MMN Recap: Rajai Davis Homers In Syracuse Win

Syracuse (36-37) 10, Gwinnett (39-33) 6 Box Score

Rajai Davis CF: 2-for-6, R, HR, 3 RBI, 3 K, .281/.338/.408
Arismendy Alcantara LF: 3-for-5, 2 R, 2 HR, 5 RBI, K, .367/.457/.620
Ruben Tejada 3B: 2-for-5, 2 R, 2B, 2 K, .350/.441/.560

The Syracuse offense had a huge game as they scored ten runs on ten hits, six of which went for extra bases. Alcantara is thriving hitting with the Triple-A/MLB balls and his .388/.474/.653 line in June is fantastic, especially when considering his had just a .736 OPS with Double-A Binghamton. Every player in the lineup reached base at least once including the starting pitcher.

RHP Chris Mazza (W, 3-3, 3.67 ERA) 6.0 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, 8 K
RHP Tyler Bashlor (2-1, 5.30 ERA) 1.0 IP, BB
RHP Tim Peterson (S, 2-4, 2.45 ERA) 2.0 IP, H, ER, 4 K

Mazza started the game for the Mets and, while he did give up five runs, he managed to keep his team in the lead through six innings. Peterson has a 1.98 ERA and 13:1 K:BB ratio in his last 10 appearances with Syracuse.

Richmond (25-45) 4, Binghamton (36-30) 1 Box Score

Andres Gimenez SS: 1-for-4, 2 K, CS, .236/.301/.352
Ali Sanchez C: 1-for-4, 2B, R, K, PB, .287/.350/.354
Will Toffey 3B: 1-for-3, BB, .229/.368/.352

The Rumble Ponies offense was limited to just five hits in Friday’s game, with Sanchez’s double ending up as their lone extra base hit. That double extended his hit streak to 11 games and improved his June slash line to .385/.429/.487.

RHP Harol Gonzalez (L, 3-3, 3.41 ERA) 5.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 5 K
RHP Austin McGeorge (0-2, 3.70 ERA) 3.0 IP, H, ER, 2 K
LHP Blake Taylor (0-0, 2.25 ERA) 1.0 IP, H, 2 BB, K

Gonzalez pitched fairly well in this game, although his five innings pitched is tied for a season low for one of his starts. As a major positive, while the home run has been his Achilles heel all season, Gonzalez has now gone two straight starts without allowing a single home run for the first time in 2019. Taylor has excelled upon his shift to the bullpen this season and we shall see if his strong performance forces the Mets to add him to the 40-man roster at some point before he becomes a free agent over the offseason.

St. Lucie (36-35) 5, Florida (27-44) 1 Box Score

Jacob Zanon CF: 2-for-5, R, HR, 3 RBI, 2 K, .242/.307/.393
Jeremy Vasquez 1B: 2-for-4, R, 2B, BB, .276/.365/.385
Edgardo Fermin RF: 2-for-4, R, 2B, .333/.368/.444

The Mets scattered 13 hits and pushed across five runs in Friday night’s victory. Zanon has taken some good steps forward offensively and, after hitting just three home runs in his first three seasons, he now has six through the first half of this season. His power has really taken off in June as evidenced by his four home runs and .218 ISO for the month. After a brief cameo in Binghamton, Fermin has settled into the St. Lucie lineup, although it is interesting to see the young shortstop get starts all over the field, including the outfield and second base.

RHP Luc Rennie (W, 5-2, 3.91 ERA) 6.1 IP, 8 H, ER, BB, 4 K
RHP Carlos Hernandez (1-2, 6.75 ERA) 1.2 IP, K
RHP Ezequiel Zabaleta (1-0, 1.93 ERA) 1.0 IP, K

Rennie has had an up and down season that included two solid starts in Binghamton, but ended up back with St. Lucie for this start. He has been on a solid stretch recently and hasn’t given up more than 3 earned runs in a start since April 30. Zabaleta’s breakout season continued as he tossed a scoreless ninth inning. After posting a 1.69 ERA in 17 appearances with Columbia, Zabaleta has shut out his opponents in 6 of his 7 appearances with St. Lucie.

Columbia (25-43) 6, Asheville (30-42) 3 Box Score

Ronny Mauricio SS: 1-for-5, 2 R, 2 K, .290/.331/.389
Hansel Moreno CF: 2-for-4, 2 R, BB, .298/.364/.468
Shervyen Newton 3B: 1-for-5, RBI, 3 K, .196/.280/.294

Columbia rallied late to comeback and secure victory with two runs in the eighth inning and three more in the 10th inning. Mauricio has really stepped up his game in the June and is now hitting .321/.345/.509 for the month. On the other hand, after an improved May, it seems Newton has taken a step back this month and now is hitting .196/.288/.261 through 13 June games.

