Both teams led early but could not hold the leads. Fort Myers tries again to win the championship today, while Cedar Rapids tries to stay alive.
DAYTONA 8, FORT MYERS 7 IN DAYTONA
Batting stars: Stuart Turner was 4-for-4 with a double and a walk, driving in three. Dalton Hicks was 3-for-5 with a home run, scoring twice and driving in two. Niko Goodrum was 1-for-3 with two walks and two runs.
Pitching stars: None.
Opposition stars: Willson Contreras was 3-for-3 with a home run, a double, and a walk, scoring twice and driving in four. Ben Carhart was 2-for-3 with a walk, scoring twice and driving in one. Billy McKinney was 2-for-3 with a walk and two runs.
The game: Turner doubled in two in the first to give Fort Myers the early lead. Marco Hernandez had a two-run single in a three-run second that put Daytona up 3-2. Hicks singled in a run in the top of the third to tie it up, but in the bottom of the third an RBI single by Carhart and an run-scoring double by Contreras gave the Cubs a 5-3 lead. The Miracle battled back, as Turner singled in a run in the fifth and a run scored on an error it the sixth to leave the score tied at five. Aderlin Mejia singled in a run in the eighth to put Fort Myers ahead 6-5, but the Miracle could not add to the lead despite loading the bases. In the bottom of the eighth, Contreras hit a three-run homer to make it 8-6 Daytona. Hicks homered in the ninth and Fort Myers got the tying run on base, but could not advance him past first.
Of note: Mejia was 2-for-5 with an RBI. Travis Harrison was 1-for-5 with a run. Max Kepler was 0-for-4 with a run. Adam Brett Walker II was 0-for-5. Starter Brett Lee pitched 5.2 innings, giving up five runs on eight hits and four walks with one strikeout.
Playoff update: Fort Myers now leads the best-of-five series two games to one. They will once again try to close out the series tonight.
KANE COUNTY 5, CEDAR RAPIDS 2 IN CEDAR RAPIDS
Batting stars: Tanner English was 3-for-5 with a triple, scoring once and driving in one. Chad Christensen was 1-for-4 with a walk and an RBI. Alex Swim was 2-for-4.
Pitching star: Ryan Eades pitched 5.2 innings, giving up one run on two hits and six walks with four strikeouts.
Opposition stars: Daury Torrez struck out five in five innings, allowing one run on seven hits and no walks. Mark Zagunis was 2-for-5 with a home run and a triple, driving in two. Jeimer Candelario was 1-for-3 with two walks.
The game: In the first, English singled, took second on an error, and scored on a pair of ground outs to give Cedar Rapids a 1-0 lead. Zagunis tripled in a run in the third to tie it at one. It remained tied until the seventh. Kane County then got a single and a walk, a wild pitch moved runners to second and third, and they both scored on an error to put the Cougars ahead 3-1. English hit a one-out RBI triple in the bottom of the seventh to cut the lead to 3-2, but that was as much as the Kernels could do. Cael Brockmeyer tripled and scored in the eighth and Zagunis homered in the ninth to make it 5-2. Cedar Rapids got two on with none out in the eighth but did not get a baserunner after that.
Of note: Jonatan Hinojosa was 2-for-5. Max Murphy was 1-for-4 with a double.
Playoff update: Cedar Rapids trails the best-of-three division championship series two games to one. They will try to stay alive tonight.
TODAY'S TILTS
4:35 Fort Myers (TBA) at Daytona (Rob Zastryzny, 4-6, 4.66)
6:00 Cedar Rapids (John Curtiss, 2-1, 2.30) at Daytona (Paul Blackburn, 9-4. 3.23)