Moosic, Pa. – Eric Wagaman delivered the go-ahead two-run single in the eighth inning as the Syracuse Mets rallied for a 5-4 victory over the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders on Wednesday night at PNC Field.
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (14-7, 51-44) jumped out to an early lead in the first inning. George Lombard Jr. doubled before Yanquiel Fernández and Oswaldo Cabrera followed with RBI doubles, giving the RailRiders a 2-0 advantage.
Syracuse (10-12, 48-49) answered with three runs in the fourth. Ronny Mauricio led off the inning with a solo home run, his eighth of the season, to trim the deficit to one. MJ Melendez and Nick Morabito then reached base before Eric Wagaman tied the game with an RBI groundout. Moments later, Jihwan Bae reached on a throwing error by pitcher Eric Reyzelman, allowing Morabito to score and giving the Mets a 3-2 lead.
The RailRiders tied the game in the bottom of the fourth when Duke Ellis lined an RBI single to left field, scoring Ernesto Martinez Jr.
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre regained the lead in the sixth. George Lombard Jr. doubled and eventually scored on Marco Luciano's two-out RBI single to put the RailRiders ahead, 4-3.
Syracuse mounted its decisive rally in the eighth inning. Mauricio doubled and Melendez walked before Morabito drew a free pass to load the bases with one out. After Ryan Clifford struck out, Wagaman lined a two-run single to center field, scoring Mauricio and Melendez to put the Mets back in front, 5-4.
Dylan Ross retired the RailRiders in order in the eighth before Ben Simon worked a scoreless ninth, striking out Oswaldo Cabrera to earn the save.
Ofreidy Gómez started for Syracuse and allowed two runs while recording two outs in the first inning. Dan Hammer, Matt Turner, Guillo Zuñiga, Dedniel Núñez, Joe Jacques, Ross, and Simon combined to hold the RailRiders to two runs over the final 8.1 innings.
Wagaman finished 1-for-4 and paced the team with three runs batted in in his first game back with Syracuse after being optioned by New York. Mauricio went 2-for-4 with a home run, a double, and two runs scored, while Morabito walked twice, stole his 31st base of the season, and scored twice. Melendez also reached base twice and scored twice in the victory.
The Mets continue their six-game series against the RailRiders on Thursday night at PNC Field. Right-hander Tobias Myers is slated to start against right-hander Brendan Beck for the RailRiders. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.