Two of the most touted pitchers in the Florida State League took the hill on Friday, as they aimed to chalk up the victory for the respected clubs. For the Cardinals, Carlos Martinez tried to get back to form, as he struggled in his first outing, tossing four innings of two run ball. While Chase Hutchingson tried to continue his shutout streak, as he went 6.2 innings of shutout ball against the Marauders on Sunday.
Both pitchers lived up to the billing, as they went a combined 12 innings, allowing one run and striking out 13. Martinez led the duo, as he recorded eight strikeouts; however, he came up short, as he gave up the lone run.
In the third inning, Martinez gave up doubles to Joseph Bunfe and Daniel Muno. Muno's double pushed across the first run of the game. Despite his wildness at times, Martinez found ways to get out of jams as he kept the Mets at bay through six.
In the seventh, the Mets took advantage of a walk and hit batter to score their second run on a one-out double by Alfonso Harris. With runners on second and third and two outs, Zach Russell got out of further damage by striking out the next two batters.
In the bottom half of the inning, the Cardinals had a chance to crawl back in the game, as back-to-back singles by Alan Ahmady and Geoff Klein put the winning run at the plate; however, the next batter Mike Swinson went down swinging. With two outs, shortstop Ronny Gil lined a single up the middle that was sure to plate Ahmady, but Klein was back picked rounding second for the final out of the frame. The base running miscue would have plated a run and put the Cardinals within one.
After the threat, the Mets finished the game off, as Adrian Rosario closed out the ninth for the save. For the Cardinals, Alan Ahmady led the way as he went 2-for-4, while the pitching staff recorded a season-high 15 strikeouts.
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