The Seabreeze Sandcrabs will take on the Matanzas Pirates at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday.
Seabreeze is headed into the match having just suffered their closest loss since March 26, 2024 on Thursday. They fell just short of St. Augustine by a score of 7-5.
Sam Hebert and Jake Deising stepped up to the plate in a big way. Hebert went 2-for-3 with one stolen base, one double, and one RBI, while Deising got on base in three of his four plate appearances with one double and one RBI.
Meanwhile, it's playoff time, and Matanzas had no trouble coming through when it counted. They came out on top in a nail-biter against Gainesville on Monday, sneaking past 5-3. The win was a breath of fresh air for the Pirates as it put an end to their 14-game losing streak.
Seth Avellar tossed a big game, striking out 13 batters over 6.2 innings while giving up just two earned (and one unearned) runs off six hits (and only one walk). Those 13 strikeouts gave him a new career-high.
At the plate, Seth Garcia was a standout: he scored a run and stole two bases while going 2-for-3. That's the most hits he has posted since back in March. Gianni Cerbone was another key player, scoring two runs while getting on base in all four of his plate appearances.
Matanzas kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 11 hits. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Gainesville only managed six hits.
Seabreeze's defeat dropped their record down to 14-11. As for Matanzas, their victory bumped their record up to 2-23.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Tuesday as neither team is afraid to steal. Seabreeze has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 3.2 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Matanzas struggles in that department as they've been averaging 2.8 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Seabreeze skirted past Matanzas 4-3 in their previous matchup last Friday. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Sandcrabs since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
