Syracuse never hit a rhythm in their return to NBT Bank Stadium. The playoff hopes for the Mets took a hit in a difficult series as the Buffalo Bison put themselves in contention.Standings: Durham 62-49 Lehigh Valley 61-50 (1.0 GB)Jacksonville 60-51 (2.0 GB)Buffalo 59-51 (2.5 GB)Scranton/WB 58-52 (3.5 GB)Worcester 56-55 (6.0 GB)Norfolk 51-59 (10.5 GB)Rochester 50-61 (12.0 GB)Syracuse 48-63 (14.0 GB)Charlotte 43-68 (19.0 GB)GB= Games BackAround the Horn: A Series in ReviewAugust 9th: L, 3-4August 10th: L, 3-10August 11th: W, 6-5August 12th: L, 1-3August 13th: L, 1-8August 14th: L, 0-2At the start of the series Syracuse was coming off an 18-2 win and was anticipating the debut of Brett Baty. While Baty himself did not disappoint, the Mets could not get anything rolling against Buffalo. The Bison seized an opportunity to climb closer to the top dogs in the standings while Syracuse put themselves in a difficult spot. They playoff prospects for the team are not done, but definitely bleak after a 3-9 record in their last two series. This seemed to set the tone for what would be a battle of a series. The scoring was back and forth as it started with a Daniel Palka homer to center. Buffalo responded with three runs on the Paul Martin Kids Jersey top of the third. Nathan Lukes singled to center which brought in the first two before Vinny Capra scored on a balk. Down 3-1 in the bottom of the 3rd Alvarez hit an RBI single to score Khalil Lee. Who other than Daniel Palka to tie it in the 4th with his second big fly of the night. Stevie Berman responded with a homer of his own in the 5th to regain a 4-3 lead for the Bison. The scoring would end there for both teams as the bullpens on either Antti Niemi Kids Jersey side had shut down stuff. The win went to Nick Allgeyer while Rob Zastryzny would pick up the lo s despite just one run allowed. This ended up being a momentum building game that turned the series as a whole in favor of the Bison. The series certainly could have played out differently had the Mets found a way to win this one. (Game 2) David Peterson started twice this series, the first being for game two. It was a tale of two innings. In the first the Bison continued to barrel up the baseball. They scored four runs on five hits. The second inning was 1-2-3 and went as smooth as po sible. His night was done there due to his first inning pitch count. This was Petersons first appearance in Syracuse since pitching for New York on the 6th of August against the Braves. The Mets scored for the first time in the 7th. Daniel Palka singled before a Mark Vientos walk. Baty then singled to center. JT Riddle grounded into a fielder's choice up the middle which allowed Palk to score. Syracuse would get two more in the 9th. Mark Vientos doubled with one out and Brett Baty brought him home with a single to left. This was his first Triple-A RBI. The final run came from Terrance Gore who brought Baty in with a single to center. Buffalo doubled Syracuse in the hit column. Warmoth was the standout with a three-hit day including a homer in the 7th. Nate Fisher pitched very well for the Mets and went four full innings where he allowed just three hits. Connor Grey would get the start for the Mets lone win of the series. Grey pitched well going five complete innings allowing just two runs on five hits, two walks and two strikeouts. The winning pitcher R.J. Alvarez struggled in his two thirds of an inning Jake Guentzel Women Jersey where he walked one and gave up a two-run homer. Offensively Syracuse had a few more hits but it was largely an even game. The difference came in the 1st inning. Both teams scored five runs between the fifth and seventh inning. That first frame was the only other inning with a run. Nick Plummer was responsible for it when he singled on a line to right to bring in Baty. In the two contested innings the scoring started for the Bison with a Lantingua home run. Otto Lopez then singled to short to bring in Colton Shaver. Mark Vientos and the Mets responded in the bottom half of the 5th. Vientos doubled to score Baty and Plummer. He later reached home to make it 4-2 on a Travis Blankenhorn single. Buffalo took the lead back in the 7th when Vinny Capra hit a two-run blast to center. Khalil Lee would have the final say when he drove in two runs by hitting an 0-1 pitch to right. Plummer and Vientos would be the two who cro sed the plate on the base hit. Bryce Montes de Oca could not have been better to close the game. He had the final two frames for the Mets and struck out five of the six batters he faced. Rafael Lantigua was the only Bison batter to put the ball in play off of Montes de Oca when he grounded out to Marrero. The whole series seemed to be a battle between the Mets offense and getting runners acro s the plate. There were three games where the pitching staff kept the Bison to four or fewer runs yet lost. The Syracuse Mets even out hit the Bison in this game but simply couldnt put enough pre sure on Buffalo. Syracuse didnt get a runner to third until the 8th inning where they scored their only run. Jose Butto made his debut at the Triple-A level and did well overall. He only allowed five hits and one walk in his five innings of work. He ran into some trouble in the second when a one-out triple from LJ Talley led to a Logan Warmoth RBI. Tom Kuhnhackl Kids Jersey He would later score on a Stevie Berman sac-fly to right. In the 5th he hit Stamets which started the inning on the wrong foot. Otto Lopez then doubled, and it was second and third with nobody out. A ground out to Katoh at second allowed Stamets to score to make it 3-0. This was a good starting point at this level for Butto. There Jarred Tinordi Women Jersey were a few things he could have done better but he put together three very good innings and limited the damage in the one's that got away from him. Terrance Gore started the one scoring threat that the Mets did put together in the 8th. He singled and advanced on a Baty flyout. Alvarez then singled to center to bring him home. Palka would double to continue the threat but back-to-back strikeouts ended the inning. This game presented a good opportunity to string a second win together but unfortunately the Bison pitching staff continued to get the best of the Mets. Ro s Stripling started on a rehab a signment and gave up just three hits with three strikeouts in his five innings of work.Scroll to Continue This game did bring some positives on the offensive end, but they were largely individual as runs were hard to come by. The only run came in the 7th for Syracuse on a Deven Marrero home run. Mark Vientos had himself a three-hit game while Baty picked up another AAA hit making it four games in a row. The team collectively recorded seven hits. The defensive side was a struggle. There is no other way to put it. Mike Montgomery picked up his ninth lo s as he walked three, gave up three hits and two earned in three innings of work. Diehl gave up four earned in his one inning of work and Otanez gave up two unearned runs. The pitching st