Charlotte Stone Crabs vs Sarasota Reds

Port Charlotte, Florida: The Charlotte Stone Crabs dropped the regular season finale to the Sarasota Reds 4-0 on Sunday evening at Charlotte Sports Park. With the loss, the Stone Crabs finished their inaugural season with an overall record of 71-66 and are headed to the playoffs. The Sarasota Reds also had a milestone of their own as they ended their franchise affiliation with Sarasota and leave the Florida State League on a winning note.

Both clubs endured a scoreless pitchers duel until the fifth inning when Sarasota struck for four runs in the inning. Jordan Wideman got the scoring rally started with a single to center followed by a single by Dave Sappelt. Neftali Soto followed with an RBI double to score Wideman and move Sappelt to third. Alex Buchholz followed with a ground ball to third that scored Sappelt as Greg Sexton’s throw home was errant. Jose Gualdron then drove home two more runs with a triple that gave the Reds the 4-0 lead.

After the big inning, the pitching duel resumed and neither side pushed across another run despite coming close a few times. The Reds closed the door and took the 4-0 win.

The Stone Crabs worked through the bullpen in preparation for the post season as six pitchers saw action on the night. Jake McGee pitched 3 shut-out innings and allowed 2 hits while striking out 4. Kevin Boggan was tagged with the loss, allowing 3 runs (2 earned) on 3 hits in 1 1/3 innings of work. Marquis Fleming threw 1 2/3 innings and allowed a run on 1 hit and recorded 5 strikeouts. Austin Hinkle and Tommy Rafferty followed, both throwing an inning each of no hit baseball, Rafferty struck out 2 of the 3 batters he faced. Josh Satow pitched the final inning, not a allowing a run on 2 hits with a strikeout. Matt Fairel was the winning pitcher for Sarasota, throwing an 8 inning shut-out.

For more photos, visit my Stone Crabs/Reds game page.