Kevin Parada Homers, Luisangel Acuña Three Hits in Syracuse

Across the five levels of Mets minor league affiliates, they combined to score 38 runs. Top prospects on every team seemed to perform, namely Luisangel Acuña, Kevin Parada, Ryan Clifford, and Boston Baro, all of whom had multi-hit efforts.

Triple-A

Syracuse Mets (21-14) 8, Lehigh Valley IronPigs (12-22) 3
BOX SCORE

• 2B Luisangel Acuña 3-for-6, R, 2B, RBI (11), K (.627 OPS)
• DH Trayce Thompson 3-for-5, R, HR (7), RBI (24), K (.775 OPS)
• 3B Mark Vientos 1-for-4, 2B, 2 RBI (30), BB, K (.902 OPS)
• CF Ben Gamel 0-for-3, 2 RBI (18), BB, K (1.052 OPS)

Led by Acuña, Thompson, and Vientos, Syracuse pulled out another victory over Lehigh Valley. After falling behind by a run in the second inning, the Mets would scratch two runs after a Ben Gamel walk and Vientos fielder’s choice. Gamel and Vientos would bring in another pair of runs in the seventh inning, followed by a Trayce Thompson solo homer and Acuña RBI double in the next frame. Yolmer Sánchez and newly signed Mike Brosseau brought in runs in the top of the ninth with walks to seal the win for Syracuse. 

https://twitter.com/SyracuseMets/status/1789123170974199824

• RHP Justin Jarvis (3.38) 4 IP, 3 ER, 4 H, BB, 4 K, 1 HR allowed (46 of 71 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Yacksel Rios (2.16) 1 IP, 0 R, H, BB, K
• RHP Eric Orze (3.93) 2 IP, 0 R, H, 2 BB, 2 K
• RHP Grant Hartwig (2.70) 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 BB, 3 K
• RHP Dedniel Núñez (0.00)  1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 BB, K

Justin Jarvis was solid in his four-inning outing, with the only blemish being the three-run homer conceded to Weston Wilson in the third inning. The bullpen had another lockdown game, holding the Lehigh Valley offense to only two hits and no runs. Grant Hartwig had a dominant inning, striking out all three batters faced. 

Double-A

Binghamton Rumble Ponies (16-12) 9, Portland Sea Dogs (16-12) 6
BOX SCORE

• C Kevin Parada 2-for-5, 2 R, HR (3), 3 RBI (13), 2 K (.591 OPS)
• 3B Jaylen Palmer 1-for-2, R, HR (1), 2 RBI (2), 3 BB, K (1.067 OPS)
• LF Matt Rudick 1-for-4, R, RBI (16), 2 BB (.779 OPS)
• RF Rhylan Thomas 1-for-5, R, 2B, K (.802 OPS)

The Rumble Ponies wasted no time to start scoring for the evening – after the first three Binghamton batters reached base, Kevin Parada hit an RBI single to left field. The next batter, first basemen JT Schwartz, hit a sacrifice fly, scoring the second run of the inning for the Rumble Ponies. Two walked-in runs concluded the scoring for Binghamton in the first inning, giving them a 4-0 lead. Portland did battle back, scoring four runs in the next three innings, but a three-run seventh inning, highlighted by a two-run Parada homer, put the game out of reach.

• RHP Blade Tidwell (2.59) 2 IP, 5 ER, 10 H, 0 BB, 2 K, (49 of 71 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Trey McLoughlin (1.80) 2 IP, 0 R, H, BB, K
• LHP Daniel Juarez (3.86) 3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 2 BB, K
• RHP Carlos Guzman (12.27) 1 2/3 IP, ER, 2 H, 2 BB, 2 K
• RHP Wilkin Ramos (0.00) 1/3 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 0 BB, 0 K

Blade Tidwell struggled in his two innings of work, allowing ten hits and five runs. Despite giving up a ton of contact, Tidwell did not allow a walk but only struck out two batters. Tidwell will need to continue focusing on the balance between dominating the strike zone and pitching for strikeouts. The Binghamton bullpen was very effective after Tidwell’s short start, combining to allow one run on three hits. 

