Bradenton Marauders 5, St. Lucie Mets 2
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Tonight’s Marauders’ game was played at Charlotte Sports Park, the Marauders’ home-away-from-home while the roof at McKechnie Field is being repaired. A 5-run 7th inning gave the Marauders all the firepower they needed.
Jeff Inman made the start, and earned his second win of the season. He pitched 7 innings and allowed 3 hits and 3 walks, giving up 2 runs. Inman worked around a lead-off triple in the 2nd inning. In the 3rd, a batter reached base on a fielding error by 3B Kelson Brown, but Inman erased the runner with a double play. Another triple began the 4th inning, and a sacrifice fly brought that runner in to score. Inman gave up a walk in the 5th and hit a batter in the 6th, but kept both of those runners from scoring. In the 7th, the Mets scored again, with a walk, a stolen base, and an RBI single.
The Marauders’ batters were very quiet for the first part of the game. After 13 Marauders went down in order, DH Calvin Anderson singled and LF Adalberto Santos walked, but both were left stranded. RF Robbie Grossman reached third base in the 6th, on a walk, a stolen base, and a throwing error on the steal attempt, but he was also left on base when the next two batters both struck out.
Finally in the 7th, the Marauders started the bombing. After two strikeouts, the rally began with Santos working a walk. A fielding error on a ball hit by C Carlos Paulino put Paulino on third and let Santos score. Brown drove in Paulino with an RBI single. Another fielding error put SS Benji Gonzalez on second base safely and pushed Brown to third. Both Brown and Gonzalez scored on a single by Grossman. Grossman stole second base, then scored on 2B Jarek Cunningham’s RBI single. The inning ended when Cunningham was thrown out when he tried to reach third on the throw and was caught in a run-down.
Porfirio Lopez relieved Inman to begin the 8th, and he retired the side in order. Lopez also got the first out in the top of the 9th, then Ryan Beckman came in to get the final two outs.
