B-METS SWEPT-SEASON ENDS

B-Mets Swept as Comeback Bid Sputters, 4-2

READING, PA – The Binghamton Mets fell to the Reading Fightin Phils, 4-2, on Saturday night at FirstEnergy Stadium and were swept in three games in the Eastern Division Championship Series. The B-Mets surrendered four runs early and went 0-for-11 with runners in scoring position in the series-sealing defeat. The Fightins will play the Bowie Baysox in the Eastern League Championship Series.
JP Crawford set the tone for Reading two batters into the first inning. The Fightins shortstop blasted Gabriel Ynoa’s eighth pitch of the night beyond the right-field wall for his first home run of the postseason.
The Fightin Phils offense reached another gear in the second, pushing three more runs across. Following two hits to open the inning, Angelo Mora lifted a sacrifice fly to left. Two batters later, Nick Williams crushed his second home run in as many games, pushing Reading to a four-run lead.
In the third, Reading loaded the bases and chased Ynoa from the game. Beck Wheeler took over and struck out Mora before Ben Lively hit a long fly ball to the right-field alley. Joe Benson caught the drive in stride on the warning track to end the inning and quash the threat.
After keeping Binghamton in the game with his glove, Benson pulled the B-Mets closer with his bat in the fourth. With a runner aboard, Benson lifted a 1-2 pitch from Lively over the right-field wall. His two-out blast cut the deficit in half.
Binghamton threatened against the Reading bullpen, but failed to collect the timely hit. LJ Mazzilli lined out to Ryan O’Sullivan with two on in the seventh. TJ Rivera reached second with none out in the eighth, but was stranded when Jimmy Cordero retired the heart of the B-Mets order. Stephen Shakleford surrendered a double to Benson to start the ninth, but registered three straight outs to punch Reading’s ticket to the Championship series.
Lively (0-1) allowed two runs on four hits over five innings in the win. Ynoa (0-1) was tagged for four runs on six hits over 2-1/3 innings in his first career postseason loss. Four B-Met relievers combined for 5-2/3 innings of scoreless relief.
POSTGAME NOTES: Binghamton finished the series hitless in their final 18 at-bats with runners in scoring position…Binghamton’s three starters combined for a 10.03 ERA and a .483 opponent batting average…it is the second time in franchise history the B-Mets have been swept in a playoff series (2013 EDCS vs Trenton)

-