Syracuse Mets blank Lehigh Valley 5-0, win five of six at home

The Syracuse Mets sent their home crowd home satisfied Sunday afternoon, blanking the Lehigh Valley IronPigs 5-0 at NBT Bank Stadium and finishing a six-game homestand with five wins. In a stretch that tested both the rotation and the lineup, Syracuse answered with a shutout, a balanced offense, and enough consistency to suggest the club is settling in at the right time in Onondaga County.

The victory was not built on one explosive inning. Instead, Syracuse pieced together runs across the game and made Lehigh Valley work at every turn. Cristian Pache started the scoring by reaching and later crossing on Yonny Hernandez’s RBI single in the second inning. Pache then supplied the biggest swing of the day in the sixth, launching a two-run home run that pushed the Mets further in front. Christian Arroyo added another RBI single in the eighth, extending the cushion to 5-0 and closing the door on any late comeback hopes.

The pitching was even more important than the run support. Syracuse used six pitchers to complete the shutout, beginning with Daniel Duarte, who worked two scoreless innings. A.J. Minter handled the third, Carlos Guzman added two more shutout frames, and Jonathan Pintaro struck out four over two innings. Dylan Ross covered the eighth, and Alex Carrillo finished the ninth to seal the blanking. For a Triple-A club trying to keep its staff organized and its options sharp, that kind of collective effort matters.

Sunday’s win capped a home stretch that gave Syracuse real momentum. The Mets also beat Lehigh Valley 6-3 in a rain-shortened game Friday, dropped Saturday’s game 9-6, and swept a Thursday doubleheader with a 7-0 shutout and a 4-3 extra-inning walk-off win. The Thursday twin bill was created after rain forced a postponement Wednesday, and Syracuse responded by taking control of the series early.

The Mets improved to 18-14, while Lehigh Valley fell to 17-16 after snapping a four-game losing streak Saturday. With Rochester scheduled to arrive Tuesday night for a six-game set back at NBT Bank Stadium, Syracuse left itself a promising bridge into the next homestand. For a team trying to build rhythm, the combination of five wins in six games, strong pitching depth, and timely offense is the kind of home work that can carry beyond one weekend.