Long Ball Sinks Dunedin Blue Jays: Rival Tarpons Take It 5-3

Dunedin Blue Jays lose the long-ball argument

The bridge rivalry went Tampa’s way Thursday night, and the explanation requires neither a scouting department nor a heated debate over the last basket of fries: the Tarpons hit three home runs. The Dunedin Blue Jays managed three hits altogether.

That is not a favorable exchange rate.

Dunedin fell 5-3 on the road, with every Tampa run arriving courtesy of a ball leaving the yard. Jake Bennett gave the Jays a late jolt, but the comeback stopped short. An early lead, a long offensive silence, then a little hope without the payoff. Not exactly the evening Dunedin fans ordered.

For Pinellas fans watching around St. Pete, Clearwater, Dunedin or the beaches, this was a familiar baseball frustration: close enough on the scoreboard to keep watching, quiet enough at the plate to keep complaining. Both activities were justified.

An early lead meets an air raid

The opening innings had the makings of a pitchers’ duel. Dunedin scratched across a run in the top of the third for a 1-0 lead, finding a way onto the board even with the offense struggling to get moving.

Then the bats went back into storage.

Tampa took the lead in the bottom of the fourth when Anthony Potestio hit a two-run homer to center. Just like that, Dunedin’s narrow advantage became a 2-1 deficit. No elaborate rally required. That’s the aggravating efficiency of the long ball: a lot of careful work can disappear on contact.

The sixth did the real damage. Tyce Armstrong led off with a solo homer to right. Later in the inning, Diego Castellanos sent a two-run shot to right, scoring Luke Pettitte and stretching Tampa’s lead to 5-1.

Three runs in the inning, all delivered by homers. Dunedin wasn’t getting picked apart so much as repeatedly watching the same problem clear the fence.

Bennett answered in the seventh with a two-run line-drive homer, cutting the gap to 5-3. It gave the Jays a pulse and the Dunedin faithful a reason to lean forward again. But that was the extent of the rescue operation. The rally stalled, and Tampa kept the win.

Etheridge kept the door mostly shut

Before the Tarpons’ power settled matters, J.T. Etheridge made sure Dunedin had very little room to work.

Tampa’s starter allowed one hit and zero earned runs over five innings, striking out six. The Jays got their early run, but they never built sustained pressure against him. One hit over that stretch is less an offensive attack than a courtesy knock at the door.

That performance mattered as much as the fireworks. Etheridge kept the game tight while Tampa waited for its power to arrive, and Dunedin couldn’t make its brief lead stick.

Bennett was the offensive bright spot. The designated hitter finished 1-for-3 with a run scored, and his homer supplied two of Dunedin’s three runs and both of its official RBIs. Useful damage, absolutely. Enough damage, unfortunately not.

The full box score has the details. The headline is simpler: Tampa left plenty of runners stranded and still produced enough power to win.

Next time, bring more bats

The Blue Jays will look to bounce back and even the series. Check the official schedule before making your next Dunedin outing or sorting out the pregame tailgate plans with friends coming from Clearwater, St. Pete or the beaches.

The next round of local baseball conversation won’t need much prompting. Bennett gave Dunedin something to like. Etheridge gave its hitters almost nothing. And Tampa turned three swings into a result nobody on this side of the rivalry wanted.

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