Squeeze takes two of three out of break

The days off the Winter Garden Squeeze had during the Florida Collegiate Summer League’s All-Star Break, which ran from July 6 to 8, must have done the team some good.

Coming out of the break, the Squeeze took two of three games in a series against the Sanford River Rats. With the wins, Winter Garden — which had dropped 14 consecutive games following a win on opening night — has now won four of its past 10 contests to improve to 5-20. At 12.5 games out of first place, the Squeeze is now just 4.5 games behind the fifth-place Winter Park Diamond Dawgs (9-15), whom the Squeeze must surpass if it hopes to make the FCSL Playoffs.

Camron White (Seminole State) and Caleb Maggio (Samford) combined to pitch a shutout for the Squeeze in a 3-0 win over Sanford on July 9, and Bryant Miranda (Coppin State) scored twice and drove in a run for Winter Garden during its 6-4 win over the River Rats on July 10.

The Squeeze will play a pair of home games on Thursday (against Altamonte) and Friday (against Leesburg) before the team gets another few days off for the FCSL’s series of showcase games. Both contests will begin at 7 p.m. Winter Garden will return to action following the showcase break on July 22, at home, against Leesburg.

+ Auburn standout rejoins Squeeze

The Squeeze welcomed back a familiar face for Friday’s win over the River Rats — Auburn rising junior Damon Haecker, a Lake Brantley High School alum. Haecker was a standout for Winter Garden during its inaugural season and also has played well for the Tigers. This past season, Haecker started 61 of 62 games for Auburn, batting .271 and scoring 35 runs while driving in 22 more. Damon joins his brother, Chase, who is also a player for the Tigers and has been with the Squeeze all summer.