St. Paul, MN — The Syracuse Mets fell to the St. Paul Saints 6-5 Sunday at CHS Field, despite holding a four-run lead early in the game.
Syracuse (38-30, 76-67) opened the scoring in the third inning when Hayden Senger hit a two-run home run after Ryan Clifford tripled. The Mets added two more runs in the fourth when Eric Wagaman singled home MJ Melendez and Vidal Bruján to extend the lead to 4-0.
St. Paul (37-32, 79-64) got on the board in the fourth when Kala’i Rosario hit a solo home run, cutting Syracuse’s lead to 4-1.
The Saints took the lead in the fifth. Aaron Sabato hit a three-run home run to tie the game before Rosario followed with a two-run homer, putting St. Paul ahead 6-4.
After 15 straight Mets were retired, Syracuse pulled within one in the ninth when Billy Amick hit a solo home run, but the Mets were unable to complete the comeback.
Senger and Amick were the only two Mets who homered. Clifford tripled and scored, and Wagaman drove in two runs with a single in the fourth.
Pitching wise, Justin Hagenman tossed four innings with two hits, one run, two walks and one strikeout. Ryan Lambert and Brian Metoyer allowed five runs in the fifth inning. Zach Franklin, Jefry Yan, and Saul Garcia combined to shut out the Saints from the sixth to eighth innings.
At the conclusion of the game, Syracuse sits in fourth place in the International League second half, two games back of Rochester.
The Mets return home for their final series of the year on Tuesday to battle the Lehigh Valley IronPigs, the Triple-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. First pitch is slated for 6:35 p.m.