Miracle pitcher shuts down Manatees in his debut here

By special to the Fort Myers News Press

Oswaldo Sosa was making his Fort Myers Miracle debut Friday night at Space Coast Stadium in Viera after being called up from Class A Beloit on Aug. 1. The Miracle pounded out a season-high 17 hits and Sosa was superb in his debut as the Miracle defeated the Brevard County Manatees 7-2.

Every Miracle player who finished the game got a hit (catcher Caleb Moore was 0-for-1 before being hit by a pitch in the fourth inning and leaving the game), including three hits each by Brandon Roberts, David Winfree and Brock Peterson.

Winfree started things off in the first with a two-out single to left-center and Peterson followed with a two-run shot over the left-field wall, his 14th homer of the season.

The Manatees scored an unearned run in the second to make it 2-1, but the Miracle answered back in the fifth.

Trevor Plouffe led it off with a triple into the right-field corner and Winfree followed with a two-run shot off the left-field pole, his sixth of the season and second in as many nights, to give the Miracle a 4-1 lead.

The 20-year-old Sosa did the rest. The only earned run he gave up was in the fifth, when Charlie Fermaint tripled and scored two batters later on a sacrifice fly by Carlos Corporan. Sosa used a low-90s fastball and low-80s curveball to keep the Manatees off balance.

He went seven innings, allowing two runs — one earned — on four hits while walking one and striking out five to earn his first win for Fort Myers.

The Miracle, who improved to 21-18 in the second half of the Florida State League season, made it 6-1 in the sixth when Steve Tolleson led off with a single. With one out, Justin Arneson was hit by a pitch. Brandon Roberts singled home Tolleson and, two batters later, Winfree singled home Roberts.

Fort Myers added its final run in the ninth when Peterson led off with a single and scored on a double by Deacon Burns.

The teams will play at 7 tonight at Space Coast Stadium. The Miracle will start left-hander Kyle Aselton (5-3, 3.84 ERA) against Manatees right-hander Roberton Hinton (4-3, 3.32 ERA).