Miracle, Blue Jays split doubleheader

By SPECIAL TO THE NEWS-PRESS

For the first time in six rainy days, the Fort Myers Miracle played a full baseball game.

Actually, they completed two Florida State League games — winning a suspended contest from Sunday 7-2 and losing the regularly scheduled game 6-1 to the Dunedin Blue Jays on Monday night at the Lee County Sports Complex.

In the first game, Fort Myers spotted Dunedin a 2-0 lead.

In the bottom of the third, The Miracle got on the board when Matt Tolbert hit his first homer of the season, a solo shot to left. The Miracle tied the game when Blue Jays pitcher David Purcey tried to pick J.R. Taylor off at first. Denard Span, who was at third, broke for the plate. First baseman Joey Reiman threw to the plate, but Span knocked the ball out of catcher Robinson Diaz's mitt as he slid in to score.

Fort Myers added five runs in the fourth. The rally started with back-to-back doubles by Kyle Phillips and Scott Whitrock. Tolbert singled Whitrock to third and Span's infield single scored Whitrock. Matt Moses hit a three-run homer, his seventh this season.

Glen Perkins, who entered the game in the second, got around a shaky start. He gave up two runs on a single and four walks in the second, then blanked the Blue Jays for the next four innings. Josh Gray and Jannio Gutierrez pitched three scoreless innings.

In Monday's regularly scheduled game, the Miracle gave up five runs with two out in the seventh inning to break open a 1-all game.

All-Star pitcher Nick Blackburn got the first two outs, but then gave up a triple and back-to-back singles. Reliever Tristan Crawford then allowed a two-run double and an RBI single.

The Miracle's run scored when Trent Oeltjen was hit by a pitch, went to second on a passed ball and moved to third on a ground out. He scored on Kyle Geiger's RBI single.

The teams are scheduled to play at 7:05 tonight.