King Jr. Drives in Three, Marauders Return with Loss to Tarpons
Jebb collects RBI single during rehab assignment, Iredale notches RBI double
Eddie King Jr.’s three RBIs were not enough, as the Bradenton Marauders (10-11, 41-45) returned from the All-Star break with an 8-5 loss to the Tampa Tarpons (16-6, 51-37) on Friday from George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mitch Jebb collected an RBI single during his first rehab assignment with Bradenton, while Brent Iredale notched an RBI double.
After the Tarpons took a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first off Marauders starter Yonleg Gaetano, Bradenton responded with four runs in the top of the third against Tampa starter Justin West. Canon Reeder and Johan De Los Santos worked walks to put runners on first and second. A single by Jebb allowed De Los Santos to reach second and score Reeder to make it 3-1. De Los Santos and Jebb moved to second and third on a double steal, allowing King Jr. to drive both runners in with a base hit. King Jr. was thrown at third on a base hit from Edgleen Perez, but a double by Iredale scored Perez to put the Marauders up 4-3.
Tampa secured a 6-4 lead in the bottom of the fourth off Gaetano, but Bradenton answered back in the top of the fifth. De Los Santos singled, stole second, and came around to score on a double from King Jr.
The Tarpons scored a run in the seventh and eighth innings and kept the Marauders scoreless the rest of the way to finalize an 8-5 win for Tampa.
West (6-3) notched the win, letting up five runs on seven hits, two walks, and three strikeouts over 5.0 frames. Gaetano (0-2) took the loss, allowing six runs on 10 hits with three strikeouts over 3.1 innings. Jose Rodriguez (2) collected the save, striking out three and walking one over 2.0 frames.
The Marauders and Tarpons play game two of a three-game set on Saturday with first pitch set for 6:30 p.m.
For more information about the Bradenton Marauders, please call 941-747-3031, visit www.BradentonMarauders.com, or email MaraudersInfo@pirates.com.