Sports Lowdown

Blake Allemand Phil Bickford  was impressive in his second start of the season for the Manatees on Saturday, striking out 10 Dunedin Blue Jays in five innings of work. Unfortunately, he did not factor into the decision, a 4-3 victory in 10 innings for Dunedin. Despite Bickford’s performance, Dunedin opened the scoring in the bottom of the first.  Dickie Joe Thon  singled and went to second on a wild pitch. He stole third, as  J.D. Davis  was striking out.  Ryan McBroom , who would be heard from again later, knocked Thon home with a single. Bickford ended up striking out the side in the inning and went on to strike out two in the second inning and two more in the third. He added one more in the fourth and two in the fifth. The Manatees offense rewarded him with two runs in the top of the sixth, against Dunedin starter  Luis Santos . Fidel Pena  singled with one out and rode home on a  Blake Allemand ...

Corey Ray The Dunedin Blue Jays dominated the Brevard County Manatees on Friday night in game two of their three game set. A two-run home run by Ryan McBroom and a two-run single by Anthony Alford were the big blows in a 6-2 Dunedin victory. The only bright spot for the Manatees came in the top of the eighth inning, when Corey Ray took Justin Shafer deep on a 3-2 count, for his second home run in as many nights and his third of the season. Schafer was cruising along to that point, as he took over for Francisco Rios, who started the game for Dunedin. The Manatees got to Rios early with Ray leading off the game with a single. Fidel Pena hit into a double play behind him and that would prove costly, as Blake Allemand and Elvis Rubio hit back-to-back singles, with Mitch Ghelfi then getting hit by a pitch to load the bases. David Denson came up with a big opportunity, but Rios got him swinging. Shafer relieved Rios top start the second and he was in control for much of t...

Corey Ray The Brevard County Manatees struggles continued Thursday, as they let a 2-0 lead slip away in the opening game of a three-game series at Dunedin. The Blue Jays scored twice in the eighth and upended the Manatees, 4-2, sending them to their eighth loss in 11 games. The Manatees (14-33, 37-78) got off to a good start against Conor Fisk. Corey Ray took him deep and out, over the right-center field wall in the third inning, for his second home run of the season. In the fifth, it was Wendell Rijo, who went deep to right field. He didn’t get all of it, as he hit it off the end of the bat, but the ball carried over the wall and it was a 2-0 lead for the Manatees. Cody Ponce started for Brevard County and pitched well, despite the Blue Jays getting at least one baserunner into scoring position in five of the six innings he pitched. He was able to work in and out of trouble for the most part, but it finally caught up to him in the fifth, as he was hurt by an error. ...

George Iskenderian called out on a close Play at the Plate on Sunday Following his complete game on Monday, Jon Perrin pitched well again on Sunday against the Dunedin Blue Jays, but was outdueled by his counterpart Justin Schafer, as the Blue Jays pulled off a 2-1 victory and swept a three-game series from the Manatees at Space Coast Stadium. Anthony Alford got the Blue Jays going right out of the gate, as he sent the second pitch of the game over the center field wall. In the second inning, Danny Jansen rifled a single back to Perrin. Despite his best efforts to knock it down with the glove, but it got him on the ankle. He attempted to chase after the ball, but went down as soon as he realized Jansen was going to beat it. To his credit, he bounced up moments later on his own and after being looked at by the Manatees staff, he stayed in the game. Perrin continued to give up hits, but he was able to work in and out of trouble for much of the day. The only 1-2-3 inning...

Corey Ray's Leaping Catch (5th inning) Saturday night turned into Sunday morning at Space Coast Stadium, as the Dunedin Blue Jays and Brevard County Manatees played two, with a two hour, 45-minute rain delay thrown in. When all was said and done, the Manatees were their own worst enemy, as errors directly affected the outcome of both games. Dunedin took game one 1-0 and game two, by the score of 4-3. In game one, Kodi Medeiros walked the first batter he faced in Anthony Alford, but he was caught stealing. Jorge Flores drew a walk and Gunnar Heidt hit one to third that was dropped by George Iskenderian. He picked it up, but rushed the throw and it sailed. Both runners were safe at first and second. One out later, Jonathan Davis ripped a single to left, scoring Flores and putting the Blue Jays up 1-0. That was the downside of the defensive spectrum for the Manatees, but Corey Ray showed the upside in the fourth inning. Ryan McBroom hit one to right center that was sink...

