Marauders Lose Lead Late in Heartbreaker to Hammerheads
Jupiter, Fla. – Despite placing the tying and go-ahead runs on base in the top of the ninth, the Bradenton Marauders’ comeback bid fell short in their 4-3 loss to the Jupiter Hammerheads on Saturday night.
Jupiter opened scoring early in the bottom of the first when back-to-back-bases-loaded walks forced home two runs to give the Hammerheads a 2-0 lead.
Bradenton began chipping away in the top of the fourth when Edward Florentino walked, stole second and advanced to third on a wild pitch. After drawing the free pass, he extended his on-base streak to 11 consecutive games. With no outs in the frame, Tony Blanco Jr. sent a sacrifice fly to right that cut the deficit to 2-1. The RBI marked the first of Blanco’s Single-A career.
Still trailing by one in the top of the sixth, Wyatt Sanford led off the inning with a single to right. After swiping second, Yordany De Los Santos rolled a single to right that scored Sanford to knot the game at 2-2.
Bradenton continued its aggression on the base paths as De Los Santos stole second and advanced to third on an errant throw that rolled to center. Later in the frame, Jupiter reliever Kevin Vaupel sent a wild pitch to the back stop that brought home De Los Santos for the lead.
With Bradenton in front 3-2, Jupiter rallied in the bottom of the eighth when Andrew Salas lined a single to left and stole second. With two outs, Cam Clayton lofted a double to shallow left that scored Salas and tied the game at 3-3. The next hitter was Starlyn Caba who lined a two-strike single to right that scored Clayton and gave the Hammerheads a 4-3 advantage.
While the Marauders loaded the bases in the top of the ninth on an error, hit batter and walk, Jupiter walked the tight rope and stranded all three runners to secure the victory.
With the loss, Bradenton fell to 41-47 and 11-11 in the second half. Jupiter moved to 39-48 and 9-12 in the second half. The two return to the diamond on Sunday for the rubber match of the three-game set. First pitch is slated for 12:30 p.m. with pre-game coverage beginning at 12:15 p.m. on the Marauders Broadcast Network.