Photo by Ed Delany of MMO

The St. Lucie Mets almost gave away their game in the ninth inning against the Palm Beach Cardinals, but they edged it out in extras for a sixth consecutive win.

AAA: Lehigh Valley IronPigs 14 (15-12) vs. Syracuse Mets 2 (9-17) Box Score

The Syracuse Mets found themselves on the wrong end of a lopsided score line against the Lehigh Valley IronPigs, but Daniel Palka continues to rake. He blasted his seventh homer of the year, and he would likely already be on the major league roster if the New York Mets didn’t already have an abundance of lefty bats on their bench. Wyatt Young chipped in with two more hits as the 2021 15th round pick is continuing his meteoric rise through the Mets’ minor league system.

The game got away from Connor Grey in the fourth inning, as he allowed three more runs to cross the plate after already allowing three runs to score across the first three innings. Things got even worse in the eighth, when Antonio Santos allowed six consecutive batters to reach base before Yennsy Díaz came in to close it out. The lone bright spot was lefty Andrew Mitchell, who threw 1 2/3 innings of one-hit ball and was the only Mets pitcher used in this one to not give up a run.

AA: Binghamton Rumble Ponies 3 (7-16) vs. Hartford Yard Goats 5 (13-11) Box Score

The Binghamton Rumble Ponies were chasing this game from the jump, but they managed to make it more of a contest when Zach Ashford drew a bases-loaded walk in the fourth and Ronny Mauricio smacked a two-run double to center field in the fifth. Francisco Álvarez has been really struggling of late, but he reached base four times on Thursday in a get-right spot. Manny Rodriguez hit a two-out triple in the sixth, but the Rumble Ponies couldn’t drive him in, and that was the closest the team would get to scoring the rest of the night.

There’s a reason why this team called up three pitchers from Brooklyn on Monday, and those early-season pitching struggles were on full display on Thursday. Alex Valverde had yet another rough outing, as he has now allowed eight runs to score in his last two starts (9 IP). Willy Taveras has been one of the Rumble Ponies’ more reliable relievers this season, but he ran into trouble in the seventh inning and couldn’t get out of it unscathed. Nate Fisher has looked solid in two May appearances, going four hitless innings and only issuing one walk.

A+: Brooklyn Cyclones 1 (12-12), Aberdeen IronBirds 4 (17-6) Box Score

The Brooklyn Cyclones mustered just a single run, courtesy of a Rowdey Jordan double to score Jaylen Palmer in the fifth inning. Jordan is currently the only qualifying Cyclones player with an OPS north of .700 on the season, a testament to just how much the Cyclones have struggled on offense. Warren Saunders has now recorded hits in each of his last four games played, raising his average from .107 to .209 in that span.

It was Oscar Rojas’ birthday on Thursday, but the Cyclones failed to give him any presents as he was saddled with a tough-luck loss. He ran into trouble in the first inning but settled down to fire five strong frames.

Brendan Hardy made his first appearance for the Cyclones since being called up from St. Lucie on Monday, and he rewarded that decision by retiring all four batters he faced. The right-hander now has 19 strikeouts in 9 2/3 innings this season.

Omar De Los Santos, Photo by Ed Delany of MMO

A: St. Lucie Mets 4 (17-7), Palm Beach Cardinals 3 (9-15) Box Score

The St. Lucie Mets keep on rolling, as they have now won six consecutive games and have been far and away the best team out of the four Mets minor league affiliates this year. Alex Ramirez had an uncharacteristically quiet night, but the rest of the team shouldered the load on offense. Jose Rivera smacked his first home run of the season, and Albert Suarez, who came in as a pinch-hitter in the eighth inning, drove in the deciding run with a sacrifice fly in the top of the 11th.

Omar De Los Santos had three stolen bases on the night, giving him 11 for the season that leads all Mets minor leaguers and is tied for second in the Florida State League.

Moreno was extremely unfortunate to not walk away with a win after pitching his best game of the season, shutting down the Palm Beach Cardinals for 6 2/3 innings. Moreno was up to 96 mph on his fastball that also featured spin rates up to 2500 rpms at times.

Goggin had a solid eighth inning but imploded in the ninth, allowing all five batters he faced in the frame to reach base and being tagged with the three runs that tied it up and sent the game to extras.

However, Joshua Cornielly did a great job of ensuring the Cardinals comeback would not be completed, silencing their bats in the 10th and 11th innings for the victory. Cornielly had an impressive 8 whiffs (67%) in his short outing including 3 swings and whiffs on his curveball.