Syracuse (47-59) got on the board first, plating a run in a flash in the bottom of the second. Palka led off the inning with a bang, crushing a no-doubt home run off the batter’s eye beyond the center-field fence to give the Mets a 1-0 lead.
Buffalo (55-50) promptly surged right back, scoring three runs in the top of the third to chase Syracuse starter José Rodriguez from the game and take an early 3-1 advantage. Seven men came to the plate in the inning for the Bisons. After Logan Warmoth grounded out to start the frame, Stevie Berman walked, and Chavez Young singled to put two runners on base with one out. Young’s single advanced Berman to third, with Young taking second on the throw to third base. Vinny Capra, the next batter, walked to load up the bases. Nathan Lukes then came to the plate and got the job done, chopping a single into center field that plated Berman and Young and advanced Capra to third as the Bisons took a 2-1 lead. The two-run single from Lukes prompted Rodriguez’s removal from the ballgame with Phillip Diehl emerging from the bullpen to take his place. Diehl would work out of the inning without allowing another hit, but a blunder by the left-handed reliever allowed another run to cross home plate. Diehl committed a balk that allowed Capra to walk home with the third run of the inning to give the Bisons a 3-1 edge.
The Mets responded in the bottom of the third. Khalil Lee led off with a single, moved up to second on a Deven Marrero walk, and scored on a Francisco Álvarez RBI single, pulling Syracuse within one, 3-2. Álvarez, the top-ranked prospect in baseball according to MLB Pipeline, has really turned it on at the plate as of late. The 20-year-old catcher has reached base in 16 consecutive games.
In the bottom of the fourth, Palka did it again. On the first pitch of the frame, the left-handed slugger pounded a line-drive down the right-field line that sailed over the wall with ease, knotting the game up, 3-3, in the blink of an eye. Palka now leads the team with 20 home runs this season.
In the fifth, Buffalo took the lead again at 4-3 when Stevie Berman led off the inning with a solo blast over the left-field fence. It was just Berman’s fourth home run in 46 Triple-A game this season. It was also just Berman’s second hit in 22 total at-bats against Syracuse so far on the campaign.
From there, the Bisons bullpen locked the game down. The final four relievers of the night for Buffalo (Matt Gage, Graham Spraker, Brandon Eisert, and Vinny Nittoli) combined to shut out the Syracuse Mets in the final five innings on just two hits with no walks and ten strikeouts.
The Mets did get the tying run on base in the bottom of the ninth when Dominic Smith singled to begin the frame. Terrance Gore pinch-ran for Smith and stole his way to second base with nobody out, giving the home crowd a chance to dream of some late magic on an August night. However, it wasn’t to be, as the next three batters went down in order to ensure Buffalo would win the series opener, 4-3.
BINGHAMTON, NY – The Binghamton Rumble Ponies (11-22, 39-63) fell to the Altoona Curve 6-0 at Mirabito Stadium on Tuesday evening as the Ponies were held to just three hits.
Altoona (16-18, 49-54) opened the scoring in the second with a two-run homerun to right field from Aaron Shackelford off Alex Valverde (1-4), his 20th of the season, putting the Curve ahead 2-0. Shackelford added an RBI single in the seventh as well.
Endy Rodriguez knocked in Jared Triolo with an RBI double off the right centerfield wall to put Altoona on top 3-0 in the sixth. Connor Scott’s two-run double in the seventh then increased the Altoona lead to 6-0.
Altoona starter Luis Ortiz (4-8) threw six scoreless frames giving up just two hits and two walks while striking out eight.
Binghamton relievers Josh Hejka and Joe Zanghi combined for three scoreless innings surrendering a hit and no walks with three strikeouts.
WILMINGTON, DE (August 9, 2022) – The Wilmington Blue Rocks scored early and put the game away late, handing the Brooklyn Cyclones, the High-A affiliate of the New York Mets, a 9-3 defeat Tuesday night at Frawley Stadium in the series opener.
