Syracuse drops series opener at Rochester, 8-1, on Tuesday night

Rochester, NY – The Syracuse Mets began their weeklong, six-game series at the Rochester Red Wings with a thud on Tuesday night. The Mets never led in an 8-1 loss to the Red Wings. The loss now drops the Mets’ record to 4-14 in their last 18 games overall, including losses in 11 of their last 13 road games. Despite the recent tough stretch, the Syracuse Mets are still 15 games over .500 overall for the 2024 season.

In the top of the second inning, Syracuse (64-49, 18-21) wasted an opportunity to score first, leaving the bases loaded without pushing a run across home plate.

In the bottom half of the second, Rochester (61-52, 23-17) strung together five straight hits to plate two runs and take an early 2-0 lead. The scoring was opened up by a Brady House solo home run over the left-field fence with one out in the inning, the third Triple-A home run in 22 games for the über-talented prospect.

In the third inning, the same thing happened all over again. The Mets loaded up the bases with nobody out this time, but still did not push a run across home plate.

The Red Wings pounced after that, scoring four times in the bottom of the third to surge the lead all the way out to 6-0. The runs came on a pair of two-run home runs, the first from Drew Millas and the second from Joey Meneses. It marked the third different time this season that the starting pitcher for the Mets, Dom Hamel, allowed three home runs in a start.

In the top of the fifth, it happened one more time, as the Mets loaded up the bases but did not get a run across home plate. That completed the starting pitching line for Rochester’s starter Jackson Rutledge, and it was truly one of the more interesting pitching lines that you will ever see. In four and two-third innings, Rutledge did not allow a run while racking up six strikeouts. However, the right-hander also allowed five runs, walked four batters, and it took a career-high 112 strikeouts for Rutledge to work the four and two-thirds scoreless innings.

From there, the bullpen for the Red Wings put it away. Joe La Sorsa, Zach Brzykcy, Tim Cate, and Carlos Romero allowed just one run in the final four and one-thirds innings on two hits. A solo home run from Austin Allen in the top of the sixth would prove to be the only run that the Mets would get across home plate down the home stretch of the game.

Syracuse, however, certainly had its chances. Not only did the Mets leave the bases loaded in three different innings, but Syracuse also left 11 runners on base in the game, five of which were left in scoring position.

The Wings capped off their scoring with a two-run homer from Dylan Crews in the bottom of the sixth, a majestic shot that sailed 430 feet over the fence in left-center field to make it an 8-1 game. Rochester finished the win with 11 hits, four of which were home runs. That ties the most home runs allowed in a game by Syracuse so far during the 2024 season.

The Syracuse Mets are on the road all week, taking on the Triple-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals, the Rochester Red Wings. Game two of the six-game series is set for 1:05 p.m. first pitch on Wednesday. Right-hander Brandon Sproat is expected to start on the mound for the Mets against right-hander Thaddeus Ward for the Red Wings.