Dan Hammer starts, Jack Wenninger follows as Syracuse edges Lehigh Valley in Mets prospect action

Syracuse’s win on Monday in Mets minor-league action came with an unusual early look at the back end of the pitching staff. According to Yahoo Sports’ Mets daily prospect report, Syracuse manager Dick Scott opened the game with reliever Dan Hammer on the mound, then turned to starter Jack Wenninger after Hammer’s initial frame. The goal appeared to be to work around standard roles, though the early results were largely steady: Hammer delivered a scoreless first inning before the game shifted to Wenninger’s longer stint.

What followed, in the report, was a mixed bag from the starter. Wenninger allowed three runs over the next five innings, turning Syracuse’s early posture into damage control rather than dominance. By the time Syracuse was chasing the deficit, the game looked headed toward a more comfortable outcome for Lehigh Valley, but the report describes a late-game surge anchored by small, situational events and timely hits.

In the late innings, Syracuse used a pair of momentum swings to pull back into the lead. Trailing by a run, the team tied the contest in the seventh on a wild pitch, a reminder that even when pitchers execute, the game can still tilt on a single miscue. The report then has Syracuse taking the lead immediately after the tie, scoring on a Vidal Brujan RBI single that put the pressure back on Lehigh Valley.

Lehigh Valley responded in the bottom of that same inning, leveling the score before Syracuse had a chance to settle. But Syracuse again found a go-ahead moment in the eighth. This time, the difference-maker in the report was Ben Rortvedt, who drove in a run with an RBI double. With that run in place, Syracuse was able to close out the contest, and the game ended with the late advantage standing as the final result.

For the Mets’ player development picture, the most immediate takeaway is less about any single at-bat and more about how the club’s affiliates manage game leverage. Hammer’s start illustrates the kinds of bullpen experimentation that are common in long seasons when managers want to keep certain arms available for later use. Meanwhile, Wenninger’s line underscores how starters in the system can still be evaluated on both the ability to absorb trouble and the capacity of their team to manufacture late run support.

Going forward, the development angle is straightforward: Syracuse’s ability to battle back, combined with the specific late-inning impact from Brujan and Rortvedt in the report, points to players who are contributing when the game tightens. The pitching decision-making also remains a point to watch, because how and when Syracuse uses its bullpen versus its starters can shape both individual evaluations and the team’s ability to keep winning in close games.