Syracuse, NY – Key late-game offense powered a Syracuse Mets rally to defeat the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders, 4-3, on Sunday afternoon at NBT Bank Stadium.
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (31-31) struck first in the opening inning. After Marco Luciano reached on an error and moved into scoring position, Tyler Hardman lined an RBI double to center field, giving the RailRiders a 1-0 lead. Cristian Pache limited the damage by throwing Yanquiel Fernández out at home plate to end the inning.
Syracuse (33-30) threatened in the third, loading the bases with two outs on a hit batter and walks by Nick Morabito and Jihwan Bae. However, the Mets were unable to capitalize and left the bases loaded.
The Mets finally broke through in the sixth. Bae doubled to begin the inning and Alvarez followed with a walk. Later, Matt Rudick bounced a single through the left side, scoring Bae and tying the game, 1-1.
The Mets took the lead in the eighth. Bae singled and Alvarez followed with a base hit to put runners at the corners. Ryan Clifford then laid down a safety squeeze that brought home Bae, giving Syracuse its first lead of the afternoon. Two batters later, Rudick crushed a two-run home run to right-center field, extending the advantage to 4-1. Rudick collected his first home run since September 15, 2024 at Portland with Double-A Binghamton.
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre mounted a rally in the ninth. An error and a walk helped set up an RBI groundout by Ernesto Martinez Jr. Kenedy Corona followed with an RBI double to trim the deficit to 4-3. With the tying and go-ahead runs aboard, Dylan Ross struck out George Lombard Jr. to end the game and secure the victory.
On the mound, Syracuse received a strong effort from its pitching staff. After Daniel Duarte recorded the first three outs as the opener, Zach Thornton followed with five scoreless innings, allowing just two hits while striking out five. Tobias Meyers worked two-plus innings with one hit, one unearned run, and one strikeout. Matt Turner came in the ninth to face three batters and Ross collected his first save of the season with a strikeout and two walks.
Syracuse opens a six-game road series against the Buffalo Bisons on Tuesday night at Sahlen Field. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m.