The Lehigh Valley IronPigs (62-66) concluded the six-game series against the Syracuse Mets (71-59) from Coca-Cola Park on Sunday night in their final meeting of the season.
Lehigh Valley starter Robinson Pena (1-1, 3.60 ERA) was on the mound against Syracuse’s Brandon Sproat (0-1, 8.83 ERA). Before this game, the Philadelphia Phillies recalled infielder Kody Clemens and RHP Tyler Phillips.
At the top of the third inning with two outs, Syracuse center fielder Drew Gilbert hit Pena’s sinker for a solo home run over the wall at right field for a 1-0 lead. Three batters later, Pena struck out Carlos Cortes to end the inning.
Robinson Pena (5.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 6 K) threw 88 pitches, of which 55 were strikes. Griff McGarry was the new pitcher for Lehigh Valley at the top of the sixth inning. McGarry (1.0 IP, 1 BB) threw 13 pitches, of which 6 were strikes.
Nick Nelson was the new pitcher for Lehigh Valley at the top of the seventh inning. Nelson (1.0 IP) threw 10 pitches, of which 5 were strikes. Michael Mercado pitched for Lehigh Valley at the top of the eighth inning.
Mercado (1.0 IP, 1 K) threw 11 pitches, of which 8 were strikes, and Tyler Gilbert pitched for Lehigh Valley at the top of the ninth inning. Gilbert (1.0 IP, 2 K) threw 9 pitches, of which 7 were strikes.
Lehigh Valley had one more chance in the bottom of the ninth inning. Lehigh Valley first baseman Darick Hall worked a four-pitch walk with one out. Then, third baseman Buddy Kennedy grounded into a game-ending 5-4-3 double play. The IronPigs were shut out by the Mets 1-0 and split the series 3-3.
Lehigh Valley finished the night with two hits. The loss went to Lehigh Valley pitcher Robinson Pena for his second loss of the season. The win went to Syracuse starter Brandon Sproat and Matt Gage earned his sixth save of the season.
The IronPigs start a 13-game road trip on Tuesday against the Buffalo Bisons at 6:05 pm on MiLB.TV. Purchase IronPigs tickets for the 2024 season today on StubHub and Viagogo.
