On Monday night at NBT Bank Stadium, the Lehigh Valley IronPigs started their final road trip of the season against the Syracuse Mets. The IronPigs are 10-8 against Syracuse this year. The IronPigs came into this game with a 75-71, sitting in fifth place.
Noah Skirrow (0-1, 2.65 ERA) was on the mound for Lehigh Valley, while Syracuse started Lock St. John (2-5, 5.85 ERA).
IronPigs’ catcher Rafael Marchan started the top of the second inning with a single. Then, IronPigs’ right fielder Jorge Bonifacio hit a two-run home off the scoreboard at left field for a 2-0 lead. It was Bonifacio’s 15th home run of the season.
Two batters later, IronPigs’ center fielder Madison Strokes singled to left field with one out. Josh Ockimey struck out, and Strokes stole second base with Ali Castillo on deck.
Castillo singled on a ground ball towards second baseman Gosuke Katoh. Katoh threw a high ball towards first baseman Dominic Smith, forcing him to leave the first base bag as Castillo made it to first base and Strokes scored for a 3-0 Lehigh Valley lead. Scott Kingery flew out towards center fielder Travis Jankowski, ending the inning.
In the bottom of the first inning, Gosuke Katoh doubled to left field. It was his 15th double of the season with one out. Two batters later, Khalil Lee doubled on a line drive to left field, scoring Katoh, making it 3-1 IronPigs with two outs. Michael Perez grounded towards Scott Kingery, ending the inning.
IronPigs’ first baseman Darick Hall started the top of the third inning with a double to right field. It was Hall’s 24th double of the season. After Dustin Peterson walked, Rafael Marchan singled past two Mets players diving for the ball and into right field, bringing Hall home for a 4-1 lead. Three batters later, Madison Strokes walked with two outs before Josh Ockimey flew out with the bases loaded towards center fielder Travis Jankowski, ending the inning.
In the bottom of the fourth inning, the Mets cut the IronPigs lead 4-2 on a solo home run by right fielder Carlos Rincon that hit the scoreboard at left field. Two batters later, IronPigs pitcher Noah Skirrow walked Khalil Lee before striking out Michael Perez and a ground out from Travis Jankowski, ending the inning.
That was it for Skirrow, who pitched a good game going four innings, allowing four hits, two runs, four walks, and three strikeouts in 81 pitches, of which 45 were strikes.
Vinny Nittoli was the new IronPigs pitcher in the bottom of the fifth inning. Nittoli pitched two scoreless innings, with no hits, no runs, and one strikeout in 28 pitches, of which 18 were strikes.
Former IronPig Adonis Medina was the new Mets pitcher at the top of the seventh inning. He hit both IronPigs’ catcher Rafael Marchan and right fielder, Jorge Bonifacio with one out. Two batters later, Madison Strokes singled to center field, scoring Marchan for a 5-2 lead with two outs. Josh Ockimey flew out towards Travis Jankowski, ending the inning.
Jakob Hernandez was the new IronPigs pitcher in the bottom of the seventh inning. He walked Michael Perez and gave up a single to Travis Jankowski with one out before getting Yolmer Sanchez to ground into a double play, ending the inning.
The IronPigs lead went down the drain in the bottom of the eighth inning with Griff McGarry as the new IronPigs pitcher. McGarry loaded the bases for Gosuke Katoh. He hit Katoh, which made it 5-3. JT Riddle was coming to bat next with no outs. But before he could bat, McGarry’s pitching duties were done, and Brian Maroni was in. He hit Riddle, and it was a one-run game, 5-4. Two batters later, Michael Perez hit a grand slam into the Salt City Deck at right field to give them an 8-5 lead. Four batters later, with two outs, he got Dominic Smith to fly out towards Dustin Peterson, ending the inning.
The IronPigs had a chance to retake the lead at the top of the ninth inning. The bases were loaded with two outs for Scott Kingery, but he grounded out towards shortstop JT Riddle, and the IronPigs lost 8-5. The IronPigs had nine hits and are 75-72 for the year. The win went to Mets pitcher Sam Clay, and IronPigs pitcher Griff McGarry lost his second game of the year.
While this game did not have any implications except for the standings, these last three games give the players a chance to play for one another one last time. Some of them will be back in an IronPigs uniform next season, while others will head elsewhere.
For these players, it’s also a chance to make a case to wear the IronPigs uniform next season. After tonight’s loss, some players need to continue their development in Reading. They are not ready for the Triple-A level. However, they have two more games to prove they belong in Lehigh Valley heading into the 2023 season.
Game two of the series continues tomorrow at 6:05 pm. Tickets for the game can be purchased on StubHub, and pick up IronPigs merchandise today at Fanatics.com.
