Toledo, OH - Syracuse Mets starting pitcher Corey Oswalt was perfect through five and 1/3 innings and didn't allow an earned run as Syracuse beat the Toledo Mud Hens, 11-5, on Saturday night at Fifth Third Field. Six different Mets players had multiple hits, and four players had multiple RBIs
Toledo, OH - Syracuse Mets starting pitcher Corey Oswalt was perfect through five and 1/3 innings and didn't allow an earned run as Syracuse beat the Toledo Mud Hens, 11-5, on Saturday night at Fifth Third Field. Six different Mets players had multiple hits, and four players had multiple RBIs in the game.
Syracuse (50-49) jumped right on the board in the top of the first inning. Grégor Blanco tripled on the first pitch of the game. Danny Espinosa followed with a sacrifice fly to center field, scoring Blanco for a 1-0 lead.
The Mets extended their lead in the third. With one out, Blanco walked. Espinosa then crushed a ball over the center-field wall for a two-run home run that put Syracuse up 3-0. René Rivera followed with a homer to left field, giving the Mets a 4-0 advantage.
Syracuse added three more runs in the fourth. Arismendy Alcantara led off with a double. Aaron Altherr then hit an opposite-field home run to right field that made it a 6-0 ballgame. Rymer Liriano followed with a double, Tim Tebow singled, and Liriano scored from third on a Blanco groundout into a fielder's choice as Syracuse took a 7-0 lead.
Toledo (44-55) broke through in the bottom of the sixth. With one out, Mikie Mahtook reached on an error, and Kade Scivique was hit by a pitch, putting runners at first and second base. Danny Woodrow followed with a single that scored Mahtook to trim the Syracuse lead to six, 7-1. Two batters later, Jacob Robson picked up a two-out double to pull the Mud Hens within four, 7-3. Ronny Rodríguez followed with a base hit to bring home Robson, cutting the Mets lead to three, 7-4.
All four runs scored in the sixth by Toledo were unearned runs. Oswalt finished his outing with eight strikeouts and no walks while allowing just three hits in his six innings on the mound.
The Mets responded in the top of the seventh. With one out, Dilson Herrera hammered a pitch over the left-field wall for a home run to give Syracuse an 8-4 edge.
The Mud Hens brought home a run in the bottom of the seventh. Dawel Lugo led off with a double and scored on a Dustin Peterson double to make it an 8-5 game.
Syracuse put the exclamation point on the contest in the ninth. Herrera led off with his second homer of the night for a 9-5 advantage. Later in the inning, with Travis Taijeron at third and Alcantara at second, Liriano doubled to left-center field, scoring both Taijeron and Alcantara for a six-run Syracuse lead, 11-5.
The Mets and Mud Hens conclude their three-game series on Sunday night. RHP Drew Gagnon is scheduled to be on the mound for the Mets. First pitch is set for 6:05 p.m.
