Keeping Track

Minor Details: Game of September 8

Jason Kanzler's two-run homer gives Fort Myers a Miracle finish.  Ladies and gentlemen, your 2014 Florida State League Champions!

FORT MYERS 4, DAYTONA 2 IN DAYTONA (11 INNINGS)

Batting stars:  Aderlin Mejia was 2-for-3 with two walks and a run.  Tyler Grimes was 2-for-4 with a double and a walk, driving in one.  Jason Kanzler was 1-for-5 with a two-run homer.

Pitching stars:  D. J. Baxendale struck out seven in 5.2 innings, giving up two unearned runs on six hits and three walks.  Nick Burdi retired all six men he faced, striking out four.  Brandon Peterson retired all four men he faced with one strikeout.

Opposition stars:  Jose Rosario struck out five in four shutout innings of relief, allowing no hits and four walks.  Dan Vogelbach was 1-for-5 with a double and two runs.

The game:  In the first Mejia walked, went to second on a bunt, took third on a wild pitch, and scored on a sacrifice fly to give Fort Myers a 1-0 lead.  It stayed 1-0 until the fourth, when Stuart Turner singled, went to second on a wild pitch, advanced to third on a Max Kepler single, and scored on a double by Grimes to make it 2-0.  Men were on second and third with one out, but the Miracle could not score again.  It looked like that might cost them, as a two-out error scored a run for Daytona in the bottom of the fourth and another two-out error tied it up in the sixth.  It was tied until the eleventh, when Adam Brett Walker II led off with a double and Kanzler hit a one-out, two-run homer.  The Cubs went down in order in the bottom of the eleventh and the victory was preserved.

Of note:  Travis Harrison was 0-for-4 with a walk and an RBI.  Dalton Hicks was 0-for-6.  Kepler was 2-for-4 with a walk.  Walker II was 1-for-4 with a double and a walk, scoring once.

Playoff update:  The win gives the Fort Myers Miracle the Florida State League championship, three games to one.

Coming up next:  We will post some final thoughts on each of the Twins minor league teams in the days ahead.  Then we'll take a bit of time off until the Arizona Fall League season starts on October 7.