Miracle lose final two at home
Special to the Daily Breeze, breezesports@breezenewspapers.com
Rainshowers cut short the final regular season game for the Fort Myers Miracle Sunday at Hammond Stadium with the Tampa Yankees claiming a 6-5 win in 8 1/2 innings.
That result came on the heels of the Yankees’ 10-2 rout of the Miracle Saturday night.
After an off day Monday, the Miracle head into the Florida State League playoffs smarting from a two-game losing streak. The Miracle (32-25 second half, 77-59 overall) visit the Dunedin Blue Jays to open the best-of-three Western Division series Tuesday night. The next two games of the series are scheduled at Hammond Stadium Wednesday and Thursday (if necessary).
Tampa shortstop Luis Nunez smashed a grand slam home run in the top of the eighth Sunday before the rain came.
The outer bands of Hurricane Gustav delayed Saturday night’s game nearly two hours. The Yankees ultimately sprayed 18 hits around the ballpark, scoring four runs in the fourth and five in the seventh innings.
Tampa connected for five hits in the fourth to break away to a 5-0 lead. The Yankees used six straight hits to begin the seventh.
The Miracle scored their second and final run in the eighth. Edward Ovalle was hit by pitch for the second time in the game to open the inning and scored on Juan Portes’ infield-single to third.