Binghamton 7, Trenton 3
With all the attention directed at New York Met minor league starting pitching prospects Rafael Montero and Noah Syndergaard, the exploits of Cory Mazzoni sometimes fly under the radar. Mazzoni, another future Met righthanded power arm, is putting together an impressive season on the mound in Binghamton. Friday night, Mazzoni turned in another noteworthy outing going six innings and pitching the B-Mets to a 7-3 win over Trenton. The victory improves Mazzoni’s season mark to 4-2 and pushes Binghamton 20 games above .500 and a full nine games in front of the second place Thunder.
Mazzoni throws high heat touching 97 mph and threw over half of his 60 strikes 94 MPH or higher. The B-Met righthander got his game off with a bang striking out the side in the first inning. Mazzoi would strike out ten batters over his 6 innings of labor.
Mazzoni’s only trouble came in the second when the Thunder massed 4 hits to score their total output for the contest: 3 runs. Tyler Roller and Carmen Angelini opened the frame with back-to-back singles for the Thunder. After Andrew Clark fanned., Reggie Corona singled driving home Roller for Trenton’s first score.
Mazzoni lost track of the runners allowing a double steal putting two runners in scoring position setting up Jose Pirela‘s 2 RBI single. Pirela was caught in a rundown when B-Met first baseman Allan Dykstra cut off center fielder Darrell Ceciliani‘s throw to the plate and eventually tagged out Pirela. Mazzoni struck out Francisco Arcia to end the threat. An Angelini one out double in the fourth would be the only other hit allowed by Mazzoni.
Here’s Mazzoni’s pitching breakdown for the night: 6.0 IP, 5 H, 2 BB, 3 ER, 10 K
Total Pitches: 96 Strikes: 60 (63%) Balls: 36 (37%)
Strike Breakdown:
Called: 14 (23%)
Fouled: 17 (28%)
Miss: 17 (28%)
In Play: 12 (20%)
First Pitch Strikes: 13 of 24 (55%)
Fastball Range: 91 – 97 mph, over 50% of all Fastballs 94mph or higher
Full Windup: Total Pitches: 63 Strikes: 39 (62%) Balls: 24 (38%)
FW Fastballs: Total Pitches: 42 Strikes: 26 (62%) Balls: 16 (38%)
FW Sliders: Total Pitches: 7 Strikes: 5 (71%) Balls: 2 (29%)
FW Change: Total Pitches: 11 Strikes: 5 (45%) Balls: 6 (55%)
Stretch: Total Pitches: 33 Strikes: 21 (66%) Balls: 12 (34%)
STR Fastballs: Total Pitches: 22 Strikes: 15 (68%) Balls: 7 (32%)
STR Sliders: Total Pitches: 9; Strikes: 5 (56%) Balls: 4 (44%)
STR Change: Total Pitches: 5 Strikes: 4 (80%) Balls: 1 (20%)
Binghamton scored two runs in the first on only one hit. Daniel Muno worked a lead-off base-on-balls followed by a Josh Rodriguez double, his 17th two-bagger of the year. Muno scored on a wild pitch with Rodriguez moving to third then racing home on Allan Dykstra‘s infield groundout. The RBI gives Dykstra 51 on the year matching Cesar Puello‘s team leading run scoring production.
Blake Forsythe, the B-Met player of the game, opened the second inning with a long triple off the wall in right-center field. Forsythe scored the B-Mets third run when Wilfredo Tovar grounded to second.
Travis Taijeron continues to provide Ruthian homerun production. After a one out Cesar Puello single, Taijeron pulled a 93 mph fastball deep over the left field wall putting Binghamton in front, 5-3. The HR was Taijeron’s 7th in just 54 at bats as a B-Met meaning the power hitting outfielder in blasting a home run in just under every 8 at-bats.
The B-Mets closed out the scoring when Forsythe opened the eight with a double. Darrelli Ceciliani drilled a single to center with Forsythe racing home when the Thunder centerfielder Slade Heathcott bobbled the ball. Rodriguez singled home Ceciliani later in the inning. Chase Hutchingson provided some scary moments in relief of Mazzoni loading the bases and throwing a 28 pitch seventh inning. Hutchinson made a huge 3 ball, 2 strike pitch getting Trenton’s Tyler Austin to fly out ending the threat. Adam Kolarek took over for Hutchinson in the eighth and needed only nine pitches to entice three fly balls to left fielder Taijeron. Kolarek struck out two and retired the side in order in the ninth.
The B-Mets are winning at a .634 clip, twenty games above .500 at 48-28.