RHP Jose Butto (2-7, 4.45 ERA) 5.2 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 9 K
RHP Alec Kissena (W, 1-2, 5.61 ERA) 2.0 IP, 3 H, 3 BB, 3 K
RHP Billy Oxford (S, 0-2, 4.26 ERA) 1.0 IP, K

Despite Butto’s high ERA, his 66:17 K:BB ratio in 64.2 innings pitched is very strong and could indicate that there are better results to come. Oxford has not walked a batter since May 26.

Staten Island (3-4) 10, Brooklyn (4-3) 3 Box Score

Yoel Romero SS: 2-for-4, 2 2B, RBI, K, .227/.320/.455
Joe Genord 1B: 2-for-4, R, 2B, K, SB, .300/.360/.550

Despite producing just seven hits and leaving six runners on base for the game, the Cyclones actually had quite a few opportunities to produce runs in the game. Five of their hits were doubles, so the team had 16 at bats with runners in scoring position, but could produce hits in just two of those at bats. Genord, the Mets 9th round pick in the recent draft, has gotten off to the hottest start out of all of the new players in the organization.

RHP Jaison Vilera (L, 1-1, 4.22 ERA) 4.0 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 4 ER, BB, 7 K
RHP Dan Goggin (0-0, 0.00 ERA) 2.0 IP, 2 BB, 2 K
RHP Nelson Leon (0-0, 0.00 ERA) 1.0 IP, K

It is fair to say that this season has been a huge disappointment for Vilera. After leading the NYPL in many categories, including ERA and strikeouts, last season, poor performance and injuries have resulted in Vilera returning to Brooklyn for a second season. His 12:3 K:BB ratio through two starts in Brooklyn is still very good, indicating that he could potentially rediscover the command that made him so dominant last season.

Kingsport (3-1) 7, Elizabethton (2-2) 2 Box Score

Andres Regnault C: 2-for-4, RBI, BB, K, .571/.600/1.071
Jaylen Palmer 3B: 1-for-4, R, 2 RBI, BB, 3 K, .333/.450/.733
Gregory Guerrero 2B: 2-for-4, 2 R, HR, 2 RBI, K, .313/.389/.813

The Mets’ offense had a big game, pushing across seven runs on ten hits. After a monster year in his third DSL season in 2018, Regnault is finally getting the opportunity to succeed while playing stateside and is taking full advantage in the early stages of the season. Palmer and Guerrero are also both off to great starts, homering in back-to-back games. Palmer’s newfound power makes him even more exciting as a prospect, although he has struck out eight times in the first four games of the season. It is great to see Guerrero healthy and producing after his first three seasons were lackluster and marred by injury.

RHP Ramon Guzman (0-0, 0.00 ERA) 3.0 IP, 5 H, BB, 6 K
LHP Jefferson Escorcha (W, 1-0, 2.70 ERA) 2.1 IP, 3 H, BB, 3 K
RHP Reyson Santos (S, 0-0, 0.00 ERA) 1.2 IP, H

Guzman was solid in his first start, but working around six baserunners early ran his pitch count up to 74 following the third inning. Guzman is old for the level, but his career 2.16 ERA is still very impressive. 19 year old Escorcha, who also features a minuscule career ERA (1.71), pitched very well in his second appearance of the season.

DSL Mets1 (8-7) 8, DSL Nationals (1-15) 0 Box Score

Franklin Linares CF: 3-for-5, 2 R, 2B, RBI, .229/.325/.286
Freddy Valdez RF: 1-for-4, RBI, K, .250/.364/.404
Wilmis Castro 3B: 3-for-4, 2 R, 2 RBI, .355/.412/.419

Valdez has cooled off a bit following his hot professional start, but still has a very impressive 9:10 BB:K ratio over his first 14 games. As a team, the Mets struck out just three times in the game.

RHP Jordany Ventura (0-0, 3.97 ERA) 4.0 IP, 2 BB, 3 K
RHP Jhonfran Escalona (1-0, 0.00 ERA) 2.0 IP, 2 H, K
RHP Ronny Rincones (0-0, 0.00 ERA) 3.0 IP, H, BB, 3 K

It’s a bit surprising to see Escalona back in the DSL after posting a 1.88 ERA there in 48.0 innings, but he has been even better this season. The 17 year old Rincones has been very impressive in his debut professional season.

DSL Mets2 (9-9) 7, DSL D-backs2 (10-8) 6 Box Score

Dyron Campos RF: 3-for-5, R, 2B, K, .315/.412/.411
Kevin Torres 1B: 2-for-4, 2 R, HR, 3 RBI, BB, K, .184/.340/.289

Five players in the Mets lineup had multi-hit games and the team combined for 13 hits.

LHP Brandon Sanchez (0-0, 2.77 ERA) 3.0 IP, 2 H, R, 2 BB, K

Sanchez has not allowed an earned run in five of his six appearances this season.

Written by Daniel Muras