Michael Perez's go-ahead grand slam powers Syracuse to an 8-5 win over Lehigh Valley in the opener of the final series of the season
Syracuse, NY – The Syracuse Mets started their final series of the season on a high note, rallying back late to grab an 8-5 victory against the Lehigh Valley IronPigs on a chilly, late September night at NBT Bank Stadium. The Mets have now won eight of their last ten games, closing the home stretch of the season strong.
Early on, it sure looked like it would be Lehigh Valley's (75-72) night, as they built a 5-2 lead through the game's first seven innings. The big inning was the third inning, as the IronPigs scored three times on four hits. A two-run home run from Jorge Bonifacio was the highlight of the inning for the road team. The homer was a mammoth blast that crashed off the scoreboard in left-center field as it flew out of the ballpark.
The IronPigs tacked on with lone runs in the third and seventh innings. Rafael Marchan provided an RBI single in the third, while Madison Stokes had an RBI hit of his own in the seventh. Stokes finished the game 2-for-3 with two walks, stealing a base and scoring a run to boot. Marchan also reached three times in the game and scored twice. By the end of the ballgame, all but one IronPig in their starting lineup would reach base at least once.
Syracuse (64-84) hung in the ballgame in the first seven innings, scoring single runs in the second and fourth frames. In the second, doubles from Gosuke Katoh and Khalil Lee brought home a run. In the fourth, Carlos Rincon hit a solo home to plate the second run. Rincon has homered in back-to-back games, as he hit a go-ahead grand slam in the ninth inning of Sunday's series finale at Worcester.
It remained a 5-2 game into the bottom of the eighth when Syracuse made its winning charge. First, the Mets loaded the bases via two walks and a single. Then, the inning got a little strange. Katoh walked to drive in one run, followed by JT Riddle being plunked by a pitch to drive in another run. That made it a 5-4 game, and after Khalil Lee struck out, Michael Perez strode to the plate hoping for a little late magic. He did just that, lining a laser-beam drive over the right-field wall, a go-ahead grand slam that put the Mets in front for good by an 8-5 count. The Mets have now hit grand slam home runs in consecutive games. They have also scored 104 total runs in the eighth inning this season, which is more runs than in any other single inning this year. By the end of the eighth inning, Syracuse sent 11 men to the plate.
In the top of the ninth, the Mets closed out the win, but it wouldn't come easy. R.J. Alvarez came into the game hoping for a save, and while he did get two outs, he also issued three walks to load up the bases. Trey Cobb was summoned from the bullpen to end the game, and he did just that, inducing a weak groundout from Scott Kingery to end the game with the Mets as 8-5 winners.
Syracuse continues its final series of the season against the Lehigh Valley IronPigs this week. The second game in the series is set for a 6:35 p.m. first pitch on Tuesday evening. Left-hander Joey Lucchesi is scheduled to make a Major League rehab start for the Mets.
It’s Carlos Rincon’s second homer in as many days! 💪
— Syracuse Mets (@SyracuseMets) September 26, 2022
This towering solo shot cuts the @IronPigs’ lead to 4-2 in the fourth! pic.twitter.com/WEUhsYeMEi
When the eighth inning began, we were down 5-2 to the @IronPigs. We’ve scored six to come all the way back and then some - capped off by this Michael Perez grand slam! 🙌 pic.twitter.com/duZy9pyf4H
— Syracuse Mets (@SyracuseMets) September 27, 2022
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