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MMN Recap: Palka, Katoh Homer for Syracuse

By Daniel Muras

July 11, 2022 No comments

Gosuke Katoh, Photo by Richard Nelson

Daniel Palka has frequently been mentioned as a possible in-house option to be the major league designated hitter until an external replacement is acquired at the trade deadline. Those murmurs were put on pause when Palka was placed on the injured list at the end of June, but he returned to the lineup with a bang – blasting his 16th home run of the year – after missing just 10 days.

AAA: Syracuse Mets (37-47) 4, Buffalo Bisons (43-41) 2  Box Score 

Palka and Katoh drove in all four of Syracuse’s runs on Sunday afternoon, with Katoh’s seventh-inning shot to right center field ending up as the game-winning hit. Vientos has been collecting his fair share of hits since the start of July (10 in 37 at bats), but his plate discipline has regressed over the last couple of weeks: since the start of the month, he has struck out 13 times and has not walked once in 37 plate appearances. Palka returned to lineup after a brief, 10-day stint on the injured list. Francisco Álvarez had Sunday afternoon off.

  • RHP Connor Grey (4-3, 5.45 ERA) 5.0 IP, 3 H, ER, 3 BB, 6 K
  • LHP Rob Zastryzny (W, 1-4, 3.86 ERA) 2.0 IP, 2 H, ER, BB, 3 K
  • RHP Yoan López (S, 1-2, 5.48 ERA) 2.0 IP, BB, 5 K

After having a 9.00 ERA in June, Grey is starting July off right by posting a 2.70 ERA across his first two starts of the month. Zastryzny has been significantly better as a reliever (2.14 ERA in 21 innings) than as a starter (6.06 ERA in 16 1/3 innings) this season.

AA: Portland Sea Dogs (40-41) 3, Binghamton Rumble Ponies (31-50) 1  Box Score

The Rumble Ponies were held to just four hits in Sunday’s game and were shut out until the ninth inning. Ritter’s double in the ninth inning drove in the team’s lone run in the game. Ritter is hitting .316/.381/.632 since his demotion from Syracuse. Baty has just one hit in his last 20 at-bats.

  • RHP Jose Chacin (L, 0-2, 6.87 ERA) 7.0 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 9 K
  • RHP Josh Hejka (4-1, 3.28 ERA) 2.0 IP, 2 H, ER, 2 K

Chacin has struggled quite a bit since his promotion to Binghamton in early May, but he recorded one of his best starts of the year on Sunday. His nine strikeouts and seven innings pitched both tied his season highs.

A+:Aberdeen IronBirds (52-29) 7, Brooklyn Cyclones (37-44) 2  Box Score

The Cyclones had just four hits in Sunday’s game. Even when they could get runners into scoring position, they could not come up with the big hit, as they went just 1-for-9 in those situations. Ramirez was hitless in a game for the first time since his Brooklyn debut on July 4.

Santos worked around trouble all night, but the only blow that left a significant mark on the scoreboard was the home run he gave up in the fifth inning. None of Santos’ numbers are flashy, but he has quietly been solid since April: he has an ERA under four in each of the last three months. The walks finally came back to bite Tavarez on Sunday, as he gave up just his fifth earned run of the season despite walking 7.54 batters per nine innings. A 13.9 K/9 and .111 opponents batting average have led to his exceptional ERA in spite of his extreme wildness.

A (Game 1): Daytona Tortugas (34-45) 4, St. Lucie Mets (47-32) 0  Box Score

The Mets offense consisted of just two singles and two walks in the first game of Sunday’s double header. Worst of all, Mets hitters struck out 14 times in what was just a seven-inning game. Johnson was making his second rehab appearance after ending up on the injured list in mid-June and played the full seven innings in center field.

Sanchez has pitched only sporadically this season due to a couple of trips to the injured and development lists, but, when he has been on the mound, he has been excellent at missing bats. He currently has a 13.85 K/9 through his first 13 innings of the season. Colina has given up tons of runs this year, but his 11.3 K/9 is the best of his career. Beck has not given up a run in his first seven appearances of the season.

A (Game 2): St. Lucie Mets (48-32) 2, Daytona Tortugas (34-46) 1  Box Score

The Mets had only five hits in the second game of Sunday’s doubleheader, but three of those hits went for extra bases. After falling behind 1-0 in the third inning, they tied the game on Saunders’ home run and took the lead when Salazar scored on a wild pitch. Beracierta is hitting .393/.433/.786 so far in July.

Colon was dominant in this start; the home run he gave up in the third inning was the only hit he allowed all game. He has struck out 16 batters over his last two starts and has an outstanding 40:6 K:BB ratio over 30 2/3 innings pitched this season. Gonzalez has not allowed an earned run in any of his last six appearances.

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Written by Daniel Muras

I fell in love with the Mets during the 2006 playoff run and became obsessed with the Mets minor league system while looking for a brighter future during the 2009-2014 era. I hope to provide interesting analysis of the minors and am excited to have the opportunity to write for MMO and MMN.

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