field.
Tampa pitchers lead the Florida State League with six shutout wins.
Dunedin began the game with back-to-back singles, but Green got a double play and a strikeout to avoid any trouble. The right-hander went on to retire the next 11 batters he faced.
Angel Aguilar lined a leadoff single in the first off Dunedin starter Angel Perdomo. Estevan Florial drew walk and, one out later, Alexander Palma singled into right. Aguilar stopped at third on the play, but Florial kept running to third. Florial stayed in the rundown, but was ultimately tagged out after Palma reached second.
Nathaniel Coronado followed with an infield hit. Aguilar scored as first baseman Kacy Clemens made a diving stop. Perdomo raced late to cover the bag and Clemens made an errant throw, allowing Palma to score.
Perdomo retired eight of the next nine batters he faced before a base hit by Diego Castillo in the fourth. Brandon Wagner singled and Timmy Robinson walked, loading the bases before Perdomo got two strikeouts to escape the jam.
Riley Adams drew a leadoff walk in the fifth, but Green struck out Clemens before getting a pair of groundouts to end the frame. Rodrigo Orozco knocked a leadoff single in the sixth, but Joshua Palacios hit into a 6-3 double play and Green struck out Logan Warmoth to finish his outing.
Green (W, 4-1) logged his fourth quality start of the season, yielding three hits and a walk over six scoreless innings. The 23-year-old tallied six strikeouts and threw 53 of 88 pitches for strikes.
Perdomo (L, 0-2) allowed two runs (one earned) on five hits in four innings, walking three while striking out five and threw 47 of 80 pitches for strikes.
The Tarpons added insurance off RHP Connor Eller in the seventh when Keith Skinner singled, advanced on a wild pitch and scored on a ground-rule double by Aguilar. One out later, Isiah Gilliam grounded a single up the middle to plate Aguilar.
RHP Matt Wivinis tallied two strikeouts in a perfect seventh. LHP Justin Kamplain stranded a leadoff walk in a scoreless eighth. RHP David Sosebee struck out a pair while stranding a leadoff single in the ninth.
Aguilar (2-for-4, 2B, RBI, 2R) logged his seventh multi-hit game of the season. Gilliam (1-for-4, RBI) leads the team with 24RBI. Florial (0-for-3, BB) extended his on-base streak to 32-consecutive games.
The series wraps up on Thursday morning at 10:30 for Fifth Third Field Day. Thousands of students from Hillsborough County Public Schools will be in attendance for an Education Day. RHP Nick Nelson (0-1, 5.14) will make the start for Tampa against Dunedin RHP Patrick Murphy (2-2, 4.58). Live play-by-play audio will be available on the Tarpons Radio Network.