Win: Parker (6-2) | Loss: Rojas (5-4) | SV: Ferrer (6)
KEY PLAYS
Leading 4-3 into the bottom of the eighth, Wilmington sent 10 batters to the plate, scoring five times to push the lead to 9-3. Robert Hassell III hit a bloop single to center field to start the rally against Brooklyn reliever Nolan Clenney. Cole Daily’s two-run single in the middle of the rally highlighted the monster inning.
Trailing by two, Brooklyn scored twice in the top of the eighth to cut the Wilmington lead to 4-3. William Lugo cracked an RBI double to right-center field to plate Jose Peroza and make it 4-2. The next batter, Jose Mena, smacked a single to right field to bring in Lugo.
The Blue Rocks scored three early runs against Brooklyn starter Oscar Rojas, knocking him out of the game after he recorded just five outs. Wilmington’s Mitchell Parker struck out five over 5 1/3 innings of one-run ball in the victory.
KEY CYCLONES PERFORMERS
Jose Mena: 3-4, two RBIs
CLEARWATER, Fla. (August 9, 2022) – The St. Lucie Mets started their 12-game, 13-day road trip with a dominant 9-2 win over the Clearwater Threshers at BayCare Ballpark on Tuesday.
After a sluggish start through the first three innings, the Mets broke out in a big way when Jack-Thomas Wold launched an opposite grand slam to turn a 2-0 deficit into a 4-2 lead in the fourth inning. The three Mets base runners to reach before Wold made their way on base on two walks and a hit-by-pitch by Clearwater starter Starlyn Castillo (0-4).
Mets starter Joel Diaz allowed a sac fly in the first inning and a two-out RBI by Matt Alifano in the second inning but turned on the heat starting in the third inning. After the Alifano hit, Diaz retired 10 of the next 11 batters to finish his night.
Diaz (2-1) pitched five innings and gave up two hits and two runs. He walked one and struck out five. It was his second consecutive outing getting the win.
Paul Gervase, the Mets 12th round pick in July from LSU, made his team debut and pitched a perfect sixth inning by striking out all three batters he faced looking.
Josh Walker, on MiLB rehab assignment, pitched the next 2.1 innings scoreless.
The Mets broke the game open with a five-run eighth inning. Carlos Dominguez hit a three-run homer to make it 8-2. It was his FSL-leading 17th home run of the season.
Blaine McIntosh hit a RBI double to completthe scoring in his team debut.
Jace Beck replaced Walker with one out in the ninth and struck out two batters to end the game.
Omar De Los Santos, Junior Tilien, Dominguez and Wold had two hits apiece.
The Mets have won three games in a row and six of their last seven. They are now 20 games over .500 for the first time since they were 39-19.
Other scores without press releases:
DSL Cubs 6 - DSL Mets 1 1
DSL Cards 16 - DSL Mets 2 9
FCL Mets 8 - FCL Astros 4
Could Josh Walker be a lefty arm in a pinch? 16 outs in rehab so far, 12 by K.
ReplyDeleteJoel Diaz is 18 and suddenly pitching like he's 21.
Poor Daniel Palka - 20 HRs 54 RBIs in 280 at bats, forgotten man.
DSL doozies. No hit in one game but 5 errors. In the other loss, the two teams combined walks and HBP totaled 28. The FCL game, 8 runs scored on 3 hits and a ton of walks. Not baseball at its sharpest.
Omar up to 57 steals - gotta get to at least 70, Omar.
ReplyDeleteWhat is Omar de los Santos still doing in A ball?
ReplyDeleteGus, they saw what happened to Palmer and Newton with strikeouts going thru the roof in Brooklyn. Omar hopefully is well aware that that is what is holding him back. And working to fix it. To me, Palmer and Newton are two talented guys whose careers may be about to go the route of former Mets prospect K Kings Ivan Wilson and Vicente Lupo.
ReplyDeleteWilliam Lugo on the other hand just got promoted because, after April, he really trimmed his strikeouts.