Late Homer Sinks Tortugas in Tuesday Afternoon Tilt

Sports stats



FSL Daytona Tortugas

Late Homer Sinks Tortugas in Tuesday Afternoon Tilt

June 17, 2025 - Florida State League (FSL)
Daytona Tortugas News Release


JUPITER, Fla - The Daytona Tortugas rallied to take the lead in the seventh, but Andres Valor's three-run home run in the eighth lifted the Jupiter Hammerheads to a 5-3 victory on Tuesday afternoon at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium.

Jupiter (30-34) has won all four tilts on their home field against Daytona (27-37), who remained winless in seven series openers on the road this season.

Reynardo Cruz made his first appearance as a Tortuga since July 4, 2022 and in the first inning he allowed a walk and a double, but he struck out two in the inning, stranding runners at second and third in a scoreless inning.

In the second, Daytona threatened to take the lead. Esmith Pineda doubled to begin the inning and went to third on a Carlos Sanchez single. Sanchez then stole second to put runners at second and third with no outs. However, Jupiter starter Julio Mendez buckled down to induce a groundout in a drawn-in infield and a shallow pop-up. After plunking Jacob Friend to loaded the bases, Mendez induced another fly out to end the inning as Daytona left the bases loaded.

After a scoreless second from Cruz, Jupiter struck in the third. Back-to-back walks put runners on first and second with one out. Cruz induced a popup for the second out. Carter Johnson, though, followed with a base hit to right-center that scored both runners, giving Jupiter a 2-0 lead.

With the lead, Mendez settled down, throwing scoreless fourth and fifth frames while working around one-out singles in each frame. He departed after 5.0 scoreless innings, handing off the two-run advantage to the bullpen.

In the meantime, Daytona stayed in striking distance as Drew Pestka threw a 1-2-3 fourth with two strikeouts, then Juan Martinez entered in the fifth and faced the minimum in both the fifth and sixth with three strikeouts.

In the seventh, Daytona finally broke through. Luis Reyes led off with a walk and Jacob Friend drew a one-out walk. With two outs, Kyle Henley singled up the middle to score Reyes. The ball was bobbled in center field, allowing Friend to score as well, tying the game. After a pitching change, Bernard Moon followed with a base hit to left, scoring Henley to put the Tortugas head 3-2.

Martinez returned to the mound and fired a 1-2-3 seventh, earning him another frame in the eighth. However, a leadoff single was followed by a walk. Valor stepped up and ripped an 0-1 breaking ball into the Jupiter bullpen for a three-run home run, putting the Hammerheads back in front, 5-3.

In the ninth, Luis Leones was plunked to begin the inning to bring the tying run to the plate. However, Jake Faherty retired the next three, including two strikeouts, to end the game with Jupiter victorious 5-3.

Daytona will play game two of a six-game series against the Jupiter Hammerheads at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium on Wednesday evening. First pitch from Jupiter will be at 6:30 p.m. while pregame coverage on Tuesday with the Voice of the Tortugas, Brennan Mense, will begin on the Tortugas Radio Network at 6:20 p.m.

Tickets for every Tortugas home game are available on our website, by calling 386-257-3172, or by visiting the Jackie Robinson Ballpark box office at 110 E. Orange Avenue.

Check out the Daytona Tortugas Statistics



Florida State League Stories from June 17, 2025


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

Other Recent Daytona Tortugas Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central