George Iskenderian The Dunedin Blue Jays survived a late charge by the Brevard County Manatees Wednesday, earning a 6-4 victory at Space Coast Stadium. With the win, the Blue Jays take the series two games to one. The Manatees (3-10, 26-55) got off to a good start, jumping out to a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the third, against Dunedin starter Conor Fisk (3-2). Omar Garcia singled with one out and Corey Ray followed with a line drive single to right, scoring Garcia. The ball then scooted by Josh Almonte in right, allowing Garcia to score and Ray to get to second. Dustin DeMuth followed with an RBI single scoring Ray, who showed good speed on the bases. “He can motor man,” said Brevard County manager Joe Ayrault of Ray’s speed. “It’s easy wheeling him around third base, watching him run, man he can fly.” It was the first run scored for Ray, who made his professional debut on Monday. In three games, he has knocked in a run, earned his first (and second hit) and scored a run. H...

Corey Ray The Brevard County Manatees went into Tuesday’s game with the Dunedin Blue Jays having won back-to-back contests, but they were unable to continue that streak, as the Blue Jays scored three runs in two separate innings, on their way to a 6-1 win at Space Coast Stadium. Corey Ray, who made his professional debut with the Manatees on Monday, driving in the winning run in a 3-0 victory , earned another first on Tuesday, when he lined a single to left against Blue Jays reliever Jose Fernandez. “Definitely a highlight,” said Manatees manager Joe Ayrault. “I’ll doctor it up, do some writing on it for him, but pretty cool to see him get his first professional hit, first of many.” Dunedin (9-4, 42-40) got on the board in the top of the second against Manatees starter Jon Perrin. After Ryan McBroom singled to lead things off and one out later, Andy Fermin singled. After recording the second out, Perrin hit Dickie Joe Thon to load the bases, bringing the ninth hitter in...

Jose Cuas The Brevard County Manatees were victimized by another great pitching performance Wednesday, as Chris Rowley went five innings and allowed one run, leading Dunedin to a 5-1 victory at Florida Auto Exchange Stadium and a sweep of the ‘Tees Camp Day. After managing three hits on Monday and four on Tuesday , the Manatees were held to four again on Wednesday. The first of those hits on Wednesday, came off the bat of Jose Cuas, who took Rowley deep to lead off the top of the third, giving the Manatees a short-lived 1-0 lead. Cuas hit the homer, moments after making a great diving stop, then throw, to end the second inning. Dunedin (33-36) got to Manatees starter Kodi Medeiros in the bottom of the third. Medeiros had walked three batters in the first two innings, so his command wasn’t where he wanted it and Dunedin took advantage of that. Aaron Attaway started the third with a single and rode home on a double by Jonathan Davis, tying the game at one. One out later, ...

Connor Greene  pitched five no-hit innings for the Dunedin Blue Jays on Tuesday, leading his team to a 6-0 win at Florida Auto Exchange Stadium. Greene was masterful, striking out seven over seven innings of work, both season highs. He allowed three hits and walked two, throwing 91 pitches, 59 for strikes.  The Manatees, who were held to four hits in Monday’s series opener , followed that with a three-hit night on Tuesday. The first hit for the visitors was a double leading off the sixth inning by Dustin Houle, breaking up the no-hit bid. At that point, Dunedin was comfortably ahead. On the other side of the ledger, it was a rough night for Manatees starter  Eric Hanhold . Jonathan Davis singled to start the bottom of the first and was out when he ran into a ball hit by Richard Urena. Davis was out, but Urena was credited with a hit. One out later, Ryan McBroom doubled home Urena to make it 1-0. Jorge Saez led the second inning off with his fourth home...

Elvis Rubio The Florida State League schedule resumed Monday, following the 2016 All-Star break and the Brevard County Manatees traveled to Florida Auto Exchange Stadium to open a three-game series against the Dunedin Blue Jays.  Jonathan Davis  had a home run in the third and a walk-off single in the bottom of the ninth, leading the home nine to a 3-2 victory. Dunedin starting pitcher  Justin Shafer  held the Manatees in check for much of the night and got help from his offense in the early going. After Manatees’ starter  Bubba Derby  got the first out, Davis smacked his 10 th  home run of the season the opposite way and gave the D-Jays a 1-0 lead. Derby gave up two more hits in the inning, but was able to escape further trouble. Dunedin (31-36) added a run in the fourth, which started with a double by Jorge Saez. D.J. Davis grounded out, moving Saez to third. Gunnar Heidt, who was just added to the Dunedin roster prior to the All-S...

