St. Lucie 9, Palm Beach 8

Alex Panteliodis can’t seem to sustain any progress. Right when it appears the St. Lucie pitcher is on the verge of developing into a reliable starter, he is pummeled on the mound to create a fresh set of concerns about his future status.

The latest instance came Sunday as the Florida native surrendered seven runs — three earned — on eight hits in 4.2 innings against Palm Beach, but managed to escape with a no-decision after the Mets rallied for a 9-8 victory in 12 innings. St. Lucie (25-19) pulled into a tie with the Cardinals (26-20) atop the FSL South Division standings after capturing the first two contests of the three-game set.

After holding Clearwater scoreless in his previous start, Panteliodis struggled from the onset as the Cardinals jumped on him for two runs in both the first and third innings. He also tallied more walks (two) than strikeouts (one) for the fourth time this season, lending another example of his inconsistency.

Finding a steady groove has plagued the left-hander for most of the season. In four starts prior to Sunday’s game, Panteliodis allowed the following: no runs in 7.1 innings vs. Dunedin; no runs in seven innings vs. Brevard County; seven runs (all earned) in two innings at Lakeland; no runs in 6.1 innings vs. Clearwater.

But the Mets’ offense bailed him out Sunday, rallying from a 7-2 deficit with four runs in the fifth inning and two more in the seventh to knot the game at 8-all. Outfielder Kyle Johnson then delivered a walk-off home run off Cardinals reliever Iden Nazario to open the 12th inning, his second long ball as a member of the Mets. In all, St. Lucie amassed 17 hits, but left 13 runners on base and went 5-for-15 with runners in scoring position.

The Mets will attempt to secure their first series sweep at home since mid-July in Monday’s finale. Michael Fulmer (1-2, 4.38 ERA) is slated to take the mound for St. Lucie, as Palm Beach counters with Hector Hernandez (3-0, 2.42).

Notes: Every player in the Mets’ starting lineup registered a hit and six tallied multiple hits. … Shawn Teufel, the son of former New York Mets infielder and current coach Tim Teufel, earned his first win after firing two scoreless innings of relief, permitting two hits and a walk. … After hitting just .148 last month, outfielder Gilbert Gomez is 6-for-14 (.429) through his first four games in August with two doubles and two RBI.

Key Stats

Kyle Johnson: 2-for-6, 2 R, 2 RBI, 1 HR

T.J. Rivera: 3-for-6, 1 R

Kevin Plawecki: 1-for-4, 2 R, 1 BB, 1 RBI

Dustin Lawley: 2-for-5, 1 BB, 1 RBI

Jayce Boyd: 2-for-4, 2 BB, 1 R, 2 RBI, 1 2B

Rylan Sandoval: 2-for-5, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 2B

Cam Maron: 1-for-6, 1 BB, 1R

Gilbert Gomez: 3-for-6, 1 R, 2 RBI, 1 2B