The St. Lucie Mets ended their eight-game losing streak in dramatic fashion on Monday, stunning the Dunedin Blue Jays 7-6 in 12 innings at Tradition Field.
The Mets scored two runs in the bottom of the ninth off of Arik Sikula, the Florida State League’s saves leader. Jeff McNeil’s ground out made it 6-5, and Wilfredo Tovar singled home Gilbert Gomez with two outs to tie the game 6-6.
In the 12th, Gavin Cecchini led off with an infield single and advanced to second on short stop Emilio Guerrero’s wild throw to first. Albert Cordero came up and singled softly into left-center, bringing home Cecchini for the game-winning run.
Cecchini and Cordero both went 3 for 6. It was Cordero’s first three-hit game this season and the second for Cecchini.
Paul Sewald pitched a scoreless 11th and 12th to earn the win.
Beck Wheeler struck out four over the ninth and 10th innings. He pitched around Kevin Patterson’s leadoff double in the 10th to keep the game tied.
Tony Davis took the loss for Dunedin.
The Mets, coming off a 1-9 road trip in which they lost the last eight games, improved to 12-3 in the second half at Tradition Field.
It didn’t look good early for the Mets. Dunedin, which hadn’t scored more than two runs in six straight games, scored two in the first inning off of Domingo Tapia.
The Mets responded with a run in the first, but Dunedin answered with a run in the fourth to go ahead 3-1.
The Mets broke through with three runs off of starter Jesse Hernandez in the fifth. Gomez and Eudy Pina reached on a walk and single. Jeff McNeil came up and dropped down a bunt for a hit. Hernandez’s throw to first on the bunt skipped wildly down the right field line, allowing Gomez and Pina to score and tie the game 3-3.
Tovar then came up and hit an RBI triple to plate McNeil and give the Mets a 4-3 lead.
Tovar ended up going 3 for 4 and was a homer shy of the cycle. He walked twice and drove in two runs.
Despite tripling with no outs, Tovar was stranded at third.
That proved costly as the Blue Jays roared back with three runs off of Robert Coles in the eighth. Kevin Patterson tied the game with an RBI double. The hit advanced Marcus Knecht to third and he scored the go-ahead run on a sac fly by Pierce Rankin. Gustavo Pierre followed with a two-out RBI single to make it 6-4.
The lead would not last, as the Mets rallied in the ninth and finally ended their losing streak. - team press release
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