Syracuse, NY – The Syracuse Mets battled back from two deficits, but Worcester scored the go-ahead run in the ninth inning to hand Syracuse a 6-5 loss on Wednesday night at NBT Bank Stadium.
Worcester (3-5, 39-40) struck first in the second inning when Tyler McDonough launched a solo home run to left-center field, giving the Red Sox a 1-0 lead.
Syracuse (4-4, 42-41) answered in the bottom half of the inning. Christopher Morel singled in his Mets debut before Yonny Hernández added a base hit. Ben Rortvedt then ripped an RBI double to right field to tie the game, and Cristian Pache followed with a groundout that scored Hernández to give the Mets a 2-1 advantage.
The WooSox responded in the third. After an error, two walks, and a wild pitch tied the game, Allan Castro lined an RBI single to left field, putting Worcester back in front, 3-2.
The Mets evened the score in the fifth. Cristian Pache tripled with one out and came home when Vidal Bruján reached on a fielder's choice, knotting the game at 3-3.
Worcester regained the lead in the seventh. Tyler McDonough led off with a walk and later scored on a wild pitch before Braiden Ward crossed the plate on an error, giving the Red Sox a 5-3 lead.
Syracuse answered immediately in the bottom of the inning. Bruján walked before Jihwan Bae reached on a bunt single and throwing error. Nick Morabito followed with a two-run single to right field, scoring both runners to tie the game at 5-5.
The Red Sox pushed across the deciding run in the ninth. Mickey Gasper singled, advanced on a wild pitch, and scored on an RBI single by Allan Castro, giving Worcester a 6-5 lead. Cristian Pache threw out Jason Delay trying to stretch to third on the play, but the Mets were unable to rally in the bottom of the ninth.
When Gaspar advanced on the wild pitch, the game entered a 30-minute rain delay. The game resumed in the Delay at-bat.
On the mound, Zach Thornton allowed three runs, two earned, over five and two-thirds innings while striking out six. Guillo Zuñiga retired the final batter of the sixth and was charged with two runs allowed in the seventh. Joe Jacques pitched for the first time since April 15. Ben Simon escaped a bases-loaded jam in the eighth, while Jefry Yan took the loss after allowing the go-ahead run in the ninth. Dan Hammer recorded the final out of the inning, replacing Yan after the rain delay.
Morabito extended his hit streak to 13 games, the longest of any Met this season. Rortvedt finished 3-for-5 with an RBI double. Hernández went 1-for-3 with one run, and Pache tripled and scored while driving in a run on an RBI groundout.
Syracuse continues its six-game series against Worcester on Thursday at NBT Bank Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m.