Bisons explode for 6 in the 6th, win 8-5 over Mets

Much like Wednesday night at NBT Bank Stadium, the Bisons were engaged in a back and forth battle with the Mets. And just like Wednesday night, Buffalo got the final say.

A six-run top of the 6th drove the Herd past Syracuse, beating the Mets 8-5 in game one of Thursday night’s double header.

With the game tied at two, Kevin Smith got it going for the Bisons in the top of the 6th. The red-hot shortstop walked to start the inning, putting the go-ahead run on first base. Rowdy Tellez then hit a ground-rule double that bounced up and off of the left-field foul pole to put Smith and himself in scoring position with no outs. Cullen Large took advantage of the situation ahead of him, doubling to left field to score both Tellez and Smith.

Dilson Herrera then homered to clear the bases, expanding the club’s lead to four runs, 6-2.

The top of the 6th wasn’t over yet for the Bisons though. With two outs, Logan Warmoth kept the inning going with a double. Jonathan Davis, who made his first appearance with the club this season, singled to right field to score Warmoth. Breyvic Valera then continued the two-out hitting streak, hitting a double of his own to centerfield, which scored Davis. The Herd’s six-run top of the 6th gave the club a commanding 8-2 lead with just two at-bats left for Syracuse.

The Mets didn’t go silently into the night though. With their final at-bat of the game, Syracuse scored three runs against Casey Lawrence, one of which was unearned, prompting the Herd to go to their bullpen with two outs. Bryan Baker then came in for Bisons and was able to secure the win with the final out.

Although the final score didn’t reflect it, lead changes and ties were the stories of the game through the first five innings.

Early in the top of the 1st, the Herd took advantage of a Met’s blunder to get on the board first. With one out, Valera worked himself a walk to earn first base. He took second base on a pass ball, but rounded the bag too far, drawing a throw to second base from the catcher. To the Bisons' favor, the throw went over the second baseman's head into center field, and Valera scored standing up to give the club an early 1-0 lead.

The Mets quickly responded to the Herd’s early scoring. Syracuse found themselves in a similar spot as the Bisons, a runner on first with one out. Brandon Drury stepped to the plate for the Mets and doubled off the left-field wall, putting runners on second and third with one out. Drew Jackson got the job done for the Mets, flying out to center field, allowing Khalil Lee to tag up and score. Despite giving up another single, Thomas Hatch worked his way out of the inning and held Syracuse to just one run.

After the two teams were locked in a tie for four innings, the Herd regained the lead in the top of the 5th. Herrera hit a bloop single into right field to reach first base, and Juan Graterol soon joined him after working a walk. Warmoth, who scored the game-winning run for the Bisons in last night’s game, got the job done yet again, singling to right field to score Herrera from second base.

It didn’t take long for the Mets to respond again. On the second pitch in the bottom of the 5th, Khalil Lee homered to deep left-center field, tying the game at two.

Herrera shined for the Bisons in this one, going 2-for-4 at the plate with two runs batted in. The veteran also rounded third base twice to score two runs for the club. Warmoth was also a bright spot for the Herd, going 2-for-4 at the plate, with one run batted in and touching home once to score for the club.

The Bisons (24-18) and Mets (11-32) will go right back at it for game two of the doubleheader. Nick Allgeyer is expected to start on the mound for the Herd.