Kender Villegas The Brevard County Manatees came from behind Sunday and hung on for a 5-4 victory, at Florida Auto Exchange Stadium in Dunedin. With the win, the Manatees took three of four games and took home their third series win of the year. Kodi Medeiros was the starting pitcher for the ‘Tees on Sunday, but he went just two innings, before leaving with an apparent injury. He covered the first base bag and recorded an out on a ball hit by L.B. Dantzler in the bottom of the second. He finished the inning, but did not come out of the dugout for the third. Medeiros gave up two hits, walked two and struck out two, in his short stint. He threw 42 pitches, 23 for strikes. Kender Villegas took over for Brevard County and got through the third, before running into trouble in the fourth. Jason Leblebijian and Dantzler hit back-to-back singles and Jonathan Davis laid down a bunt, that Villegas fielded. He bluffed and then threw to third, where Jose Cuas caught the ball, but...

Brandon Woodruff The Brevard County Manatees won their second game of the weekend in Dunedin on Saturday, led by right-handed ace Brandon Woodruff who tied a career high with 10 strikeouts, leading the visitors to a 7-2 victory.  Woodruff struck out at least one Dunedin batter in each of the first six innings. He struck out two in the first, second, fourth and fifth innings. He got D-Jays shortstop Richard Urena four times. The game was quite a pitchers’ duel for much of the night, as Woodruff’s counterpart Justin Shafer held the Manatees scoreless for six innings. He allowed two hits, walking three and striking out three, before giving way to MLB rehabber Aaron Loup. Shafer threw 73 pitches, 45 for strikes. Loup did not have the same success.  Jose Cuas was not in the starting lineup, but an injury to starting second baseman George Iskenderian pressed him into duty as a pinch-runner in the top of the fourth. Cuas started the seventh with a...

Taylor Brennan After taking game one of Friday’s doubleheader against the Dunedin Blue Jays by the score of 7-5 , the Brevard County Manatees were looking to sweep the evening at Florida Auto Exchange Stadium. Dunedin had a different idea, coming from behind to win 6-2, on the strength of a five-run fifth frame. Brevard County (11-24) got on the board in the top of the second against Dunedin starter Chris Rowley, who struck out the side one inning earlier. With two down in the inning, Taylor Brennan hit one to left-center that just kept carrying. It carried out of the park and just like that, the Manatees were up 1-0. The home nine answered back in the bottom of the inning, against Manatees’ starter Angel Ventura, who struggled to keep guys off the bases on Friday. He walked L.B Dantzler to start the inning, but he was erased on a fielders’ choice by D.J. Davis. Ventura looked to have Davis picked off, throwing to first just as Davis left the bag, but somehow Davis sli...

Dustin Houle Brevard County Manatees catcher  Dustin Houle  went 4-for-4 with two runs scored and two RBIs Friday night, helping the Manatees to a 7-5 win in game one of a doubleheader against the Dunedin Blue Jays.  Houle doubled in the second, tripled in the third and singled in the fifth. He came up in the seventh, needing a home run for the cycle, but instead got an infield single. With the doubleheader, Houle missed out on another at bat, because the games are only seven innings long. Brevard County’s offense was hitting on all cylinders in game one, putting up 14 hits and scoring in the first five innings. All of the Manatees runs were charged to starter   Kyle Westwood  (0-5). Angel Ortega got things started with a single in the first, extending his hit streak to eight games. Dustin DeMuth followed with a double to left, scoring Ortega with the first run. Houle’s double got things going in the second inning. He scored on a single by Elvis R...

Elvis Rubio The Brevard County Manatees celebrated Education Day on Tuesday, by taking the Dunedin Blue Jays to school. Brandon Woodruff pitched seven innings of shutout baseball and got home runs from Clint Coulter, Gregory McCall and newcomer Elvis Rubio, in a 7-2 victory in front of 2,353 fans at Space Coast Stadium. It was the ‘Tees third straight win. “The guys swung the bats well and we took advantage of the wind blowing out today,” said Manatees manager Joe Ayrault. “Three homers on the day, a nice debut by Mr. Rubio and it was an all-around good day for us. Guys played solid defense and a dominating performance today by Woodruff, he was outstanding.” Woodruff (2-1) was on his game from the start, with at least one strikeout in the first three innings. He did not strike anybody out in the fourth or fifth, but came back with two in the sixth and one in the seventh, to the last batter he faced, Mike Reeves. When all was said and done, Woodruff allowed four hits in...