Weekend wrap: Mussels drop final three games of series with Dunedin

May 26, 2026 7 min read

DUNEDIN, Fla.  – The Fort Myers Mighty Mussels were defeated by the Dunedin Blue Jays by a final score of 3-2 Sunday afternoon at TD Ballpark.

Fort Myers (24-21) sent Kolten Smith to the mound to make the start in the series finale. After striking out the leadoff hitter in the bottom of the first, two straight Blue Jays (18-26) reached.

Smith threw a wild pitch with JoJo Parker batting, and the first run came into score to make it 1-0 Dunedin.

Facing Dunedin starter Jake Bloss, Enrique Jimenez blasted his first home run of the year to leadoff the fourth inning and tie the game. Jimenez’s game-tying homer came off the bat at 102.2 mph.

After the wild pitch in the first inning, Smith retired 11 consecutive Blue Jay hitters to finish a strong four-inning outing.

In the top of the fifth inning, Ramon Suarez (1-1) induced a groundout by Jimenez with the bases loaded to keep the game tied.

Jonathan Stevens (3-1) took over for Smith and worked around a two-out single to hold Dunedin scoreless in the fifth.

In the bottom of the sixth, Jake Cook walked with one out. The next batter was Blaine Bullard, who launched his fifth home run of the season to give Dunedin a 3-1 lead.

Facing Franly Urena in the top of the eighth, Jimenez worked a leadoff walk. Two batters later, Ryan Sprock doubled to put runners at second and third with one out. Jayson Bass brought home Jimenez with an RBI groundout, but two runners were left on base as Fort Myers cut the deficit in half, 3-2.

The Mussels offense went 1-2-3 in the ninth inning against Jack Eshleman (S6), losing the series finale 3-2 despite outhitting the Blue Jays 6-3.

Fort Myers finished with a record of 6-8 during their annual two-week road trip. They registered a 5.33 team ERA and averaged 5.83 runs per game.

The Mussels return home to play the Jupiter Hammerheads today, May 26. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. with coverage beginning at 6:40 p.m. on the Mighty Mussels Baseball Network.

Mussels’ offense quiet in third consecutive loss to Dunedin

DUNEDIN, Fla. – The Fort Myers Mighty Mussels were defeated by the Dunedin Blue Jays by a final score of 6-4 Saturday night at TD Ballpark.

The Mighty Mussels (24-20) sent Justin Mitrovich (0-1) to the mound in game five of the series. He retired the Blue Jays (18-26) in order in the bottom of the first inning.

In the bottom of the second, Juan Sanchez singled to lead off the inning. With one out and Sanchez at third, Yorman Licourt’s RBI groundout made it 1-0 Dunedin.

Mitovich ended his outing after 2.2 innings. He allowed three hits and one run while striking out four and throwing 52 pitches.

Leading by one in the bottom of the fourth, Dunedin saw a new right-handed pitcher Hendry Chivilli, who was just called up from the FCL today. Austin Smith delivered a two-out RBI single to pad the Dunedin lead to 2-0.

In the bottom of the fifth, Dunedin strung together another rally. With two out, two straight hits got runners at second and third. A passed ball by catcher Irvin Nunez allowed a Dunedin run to score. Later in the at-bat, Eric Snow singled in another run to make it 4-0 Blue Jays.

Fort Myers cut into the deficit in the top of the seventh inning on a two-run blast from Jayson Bass off of Jack Nedrow (2-0). His fifth home run of the season left the bat at 107.2 mph, travelling 380 feet.

A key bases-loaded, two-run single by JoJo Parker in the bottom of the eighth inning re-established Dunedin’s four-run lead, 6-2.

In the top of the ninth, Byron Chourio had a run-scoring double and Bryan Acuna tacked on an RBI groundout. Despite the two-run rally, the Mussels fell short and lost their third consecutive game.

Mussels rally late but fall in extras again in Dunedin

DUNEDIN, Fla. – The Fort Myers Mighty Mussels were defeated in 10 innings by the Dunedin Blue Jays by a final score of 7-6 Friday night at TD Ballpark.

Despite the loss, the trio of Minnesota Twins No. 14 prospect Quentin Young, Luis Fragoza and Merphy Hernandez each had multi-hit nights. 

For Young, it was the eighth time this season he has had multiple hits in a game and fourth in the month of May.

Friday marked Fragoza and Hernandez’s first multi-hit night at the Single-A level. Fragoza had two, and Hernandez had one with the FCL Twins prior to their respective promotions. Fragoza’s performance also rendered his first Single-A home run.

The Mighty Mussels (24-19) sent 2025 fourth rounder Jason Reitz to the mound in game four of the series. Reitz allowed two hits and two runs (one earned) in the bottom of the first. Dunedin (17-26) led by two after one inning.

Listed at  6’11”, Reitz was the tallest player drafted in the 2025 MLB Draft and second tallest in draft history, with 7-foot-tall Jared Beck being selected by the Orioles in 2022. The tallest players to ever reach the Major Leagues both stood at 6’11”, with Jon Rauch (2002, CWS) and Sean Hjelle (2022, SF) accomplishing that feat.

Leading 3-0 in the bottom of the fourth inning, Dariel Ramon struck for a two-out RBI double to give Dunedin a 4-0 lead.

In the seventh inning, Hernandez’s second hit of the night set the stage for the Fort Myers offense to get on the board. Enrique Jimenez delivered a two-out RBI single to score Hernandez and make the score 4-1 Blue Jays.

Jones gave way to Mike McKenna in the bottom of the seventh, who walked Raimundo De Los Santos to lead off the inning. With one out and the runner at third, Eric Snow delivered an RBI groundout to make the score 5-1.

JP Smith II led off the top of the eighth inning with a single, and Ryan Sprock followed with a walk. Two batters later, Fragoza pounded his three-run home run to make it a 5-4 ballgame. It was the third home run of his professional career and his first of the season.

The Mussels got a runner to third with two out but were unable to score the tying run as Dunedin held the lead through 7 1/2 innings.

With the bases loaded in the bottom of the eighth inning, Michael Hilker Jr. delivered a key strikeout to keep the game 5-4 to the ninth inning.

The Mussels were down to their final out in the ninth when Smith reached and advanced to second on an error. The next batter was Sprock, who punched a single into right field to tie the game 5-5.

In the bottom of the ninth, Byron Chourio threw out the winning run at the plate on a cannon from right field. Later in the frame, another runner representing the winning run was stranded at third base to send the game to extra innings for the second consecutive contest.

With Smith serving as the automatic runner in the 10th inning, Fergoza led off the inning with a hit by pitch against Luis Victorino (1-3). Two batters later, Dameury Pena poked an RBI single into right field to give the Mussels their first lead of the game at 6-5.

Mitch Mueller (1-2) allowed a bases loaded walk in the bottom of the 10th inning to tie the game at six. The next hitter was Blaine Bullard, who looped an RBI single to walk off the Mussels for the second consecutive game.