Baseball Game Preview: Sarasota Sailors vs. Palmetto Tigers

The Sarasota Sailors will venture away from home to face off against the Palmetto Tigers at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday. Sarasota will aim to continue their three-game streak of scoring more runs each contest than the last.

Sarasota had to skate by with only a one-run margin when they last took the field, which might have inspired the 14-run drubbing they dealt North Port on Tuesday. Sarasota put the hurt on North Port with a sharp 15-1 victory. With that win, the Sailors brought their scoring average up to 6.6 runs per game.

Hamlet Perez looked comfortable as he didn't allow a single earned run while striking out ten over four innings pitched. He has been consistent : he hasn't given up more than one earned run any time he's pitched this season.

At the plate, Patrick Drymon and Mark Metcalf did most of the damage at the plate: Drymon scored two runs while going 1-for-2, while Metcalf scored two runs and stole a base while going 1-for-2. That's the most runs Drymon has posted since back in February. Connor Boyd was another key player, scoring a run while getting on base in all three of his plate appearances.

Sarasota always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .556. That's the best OBP they've posted all season.

Meanwhile, after soaring to 12 runs the game before, Palmetto was a bit more limited in their match on Wednesday. They came up short against Braden River, falling 9-2. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest loss the Tigers have suffered against the Pirates since March 3, 2021.

Blake Willis made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and went 1-for-3 with one triple and two RBI. That triple was his first of the season.

Sarasota is on a roll lately: they've won six of their last seven games. That's provided a nice bump to their 8-3-1 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 7.3 runs over those games. Palmetto's defeat was their fourth straight on the road, which dropped their record down to 3-9.

Sarasota skirted past Palmetto 8-7 in their previous matchup on Thursday. The rematch might be a little tougher for Sarasota since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.