Lehigh Valley 4, Buffalo 3
By Joe DeCaro
Buffalo rallied from three runs down to tie the game and sen it into extra-innings, but it was to no avail as the Iron Pigs touched up Bisons reliever Jack Egbert for the winning run as the Pigs walked off with a 4-3 victory in the bottom of the 11th. Oink, oink.
Vinny Rottino gave the Herd hope when he belted a two-run homer in the eighth, and Omar Quintanilla’s tied it all up with his RBI single in the ninth, but the Bisons couldn’t muster up any big hits after that.
Garrett Olson started for the Herd and allowed three runs on six hits and four walks in six innings pitched. Olson struck out four and didn’t figure into the decision. The southpaw is still searching for his first win of the season and has a 2.79 ERA on the year.
It was good to see Brad Holt toss two scoreless inning in his second solid appearance in a row after a rough start to his season. Fernando Cabrera also followed up with two scoreless innings of his own to bring his ERA down to a team leading 0.90. Jack Egbert took the loss, his second of the year.
Herd Rumblings: The Mets recalled Zach Lutz from the Bisons who made his major league debut last night and struck out as a pinch hitter. Valentino Pascucci extended his hitting streak to nine games. He’s averaged an even .300 (12-for-40) with two homers and seven RBIs over the stretch. It’s a 10:35 AM start today as the Bisons and Iron Pigs wrap up their three game set.
New Hampshire 4, Binghamton 0
By Tim Burns
After a day off on Monday, the Binghamton Mets returned to action Tuesday night against the New Hampshire Fisher Cats on what can only be described as a frigid night for baseball at NYSEG Stadium. Mets organization top prospect Zach Wheeler was on the mound for the B-Mets, looking for his first ‘W’ of the season. Wheeler’s velocity was greater than 90 MPH on most pitches in the game, which was a feat in it of itself on a night when three layers (or two layers if you buy the expensive stuff) was the norm. In five innings pitched, Wheeler gave up three hits and no runs, while walking six and striking out three.
Wheeler was replaced by Eric Turgeon in the sixth inning, and it was at this point that the wheels fell off for the home team. Turgeon, who took the loss in the game, gave up three runs, two of which scored on an A. J. Jiminez triple to right field, on three hits while striking out only one in one inning worth of work. Kevin Mulvey replaced Turgeon in the top of the seventh and pitched two innings, holding the Fisher Cats to only one hit and no runs scored. Armando Rodriguez pitched the ninth, and gave up the game’s final run on a home run hit over the right field wall by New Hampshire first baseman Mike McDade. Final on the night was visitors 4, Binghamton Mets 0.
The B-Mets were able to get six hits off of Fisher Cats starter and game winner Chad Jenkins, but were unable to capitalize on any opportunities from those hits. This was quite a difference from the last time Binghamton faced Jenkins, as they scored eight runs on nine hits off of the Fisher Cats RHP in a game back on April 17th. Clint Everts relieved Jenkins in the seventh and pitched two innings, allowing only two hits and no runs. Ronald Uviedo pitched the ninth inning for New Hampshire, allowing no runs and no hits.
Offensively for the B-Mets, Juan Lagares and Rylan Sandoval each had two hits on the night in four at bats, Lagares with a triple for one of his hits. Matt den Dekker went 1/3 with a walk, and Josh Rodriguez was 1/3 as well with a walk and a strikeout.
B-Mets Buzz: An announced crowd of 919 could be the lowest ever for the Binghamton Mets franchise (unconfirmed) on a night where the temperature dipped into the low 40’s shortly after first pitch. Two games remain in the series against the Fisher Cats, with probable pitching matchups being LHP Darin Gorski (2-0, 1.13) facing off against Deck McGuire (1-2, 5.94) on Wednesday night, and RHP Greg Peavey (2-0, 3.14) against Yohan Pino (0-0, 3.86) in the rubber match on Thursday. On Monday, relief pitcher Josh Edgin was assigned to the Buffalo Bisons from Binghamton, and Sean Kazmar was placed on the 7-day DL, retroactive to April 19th, with a left abdominal strain. Also, relief pitcher Robert Carson was called up to the big club, but it is anticipated that he will return to the B-Mets before the New York Mets begin their series in Colorado later this week.
Fort Myers 7, St. Lucie 1
By Clayton Collier and Joe DeCaro
It wasn’t a pretty day for the St. Lucie Mets as Chris Huchingson was ineffective at best, resulting in a 7-1 loss to the Ft. Myers Miracle. Huchingson entered the game with a perfect 3-0 record and a spotless 0.00 ERA, but did not enjoy the same success this time around. After surrendering three runs in the first, Hooch settled down, but was unable to make it out of the fifth inning, finishing with a final line of 4 1/3 innings pitched surrendering 4 runs (3 earned) on six hits while walking four and punching out three.
Ryan Fraser shut down the Miracle offense through 2 2/3 innings, dropping his ERA to 1.86 on the year. But Hamilton Bennett relieved him and allowed the game to get completely out of hand letting up three more runs on four hits.
The Mets offense could not scrape together any kind of rally against the Miracle’s pitching. In fact the only source of run production came off the bat of top-prospect Wilmer Flores as he jacked a solo shot, his second of the year. To go with his two bombs, Flores also has 15 RBIs and a team-leading .316 average. Cesar Puello and Richard Lucas also had two-hit games and appear to be breaking out of their respective slumps.
Lucie Logistics: St. Lucie’s season-high 10-game winning streak came to an end with the loss, but still dominate the league with a 15-3 record. Andres Torres went 0-4 in the game, but is 3-8 since joining the team. The Mets go back on the road with a three-game series against the Jupiter Hammerheads starting on Wednesday at 6:35 PM.
Savannah 14, West Virginia 5
By Joe DeCaro
The Sand Gnats swarmed the West Virginia Power and blacked them out with a stinging 16-hit, 14-5 thumping last night. Second baseman T.J. Rivera led the attack with a 4-6 showing at the plate that included a two-run blast that sailed over the fence and into the night. Rivera scored three runs in the game, stole a base and has shown no signs of slowing down as his .406 batting average would attest.
Dustin Lawley also chipped in with a blast of his own, a three-run shot in the 4th, and two runs scored. Cam Maron, Gregory Pron, Aderlin Rodriguez and Charles Thurber each had a pair of hits and a run scored.
Rafael Montero started the game and improved to 2-1 thanks to a spectacular performance in which he allowed no earned runs in six innings of work, walking none and striking out three. He now sports a 1.99 ERA for the season. Carlos Vasquez and Jeffrey Walters each pitched a scoreless inning of relief, but Tyson Seng didn’t fare as well allowing the Power to score three runs in the ninth.
Gnats Gnotes: How is this for efficiency – all nine Gnats players scored runs in the game and had at least one RBI. Wow, think about that for a moment. The Gnats were a sweltering 8-for-21 with runners in scoring position. The Power and Gnats continue this series this morning with a rare 11:05 AM start time. Alex Panteliodis will take the hill for Savannah.
