5/4/14

St. Lucie, Bradenton Split Pair



The St. Lucie Mets split their Saturday double header with the Bradenton Marauders, dropping game 1, 3-2, while rebounding to win game 2, 5-1, on Saturday at McKechnie Field.

Luis Cessa pitched his best game of the season in game 2, limiting the Marauders to just two hits and one run over five innings. He struck out a season-high six batters.

Cessa’s offense gave him an early lead. Aderlin Rodriguez drove in Brandon Nimmo and T.J. Rivera with a double in the first inning.

After the Marauders got a run back on a sac fly in the fifth, the Mets answered in the top of the sixth on a ground out by Rodriguez to make it 3-1.

Rivera delivered the knock out punch in the seventh when he scorched a two-run single to increase the Mets’ lead to 5-1.

Randy Fontanez pitched two scoreless innings to earn his fourth save.

Rodriguez totaled three RBIs in the game and now leads the Florida State League with 31 runs driven in.

Rivera went 3 for 4 with a double and two RBIs. He went 7 for 9 in the three-game series and leads the FSL with a .421 batting average.

Orlando Castro took the loss for the Marauders.

Game 1 looked like it was headed for extra innings, but the Marauders stunned the Mets with a two-out rally in the seventh.

With the score tied 2-2, Ryan Fraser got two quick outs to start the bottom of the seventh. However, he lost control and walked the bases loaded to put Raul Fortunato at third base as the winning run. Then, with a two-strike count on Josh Bell, Fraser threw a wild pitch to the backstop and Fortunato scored easily from third to walk it off for the Marauders, 3-2.

Bryton Trepagnier pitched a scoreless sixth and seventh to earn the win.

The Mets offense had a chance to break the game open against John Kuchno in the first. Dilson Herrera, Brandon Nimmo and Jairo Perez all reached to start the game. With the bases load, Aderlin Rodriguez grounded out to plate a run. Cam Maron followed with another RBI ground out to make it 2-0.

Kuchno hit a batter and walked another to reload the bases, but he got Phillip Evans to strike out on three pitches to end the threat.

The Mets would only put three more runners on base in the game. Twice runners were wiped off the bases on double play balls.

The Marauders were able to manufacture two runs off of Domingo Tapia. In the third inning, Tapia got what looked like the third out of the inning on routine ground ball to Perez at first. But Perez stumbled on the play and had to flip to Tapia covering first base. Tapia was late getting to the bag and Taylor Lewis was safe. Meanwhile Jonathan Schwind, who started the play at second base, never broke stride and scored to make it 2-1.

In the fifth, Tapia gave up a single and a walk to put the tying run at second. Adam Frazier put down a sac bunt to move the runners ups, and Lewis grounded out to bring home the tying run from third.

Tapia pitched five innings in the no decision. He allowed five hits and two runs while walking one and striking out two. - team press release

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