High-A

Rome Braves (15-13) 3, Brooklyn Cyclones (17-13) 6 In 10 Innings
BOX SCORE

• DH Ryan Clifford 2-for-4, RBI (10), 2 BB, 2 K (.774 OPS)
• C Christopher Suero 1-for-3, 2B, 2 RBI (2), BB, K (.648 OPS)
• 2B-RF Wilfredo Lara 2-for-4, R, 2 RBI (6), K (.520 OPS)

This back-and-forth battle needed extra innings to determine the winner. The Cyclones offense was led by Ryan Clifford and newly called-up prospect Christopher Suero (a Bronx, NY native). The difference in the 10th inning was a Suero sacrifice fly and Wilfredo Lara‘s two-run-scoring fielder’s choice. 

• RHP Nolan McLean (3.00) 5 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, 2 BB, 5 K (44 of 70 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Jordany Ventura (2.41) 3 1/3 IP, ER, 2 H, BB, 4 K
• RHP Victor Castaneda (4.05) 1 2/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 BB, 2 K

After crushing the baseball all week at the plate, Nolan McLean took the mound and performed just as well. While his ERA was raised to a solid 3.00, McLean threw five innings, striking out five and allowing two earned runs. Before allowing his two third-inning earned runs, McLean had a 15 1/3 scoreless inning streak. 

Low-A

St. Lucie Mets (12-19) 7, Bradenton Marauders (13-18) 8
BOX SCORE

• 3B Boston Baro 2-for-5, 2 2B, 2 RBI (10), K (.833 OPS)
• RF Jeffry Rosa 1-for-4, R, HR (1), RBI (1) (1.205 OPS)
• SS Jesus Baez 1-for-5, 2B, RBI (16) (.772 OPS)
• 1B José Hernández 1-for-4, R, HR (1), 2 RBI (2), 2 K (.474 OPS)

St. Lucie gave up five first-inning runs and never recovered despite a sixth- and seventh-inning rally attempt. Jeffry Rosa, who was called up from the Mets’ FCL squad on Tuesday, hit his first home run for St. Lucie—a 105 MPH rocket to left field. Rosa won the organization’s MVP of the Dominican Summer League last year and hit 15 homers (DSL high). 

• RHP Jack Wenninger (5.34) 6 IP, 6 ER, 5 H, 3 BB, 10 K, 2 HR allowed (59 of 88 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Ernesto Mercedes (4.29) 2 2/3 IP, 2 R (1 ER), 2 H, 5 BB, 6 K

Jack Wenninger settled in after a rough first inning, giving St. Lucie length after allowing five first-inning runs. Wenninger struck out ten batters while only giving up three walks in six innings. 

Florida Complex League

FCL Mets (3-2) 8, FCL Cardinals (3-3) 5
BOX SCORE

• 3B Jeremy Rodriguez 1-for-4, R, 3B, BB, K (1.100 OPS)
• LF Simon Juan 2-for-5, R, RBI (7) (1.056 OPS)
• 1B Jake Zitella 2-for-5, R, RBI (4), 2 K (1.029 OPS)
• RF Willy Fanas 0-for-3, 2 B (.864 OPS)

Top prospect Jeremy Rodriguez tripled and walked en route to raising his OPS to 1.100. Simon Juan continued his scorching start to the season, adding two more hits – Juan is now 7-for-18 with a 3B, HR, and 7 RBIs to start the 2024 season. 

• RHP Joel Díaz (0.00) 1 2/3 IP, R (0 ER), 2 H, 0 BB, 4 K
• RHP Edgar Moreta (0.00) 3 1/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 BB, 5 K

Edgar Moreta will be a fun prospect to follow. In his US debut, he retired all ten batters faced, striking out half of them while touching 95 on the radar. The 20-year-old had a 3.42 ERA in 52 2/3 innings while playing in the DSL last year. 

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