Farm Report

AAA Norfolk Tides The Norfolk Tides beat the Toledo Mud Hens 6-4. Evan MacLane threw a gem in his AAA debut. He picked up the win by going seven innings and allowed three hits, one run on one homerun, and walked one while striking out four. Tim Lavigne picked up his first save of the year and went one inning while giving up one earned run and allowing four base runners. Lastings Milledge went 1 for 3 with two runs scored and two walks, Jeff Keppinger went 1 for 4 with a double and three RBIs, Victor Diaz had a huge day and went 2 for 2 with his second homerun, two RBIs, and three walks, and Ray Navarrete went 2 for 5 with two runs scored and two doubles. Heath Bell had not pitched since he threw 1.1 innings on the May 5th and would have presumably been available for yesterday's game, but Tim Lavingne was brought in for the save. This is certainly interesting and makes me wonder if some roster shuffling is about to happen. AA Binghamton Mets The Binghamton Mets lost to the Connecticut Defenders 4-3. Will Vazquez made his AA debut and gave up three runs in 3.1 innings pitched. Robert Paulk and Tim McNab combined for 5.2 innings of relief and gave up one earned run while allowing three hits each. Carlos Gomez continues to respond since being dropped to ninth in the order. "I like the No. 9 spot," [Carlos] Gomez said. "Hitting No. 9, it's easier. The other team doesn't think you're a good hitter because you're hitting ninth, so they don't throw as many tough pitches. There's less pressure." Gomez went 2 for 3 with a triple and a walk to bring his batting average to .228 and is heading towards respectability. While that statement is not what you want to hear, it should be noted that he was a slow starter last year too. Michel Abreu hit his second homer in two days and went 1 for 4 to bring his average to .390, Jay Caligiuri hit is fifth homer of the year and went 1 for 4, and Wilson Batista went 1 for 3 with an RBI and a walk. Mike Pelfrey will take the mound today for his third AA start and will look to rebound for his rough outing last week. High-A St. Lucie Mets The St. Lucie Mets lost to the Fort Myers Miracle 4-1. Anderson Hernandez picked up right where he left off and went 0 for 4 with a strikeout and Shawn Bowman went 1 for 4 with his second homerun of the year. Jake Ruckle got the start today for the Mets and went five innings while giving up four hits, three runs, two earned runs, and one walk. Travis Hope threw well in relief of Ruckle and went four innings and gave up four hits, one run, no earned runs, and no walks while striking out two. Low-A Hagerstown Suns Hagerstown beat the Lakewood Blue Claws 5-2 behind a strong pitching performance by Jon Niese as he dropped his ERA to 3.34. Niese went six innings and gave up five hits, two earned runs, and one walk while striking out six. Niese's two runs surrendered were due to a wind-blown ball that was misplayed by Jonathan Sanchez that ended up being a triple. If he had caught it, it would have been the last out of the inning. Marcelo Perez picked up his second save of the season by tossing one inning and allowing no runs, no hits, and no walks while striking out two. Fernando Martinez went 1 for 4, Jonathan Sanchez went 2 for 5, Nick Evans went 2 for 5 with a solo homerun, Jose Castro went 3 for 4 with a run scored and an RBI, and Drew Butera went 2 for 5 with two RBIs. Provided by Michael Oliver of MetsGeek.com