The Lehigh Valley IronPigs (52-47, 16-10) concluded a six-game series against the Syracuse Mets (42-48, 9-17) on Sunday afternoon from Coca-Cola Park. The IronPigs trailed the series 3-2. Nick Nelson (3-2, 4.89 ERA) was on the mound for Lehigh Valley making his 11th start of the season against Syracuse’s Denyi Reyes (1-2, 6.71 ERA).
At the top of the second inning, Nick Nelson gave up a single to Jonathan Arauz with one out. Two batters later, he walked Carlos Cortes with two outs for Tomas Nido.
Nido put the ball down for a base hit to right field and scoring from second base was Jonathan Arauz for a 1-0 Syracuse lead. Branden Fryman was next for the Mets. Nelson got him to ground into a forceout at second base which ended the inning.
In the bottom of the second inning, Dustin Peterson hit Reyes’s fastball for a solo home run over the wall at right field which tied the game 1-1. It was Peterson’s 12th home run of the year and 34th RBI of the season. Kody Clemens followed up with the single but Lehigh Valley did not add any more runs in the inning.
Moving to the bottom of the third inning, Lehigh Valley took a 2-1 when Cal Stevenson hit Reyes’s fastball for a solo home run over the wall at right field. It was Stevenson’s first home run of the season as an IronPig and seventh RBI of the year.
With two outs, Darick Hall and Dustin Peterson both hit singles followed by Reyes walking Kody Clemens which loaded the bases for Jim Haley. Haley popped out toward shortstop Branden Fryman for the final out of the inning.
At the top of the fifth inning, Nick Nelson gave up a single to Ronny Mauricio with two outs before getting Luke Voit to ground out toward third baseman Kody Clemens, who threw the ball to first baseman Darick Hall which ended the inning. Nick Nelson pitched a good game going five innings, allowing five hits, one run, two walks, and seven strikeouts in 89 pitches, of which 57 were strikes.
Branden Zarbnisky was the new Lehigh Valley pitcher at the top of the sixth inning. With two outs, Zarbnisky walked Luke Ritter before Carlos Cortes hit a high fly ball off the right field wall which allowed Ritter to score from first base and Syracuse tied the game 2-2.
After walking Tomas Nido, Zarbnisky struck out Branden Fryman which ended the inning. Zarbnisky allowed one hit, one run, and three strikeouts in 28 pitches, of which 12 were strikes.
Ben Bowden was the new Lehigh Valley pitcher at the top of the seventh inning. Bowden gave up a single to Rafael Ortega to start the inning. Three batters later with two outs, he walked Abraham Almonte before striking out Jonathan Arauz to retire the side. Bowden pitched one inning, allowing one hit, and two strikeouts in 20 pitches, of which 11 were strikes.
In the bottom of the seventh inning, Nolan Clenney was the new Syracuse pitcher. With one out, he walked Darick Hall. Then, Dustin Peterson grounded out toward third baseman Jonathan Arauz, who threw the ball to first baseman Luke Voit while Hall ran to second base.
Lehigh Valley was 0-4 with runners in scoring position until Kody Clemens put the ball down for a base hit to right field. Darick Hall scored from second base and Clemens ran to second base for a double. It was now 3-2 Lehigh Valley. It was Clemens’s third double of the season and 13th RBI of the year. Jim Haley had a chance to keep the inning going with two outs but struck out swinging which ended the inning.
At the top of the eighth inning, Luis Ortiz was the new Lehigh Valley pitcher. He struck out Luke Ritter, followed by a ground out from Carlos Cortes, and stuck out Tomas Nido which ended the inning. Ortiz threw 14 pitches, of which 11 were strikes.
Andrew Bellatti closed out the game for Lehigh Valley at the top of the ninth inning. He got Branden Fryman to line out toward shortstop Scott Kingery for the first out. After walking Rafael Ortega, Bellatti struck out Ronny Mauricio. Then, he got Luke Voit to ground out toward second baseman Jim Haley, who threw the ball to Darick Hall for the final out of the game.
The IronPigs defeated the Mets by the final score of 3-2. They split the series three games apiece, and lead the overall series 11-6. Lehigh Valley finished the afternoon with nine hits, 1 for 8 with runners in scoring position, and left 11 men on base.
Lehigh Valley ends the month of July with a 15-8 record. Ben Bowden won his fifth game of the season with Lehigh Valley, and Nolan Clenney lost his first game of the year for the Mets.
Lehigh Valley will be off on Monday. They continue their homestand starting on Tuesday against the Buffalo Bisons at 7:05 pm on MiLB.com. Tickets for the game are available on StubHub and Viagogo. Also, pick up IronPigs merchandise today at Fanatics.com.
