It was another busy day in the minor leagues on Wednesday for Mets prospects, with Alex Ramírez continuing to absolutely rake at the plate among the highlights.
Triple-A
Game 1
Toledo Mud Hens (15-6) 4, Syracuse Mets (11-11) 1
BOX SCORE
- 3B Mark Vientos 0-for-1, BB, RBI (18)
- SS Ronny Mauricio 0-for-3, CS
- LF Danny Mendick 1-for-2, BB (.766 OPS)
- 2B Jonathan Araúz 1-for-3, K
- 1B José Peraza 1-for-2, R, K (.615 OPS)
The Mets only struck out four times in Game 1, but they only managed three hits and not a single extra-base hit against four different Toledo pitchers. Vientos did not record a hit, but the third baseman drove in a run for the first time since April 18. His 18 RBIs are ranked in the top 10 in the International League.
- RHP Alex Valverde (1-2,) 3 2/3 IP, 4 ER, 8 H, 2 BB, 2 K, pitch violation, 6.11 ERA
- RHP Dedniel Núñez (Triple-A debut) 1 1/3 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 4 BB, 3 K, pitch violation
- LHP Josh Walker 1 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, K, 1.23 ERA
Valverde had a rough first inning as he allowed the first five batters he faced to reach safely with three of them coming around to score. He has allowed a total of 12 runs in his last three starts (9 2/3 IP pitched). Núñez was making his Triple-A debut and ended up walking four batters (2 in his four outings at Double-A combined).
Game 2
Syracuse Mets (12-11) 2, Toledo Mud Hens (15-7) 1 in 9 innings
BOX SCORE
- 2B Ronny Mauricio: 2-for-4, R (1.042 OPS)
- DH Jonathan Araúz: 1-for-4, 2 RBIs (17), K (.763 OPS)
- 1B Mark Vientos: 0-for-3, BB (1.110 OPS)
- C Nick Meyer: 1-for-3 (.610 OPS)
- LF Carlos Cortes: 1-for-4 (.663 OPS)
Mauricio was at a different position in Game 2, but he recorded his eighth multi-hit game of the season. The Mets didn’t have an extra-base hit in Game 2, but it was Araúz’s single in the top of the ninth that gave Syracuse the victory in the end:
Got the lead in extras 😎 pic.twitter.com/A8nAtHQez8
— Syracuse Mets (@SyracuseMets) April 26, 2023
- LHP Zach Muckenhirn 3 IP, 0 ER, 5 H, K, 0.77 ERA
- RHP John Curtiss 2 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 4 K, 0.00 ERA
- RHP Dennis Santana 1 2/3 IP, 1 ER, 1 H, BB, 4 K, WP, Balk, Pitch Violation, 6.75 ERA
- LHP T.J. McFarland (1-0) 2 1/3 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, BB, 4 K, WP, 1.50 ERA
Muckenhirn ended up getting the start in Game 2 (his first since 2017) and he ended up forcing four groundball outs in three scorelsss innings. Curtiss dominated in his first Triple-A outing after being sent down on April 21. In total, the Mets pitchers had 13 strikeouts and they held Toledo to 0-for-10 with men in scoring position.
Double-A
Binghamton Rumble Ponies (7-8) vs. Akron Rubberducks (8-8) – Postponed
The Binghamton Rumble Ponies (7-8) had their game against the Akron Rubberducks (8-8) postponed due to rain. They will makeup the game as part of a doubleheader on Thursday with Game 1 beginning at 5 PM EST. RHP Dominic Hamel (1.59 ERA) was supposed to start Wednesday’s game and RHP Stephen Nogosek is continuing his rehab assignment.
High-A
Jersey Shore BlueClaws (8-8) 3, Brooklyn Cyclones (5-11) 2
BOX SCORE
- CF Alex Ramírez: 1-for-3, 2 BB, 2 SB, RBI (12) (.708 OPS)
- 3B Jaylen Palmer: 3-for-4, 2B, 3B, SB, RBI (8) (.731 OPS)
- LF Omar De Los Santos: 1-for-4, BB, SB (.558 OPS)
- DH Joe Suozzi: 1-for-3, BB, SB, 2 K (.612 OPS)
- 2B Justin Guerrera: 1-for-4, BB, K (.504 OPS)
- C Kevin Parada: 0-for-5, 2 K (.659 OPS)
Ramírez extended his hit streak to 11 games when his RBI single in the top of the 8th gave the Cyclones a 2-1 lead. He currently leads the Cyclones in hits with 18:
Alex Ramirez extends his hitting streak to 11 games with this RBI single up the middle to give Brooklyn a 2-1 lead in the 8th. #AmazinStartsHere #LGM #MiLB pic.twitter.com/A9Bt6170cR
— Brooklyn Cyclones (@BKCyclones) April 26, 2023
Palmer picked up his first multi-hit game of the season when he went 3-for-4:
Three-hit day for @ucjp9, including this RBI triple! 👏 pic.twitter.com/i6MUPVnQFw
— Mets Player Development (@MetsPlayerDev) April 26, 2023
As for De Los Santos, he becomes the second player in the South Atlantic League to steal 10 or more bases. As a team, Brooklyn stole six bases in the loss.
- RHP Cameron Foster 5 2/3 IP, 1 ER, 3 H, BB, 6 K, 5.52 ERA
- RHP Paul Gervase 1 1/3 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 3 BB, 2 K, HBP, 0.00 ERA
- RHP Robert Colina (0-1) 1 2/3 IP, 2 R, ER, 5 H, BB, K, 5.40 ERA
In his fourth professional start, Foster reached a career-high for innings pitched in a start and strikeouts. He was the Mets’ 14th Round pick in the 2022 MLB draft. Colina took the loss after being assigned to Brooklyn on Monday from Double-A Binghamton.
Low-A
Clearwater Threshers (11-6) 11, St. Lucie Mets (5-12) 4
BOX SCORE
- C Vincent Perozo: 2-for-5, R, RBI (3), 2 K, HBP (.695 OPS)
- RF Adrian Hernandez: 1-for-4, 3B, 2 RBIs (3), 2 K (.496 OPS)
- CF Jefrey De Los Santos: 1-for-2, 3 BB, K (.626 OPS)
- 3B Jacob Reimer: 1-for-2, R, BB, 2 HBP (.738 OPS)
- SS Kevin Villavicencio: 0-for-3, R, 2 BB, SB, K
- DH Jett Williams: 0-for-3, K, HBP (.823 OPS)
The St. Lucie Mets combined to strike out 14 times in their loss to Clearwater on Wednesday despite drawing eight walks. Perozo had the lone multi-hit game. The 20-year-old had his second multi-hit game and he has driven in a run in two of his last three games. As for Reimer, he has at least one hit in five of the last seven games.
- RHP Jordany Ventura 1 2/3 IP, 7 ER, 8 H, 3 BB, K, 9.31 ERA
- RHP Joey Lancellotti 2 1/3 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, 2 BB, 5 K, balk, 3.86 ERA
- RHP Jawlime Ramirez 4 IP, 2 ER, 5 H, 4 K, 2.65 ERA
It was a rough night for Ventura as he did not make it out of the second inning. The 22-year-old right-hander has walked at least three batters in all four of his starts and he has 13 walks on the season. Ramirez did a good job with finishing the game. He has three or more strikeouts in three of his four appearances (15 in 13 IP this season).