Elieser Hernandez, Photo by Ed Delany of Metsmerized
Here’s a recap of the Mets’ minor-league action on Friday.
Triple-A: Rochester (25-27) 4, Syracuse (20-34) 3 Box Score
- SS Luis Guillorme, 1-for-3, HR (1), RBI (5), 2 BB .300/.922
- C Michael Perez, 2-for-4, HR (3), RBI (7) .167/.565
Ronny Mauricio had a hitless day with a hat trick of strikeouts to start his month of June. Jonathan Araúz interestingly drew three walks, but ultimately the Syracuse bats could not get it done as they scattered six hits in the contest and both of their round-trippers were solo shots.
- RHP Denyi Reyes (5.84 ERA) 5 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 4 BB, 7 K
- LHP Zach Muckenhirn (1.19 ERA) 1.1 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 2 K
- LHP T.J. McFarland (2.70 ERA) 1.2 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 K
After Syracuse took a one-run lead early in the game, Reyes gave up runs in back-to-back innings. While he exited with a tie game, runs from both relievers sealed the Mets’ fate in what was a free-bases-filled night that saw each pitcher walk double-digit RedWings. The Mets nearly turned an inning-ending double play in the seventh that would’ve kept the third run off the board and the single that scored the winning run was deflected off of Mauricio’s glove at shortstop.
Double-A: Altoona (24-22) 9, Binghamton (23-24) 8 BOX SCORE
- C Matt O’Neill, 2-for-4, HR (3), 2 RBI (8), BB .174/.658
- RF Agustin Ruiz, 2-for-5, HR (7), 2 RBI (19) .202/.769
- 3B Jose Peroza, 3-for-5, RBI (27), BB .315/.963
The Rumble Ponies mashed on Thursday night as four players had double-digit hits while the lineup drew 11 walks and only K’d nine times. Rowdey Jordan had a good night at the plate with a pair of hits and three walks to raise his OPS to .692 after a rough start to the season. Wyatt Young has yet to turn it around and show flashes of dominance in the box like he did for Syracuse last season but that could come soon. Matt Rudick scored a run, had an RBI, walked twice and brought his OPS back over 1.000 as he is beckoning for a Triple-A call-up, hoping to join relievers Hunter Parsons and Dylan Hall who got promoted earlier this week.
- RHP Luis Moreno (6.55 ERA) 4.1 IP, 7 H, 7 R, 5 ER, 4 BB, 3 K
- RHP Nolan Clenney (6.75 ERA) 1.2 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 2 K
- RHP Trey McLoughlin (0.00 ERA) 2 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, o BB, 2 K
The lone bright spot on the mound was Trey McLoughlin, who had a scoreless outing in his Double-A debut after a strong start to the season in Brooklyn. Nolan Clenney continues to struggle despite a strong fastball and slider combination and Luis Moreno‘s command problems persist too. Moreno is particularly disappointing after his breakout season in 2022 so hopefully, he can return to the nasty fastball and sweeper combination that brought him good results in Brooklyn. He has added a good cutter this year but is throwing a shorter curveball instead of the bigger curveball and flatter sweeper from last year. His breaking balls have mixed together this year and his fastball velocity is down a couple of ticks after he was mid-90s last season.
High-A: Brooklyn (21-25) 6, Jersey Shore (24-22) 2 BOX SCORE
- CF Omar De Los Santos, 3-for-5, 3 RBI (15) .198/.565
- 2B Cesar Berbesi, 2-for-4, 2 2B (4), RBI (6) .209/.631
- 1B Chase Estep, 2-for-3, HR (2), 2 RBI (17), BB .209/.666
After a one-run stale mate through three innings, Brooklyn broke free from the Blue Claws by scoring runs in three of the last six innings to take a decisive five-run lead that the bullpen held intact. While hitting has largely been a struggle for the Cyclones this season, with eight of nine in Thursday’s lineup with OPS numbers below .700, they were clutch–especially De Los Santos, as he had three singles but managed to cash in three runners. Jaylen Palmer also stole his 16th base of the season, allowing him to score, while De Los Santos kept his team lead by swiping his 19th bag on the year.
Kevin Parada went 1-for-5 in the game and Alex Ramírez was 0-for-5.
- RHP Jeffrey Colon (6.37 ERA) 5.2 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 7 K
- RHP Dylan Tebrake (2.61 ERA) 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 2 K
- RHP Wilkin Ramos (1.90 ERA) 2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 5 K
Jeffrey Colon had one of his best starts of the season, nearly making it through six frames but ultimately reaching his pitch count of 94 due to several walks. Wilkin Ramos had a big day with five punch outs, giving him 30 on the season in 24 innings. The Brooklyn bullpen has been impressive all season and they continued the trend on Thursday, and while some of their studs have migrated to Double-A, new additions Brendan Hardy and Michael Krauza should bring a consistent older presence to Coney Island too.
Low-A: Fort Myers (27-20) 5, St. Lucie (13-33) 1 BOX SCORE
- 3B Jacob Reimer, 1-for-3, RBI (15), BB .241/.680
- 1B Yeral Martinez, 1-for-3, BB .200/.630
It was a forgettable day for the St. Lucie squad as they amassed just two hits against the Mighty Mussels’ pitching and struck out 14 times. They, like the Cyclones, had only one hitter in the lineup, Wilfredo Lara, with an OPS above .700. Yeral Martinez had a knock and he is a player with big power potential that we’ve yet to see, so hopefully, he can get a streak going.
Jett Williams, playing center field, went 0-for-3 but did steal his 14th base of the season.
- RHP Elieser Hernandez (0.00 ERA) 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K
- RHP Candido Cuevas (6.00 ERA) 3 IP, 2 H, 3R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 3 K
- RHP Joe Joe Rodriguez (8.03 ERA) 1 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K
The most important outing on the day from the Mets was the first inning from rehabbing reliever Elieser Hernandez. Hernandez is yet to make his Mets MLB debut after being traded for highly touted prospect Franklin Sanchez in the offseason. He is working his way back off of the 60-day IL due to a shoulder strain and had a quick, clean inning in his first rehab outing. Candido Cuevas also had a notable outing–his first full-season game for a Mets affiliate and while he struggled a bit, he got through three innings in the staffed game and got his feet wet. He pitched in both the FCL and DSL last season and just turned 19 years old last month, making him one of the younger Low-A arms.
