Mets Dominant on the Mound, Defeat Mighty Mussels 6-1
June 18, 2024 - Florida State League (FSL)
St. Lucie Mets News Release
JUPITER, Fla. - The St. Lucie Mets improved to 5-0 on Tuesdays at Clover Park with a 6-1 victory over the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels. The win also snapped the Mets' four-game losing streak.
The Mets put together a dominant performance on the mound. Four pitchers limited the Mussels to one run on just two hits. The two hits tied for the fewest the Mets have allowed in a game this season.
Starter Joel Diaz pitched 4.2 innings and gave up one run. He allowed the only two hits on singles by Walker Jenkins in the first inning and a leadoff single by Carlos Aguiar in the fifth. Diaz walked two and struck out four. He threw 73 pitches.
Miguel Alfonseca relieved Diaz with two outs in the fifth and walked the first batter he faced to load the bases. Alfonseca was able to get a fly out by Jenkins on a 3-1 pitch to end the inning and maintain the Mets 3-0 lead.
Bryce Montes de Oca continued his minor league rehab assignment in the sixth. He recorded two outs but walked the bases loaded. Lefty Gregori Louis came in and plunked Yohander Martinez to force home a run that made it 3-1. Louis bounced back and struck out Ryan McCarthy to get out of further trouble.
Louis pitched the final 3.1 innings and did not give up a hit or a run of his own. He struck out three and got credit for the win. The only other base runner to reach against Louis outside of the hit batter was Poncho Ruiz, who reached via error to start the eighth inning. Louis retired the next six batters in a row to finish off the game.
The Mets offense, which was held to three singles and no runs in a doubleheader on Sunday, scored two runs before it made an out on Tuesday. Boston Baro took a four-pitch walk from Ross Dunn to leadoff the first inning. Then Jesus Baez blasted a long home run to give the Mets a 2-0 lead. It was Baez's team-leading ninth homer of the season.
Ronald Hernandez followed with a double. He moved to third on a ground out and scored on a Colin Houck ground out to make it 3-0.
A.J. Ewing added a RBI sac fly in the sixth inning to put the Mets up 4-1.
Hernandez broke the game open with a two-out, two-run single in the seventh for a 6-1 lead.
Hernandez went 2 for 4 with a double and two RBI.
Dunn took the loss. He was charged with three runs on three hits over 3.0 innings.
The Mets (21-43) and Mighty Mussels (30-33) play the second game of their series at Clover Park on Wednesday. First pitch is scheduled for 1:10 p.m.
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