FSL Fort Myers Mighty Mussels

Mighty Mussels Game Notes - Wed, May 8 vs Dunedin

Published on May 8, 2024 under Florida State League (FSL)
Fort Myers Mighty Mussels News Release


After a dramatic walk-off grand slam by Jose Rodriguez on Tuesday, the Mighty Mussels continue their series with the Dunedin Blue Jays (TOR) tonight at Hammond Stadium.

Pitching Matchups

Wed, 7:05pm - RHP Charlee Soto (0-2, 4.96) vs. RHP Juaron Watts-Brown (1-2, 5.50)

Thu, 7:05pm - RHP Paulshawn Pasqualotto (0-2, 3.57) vs. RHP Grant Rogers (0-2, 4.42)

Fri, 7:05pm - RHP Ty Langenberg (0-3, 5.75) vs. RHP Fernando Perez (1-1, 3.65)

Broadcast Links

LISTEN FOR FREE HERE

WATCH HERE

RODRIGUEZ, RUIZ LEAD DRAMATIC COMEBACK 8-7 OVER D-JAYS

Mussels' C/1B Poncho Ruiz delivered Fort Myers' first multi-home run game of the season Tuesday, finishing 3-for-4 with 3 RBI to help the Mussels build a 3-1 lead. After Dunedin came back to take a 7-3 lead after eight innings, the Mussels battled back to win with a Jose Rodriguez walk-off grand slam with two outs in the ninth. The Mussels had previously been 0-17 when trailing after eight innings and 0-16 when trailing after seven.

ON FIRE HE NEEDS A PONCHO!

Mussels' catcher Poncho Ruiz has been one of the most consistent bats in the Fort Myers' lineup all season, but has been particularly dominant of late. Over his last 10 games, Ruiz is 15-for-35 (.429 AVG) with five XBH (.686 SLG), eight RBI, five walks (.500 OBP) and only four strikeouts (1.186 OPS). He leads the team with eight multi-hit games. His nine total bases on May 7 were the most by a Mussels' player in a single game this season.

BEAT UP IN BRADENTON

The Mighty Mussels lost their fourth straight game on Sunday, a 5-4 defeat to the Bradenton Marauders. Bradenton entered the week with the worst AVG and SLG in Low-A, but managed to hit .246 against Mussels' pitching in the series. On the other side of the ball, the Mussels hit just .193 with a .587 OPS for the week.

D-JAYS COMING TO THE FORT

The Dunedin Blue Jays visit Hammond Stadium to play a six-game series with the Mussels this week. The D-Jays most recently split a six-game series with Tampa, surrendering 32 runs over the final four games of the series. Dunedin ranks third in runs scored (126) despite placing ninth in batting average (.199). They are second in the circuit in stolen bases (53), third in walks (125) and home runs (16). Their active roster currently features seven ranked prospects:

MLB BA

SS Arjun Nimmala 3 3

RHP Juaron Watts-Brown 18 22

INF Tucker Toman 20 28

RHP Fernando Perez 24 14

OF Yhoangel Aponte 25 30

SS Manuel Beltre 27 -

RHP Nolan Perry - 24

DEFENSE MATTERS

Faulty defense has drastically hurt the Mussels all season. Fort Myers has committed 49 errors this season, the second most in the FSL and the fourth most amongst the 30 teams in Low-A. Those errors have led to 41 unearned runs, the most of any team in the league and a good margin ahead of the next closest teams - Dunedin (29) and Tampa (28). Ten of Fort Myers' last 12 losses have come by four runs or less, so some better defense could certainly have shifted some games into the Mussels' favor.

WIN-NING WITH ADJUSTMENTS

After slow starts, nobody has turned things around more during the last few weeks than Brandon Winokur:

Winokur AVG

OPS

First 10 Games .162 18 K, 3 BB .584

Next 13 Games .296 13 K, 3 BB .759

Check out the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels Statistics

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Florida State League Stories from May 8, 2024


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