Bisons walk off in extra innings again, 7-6 over Syracuse

BUFFALO, NY- The Buffalo Bisons walked off in extra innings for the second time this homestand thanks to an infield ground ball scoring the winning run in a 7-6 victory against the Syracuse Mets in 10 innings on Tuesday night at Sahlen Field.

The Bisons took the early lead in the bottom of the first inning as a result of a Will Robertson RBI groundout to the first baseman. This scored Rafael Lantigua from third base, giving the Bisons the early 1-0 lead.

The Mets responded in the top of the third thanks to a Brett Baty two-run shot. The 422-foot home run, his 10th of the season, flew over the center field wall with an exit velocity of 108.2 MPH. Rhylan Thomas also scored, giving Syracuse the 2-1 advantage over Buffalo. Then, because of a wild pitch, Luke Ritter scored from third. Syracuse would take a 3-1 lead.

In the top of the fifth inning, the Mets added another run to their lead. Baty crossed the plate after Drew Gilbert grounded into a force out pushing Syracuse’s lead to 4-1 Buffalo.

The Bisons regained the lead in the bottom of the fifth inning thanks to a five-run inning. First, Lantigua drove in two runs on a line drive to right field, scoring Luis De Los Santos and Alan Roden. The two runs allowed the Bisons to cut the deficit to 4-3 Mets. Then, Riley Tirotta hit his 10th homer of the season. The three-run shot also scored Cam Eden and Lantigua. As a result, the Bisons gained a 6-4 advantage over Syracuse.

In the top of the seventh inning, the Mets would cut their two-run deficit in half as Baty blasted his second homer of the game. The 391-foot homer, his 11th of the season reduced the Buffalo lead to 6-5.

The Mets evened the score at 6-6 in the top of the eighth inning courtesy of a Logan Porter long ball. His 7th home run of the season traveled 383 feet on an exit velocity of 102.7 MPH.

In the bottom of the tenth inning, with Lantigua on third, Palmegiani hit a ground ball to second base allowing Lantigua to cross the plate to give the Bisons the 7-6 walk-off win.

After initially having struggled against the right-handed Blade Tidwell, who struck out seven Bisons hitters in four innings pitched, the Bisons were able to find success the second time through the order. That success continued against Justin Jarvis. Jarvis pitched 1.2 innings giving up two runs.

The Bisons and Mets will play the second game of their six-game series on Wednesday afternoon at 1:05 p.m. Paolo Espino is expected to get the start for the Bisons.