Vargas, Vasquez Vanquish B-Mets, 6-3

BINGHAMTON, NY - New Britain first baseman Kennys Vargas drove in six runs to lead the Rock Cats past the Binghamton Mets, 6-3, on Friday night at NYSEG Stadium. Vargas blasted a grand slam and added a two-run double to hand the B-Mets their third straight loss and sixth in seven games.

Before Vargas's power display, Binghamton started scoring in the bottom of the first against New Britain starter Virgil Vasquez. Brian Burgamy worked a one-out walk and moved to third on a single by Jayce Boyd. After a strikeout, Darrell Ceciliani laced a single to center field to score both runs and give the B-Mets a 2-0 lead.  

The score stayed that way through the first five frames. B-Mets starter Matt Bowman fanned six batters through the first five innings, but ran into trouble in the sixth. Tony Thomas started the Rock Cats rally with a single. He moved to third after the next batter, Eddie Rosario doubled to right field. Bowman then walked Nate Hanson to load the bases. That brought Vargas to the plate with nobody out. He smashed a pitch over the right-field wall to give the Rock Cats their first lead of the game, 4-2.

The B-Mets got a run back in the bottom of the frame. Matt Clark hammered a solo homer to straight-away center field to cut the deficit to 4-3. That would be all Binghamton could do against Vasquez. At one point, the veteran-righty retired 14 of 15 B-Met batters.

Vargas drove in two more insurance runs in the seventh inning against Adam Kolarek. Rosario reached on a fielder's choice and Hanson worked two-out walk. Vargas sealed the game with a two-run double to make the score 6-3.

That score would hold the rest of the way. Vasquez (4-2) allowed just three runs in six innings and struck out seven. Three Rock Cat relievers combined to two-hit the B-Mets over the final three innings. Bowman (3-4) went 5-2/3 innings, gave up four runs and struck out seven batters. Cody Satterwhite and Ryan Fraser pitched a scoreless final 2-2/3 innings in the loss.

The B-Mets (31-28) continue their three-game series with New Britain on Saturday at 7:05 PM. RHP Greg Peavey takes the mounds against LHP Pat Dean. The Horizons Federal Credit Union Pregame Show, starting at 6:50 PM, can be heard on News Radio 1290 WNBF and on the Binghamton Mets Baseball Network via the TuneIn App.

POSTGAME NOTES: The teams combined to strike out 24 times…Dustin Lawley went 0-for-4 and saw his nine game hitting streak end…the B-Mets have lost four straight against New Britain

Catch the future stars of the New York Mets all season long at NYSEG Stadium. Visit BMETS.COM, stop by the box office or call 723-METS for tickets.

Be sure to follow the B-Mets on Facebook, Twitter and at the team's official website (www.bmets.com) for more team information. Fans can also stay up to date with all the action on the field by visiting "B-Mets Buzz with Tim Heiman" at bmets.mlblogs.com