FSL1 Charlotte Stone Crabs

Tigers Take Series with 7-3 Win

Published on June 18, 2015 under Florida State League (FSL1)
Charlotte Stone Crabs News Release


PORT CHARLOTTE, FL (June 18, 2015) - The Stone Crabs were due for a letdown. It's pretty much a foregone conclusion whenever a team secures a playoff berth. Although it didn't come in Jupiter last weekend, a return trip home to Charlotte Sports Park wasn't exactly what the doctor ordered. Charlotte showed resolve in coming back from 2-0 down to win the first game against the Tigers 3-2, sending Lakeland to its ninth straight loss. But after that, the rest of the series belonged to the Tigers and a four run ninth inning in the final game before the All-Star break gave them the series as they won their third straight 7-3.

The Stone Crabs had more opportunities, but did not execute as well throughout the finale. Singles by Maxx Tissenbaum and Mike Marjama in the second put runners at the corners with one out for Pat Blair. Trent Szkutnik's 1-0 pitch was hammered right at second baseman Javier Betancourt, who snagged the liner before doubling Tissenbaum off first for the final out.

Two innings later, Kean Wong led off the fourth with his second of three singles. A five pitch walk to Marty Gantt and a well-timed double steal put a pair of runners in scoring position for the middle of the order. Szkutnik got Granden Goetzman to pop out to third before using his curveball to punch out Marjama and Tissenbaum and keep the game scoreless.

Blair later opened the home fifth with a double down the left field line, and soon tagged to third on Yoel Araujo's flyout to right. Carter Burgess bounced a ball to short which resulted in Blair getting caught in a rundown for the second out. A walk to Braxton Lee allowed Wong to line a run scoring single into left for a 1-0 Charlotte lead.

With German Marquez dealing across six shutout innings, the righthander entered for the seventh for the third time this season. He struck out Dominic Ficocello and Ben Verlander, giving him a new season high with eight strikeouts. Francisco Martinez then lined a single before stealing second base, putting the tying run at second. After a mound visit, Bobby Borchering clobbered a double into right center to tie the score and send Marquez to the showers. With Steve Ascher on to pitch, a walk to catcher Will Allen led to David Gonzalez picking up his first RBI with a go-ahead single into left. Later, a wild pitch brought Allen home with the third run of the inning as the Tigers moved ahead 3-1.

Tigers lefthander Matt Crouse retired the first seven Stone Crabs he saw starting in the sixth before Wong and Marty Gantt drew a couple of walks. With the tying runs on base, Goetzman's groundout to third pushed them into scoring position for Marjama. A double off Ficocello at first rolled down the right field line to retie the score at three. Crouse then struck out Tissenbaum with a high fastball to send it to the ninth.

Lakeland saved its best inning for last as they sent seven batters to the plate against Kyle McKenzie (4-2), who could only get one out. A two run single by Allen and a two run double by Raph Rhymes pretty much put the Stone Crabs to bed. Down to their last three outs, Montreal Robertson made quick work of the hosts with a 1-2-3 ninth that featured a pair of strikeouts.

The Stone Crabs are sending seven players to the Florida State League All-Star Game on Saturday, June 20 at 7:00 PM in Port St. Lucie: 1B Jake Bauers, SS Willy Adames, OF Marty Gantt, and pitchers Jacob Faria, Buddy Borden, Chris Kirsch, and Brad Schreiber. They will represent the South Division before resuming the regular season on Monday night at 7:00 PM when the Bradenton Marauders come to Charlotte Sports Park for the final three-game series of the first half. To learn more about how to listen to the live broadcast of the All-Star Game with St. Lucie Mets radio broadcaster Adam MacDonald, visit the league's website at www.floridastateleague.com.

Check out the Charlotte Stone Crabs Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



Florida State League Stories from June 18, 2015


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.

OurSports Central