Mussels Suffer Second Consecutive Walk-Off Loss in Daytona
FSL Fort Myers Mighty Mussels

Mussels Suffer Second Consecutive Walk-Off Loss in Daytona

Published on May 2, 2026 under Florida State League (FSL)
Fort Myers Mighty Mussels News Release


DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - The Fort Myers Mighty Mussels fell in walk-off fashion against the Daytona Tortugas by a final score of 7-6 on Saturday night at Jackie Robinson Ballpark.

The Mussels' (16-10) received the first three-hit games of the season from Yasser Mercedes and multi-hit games from three other players but could not hold onto a ninth inning lead for the second night in a row against the Tortugas (9-17). Fort Myers led 6-2 heading into the bottom of the eighth, but Daytona went on to rally for five runs to take a 3-2 series advantage.

Fort Myers sent Ramiro Villanueva to the mound to make his second start of the season. Villanueva ran into trouble in the first inning following a pair of strikeouts. Four straight Tortugas (9-17) reached, including three hits, to get Daytona on the board, 2-0.

The Mighty Mussels fought back to tie the game in the top of the third inning. Harry Genth led off the inning with a ground-rule double, then scored on an RBI single by Dameury Pena. Later in the inning, Mercedes brought Pena home on an RBI groundout.

Reed Moring relieved Villanueva in the fourth inning after the 19-year-old navigated three innings of two-run ball. Villanueva allowed four hits and struck out three Tortugas over 60 pitches.

It took Moring 24 pitches to face the minimum in two scoreless frames, striking out two.

In the fifth inning, Daytona reliever Lisnerkin Lantigua allowed back-to-back singles to begin the frame. Mercedes was next, and he singled in Pena for the second time in the game to give Fort Myers a 3-2 lead.

Adam Falinski took over in the sixth inning and navigated two scoreless innings. He did not allow a runner to reach base, striking out a Tortuga in each frame.

In the top of the seventh inning, Mercedes doubled for his third hit of the night. He later came home to score on a wild pitch by Lantigua, making the score 4-2 Mighty Mussels.

Despite missing the first nine games of the year, Mercedes leads the Mussels in RBI (17) and runs (15), while ranking second on the team in hits (19).

Fort Myers padded their lead in the eighth inning. Genth clubbed a two-run home run, his first of the season, to extend the Mussel lead to 6-2 against Abraham Gaitan (2-1). Saturday marked Genth's first multi-hit game of the season.

Daytona cut into the lead in the bottom of the frame against Falinski. Three consecutive Tortugas reached with one out to move the Mussels' advantage to 6-5.

Mitch Mueller (1-1) relieved Falinski in the ninth. The Tortugas scored on two wild pitches by Mueller to walk-off the Mussels for the second consecutive night. The final score was 7-6.

The series concludes on Sunday, May 3. Minnesota Twins' ninth round draft pick Justin Mitrovich will make his professional debut on the mound. First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 p.m.

Check out the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels Statistics

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Florida State League Stories from May 2, 2026


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