<img alt="New York Mets v Atlanta Braves - Game One" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/MLkoLWJLkuZxI9XzjJVh1e4htNk=/0x0:6620x4413/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73622496/2175029728.0.jpg">
Photo by Matthew Grimes Jr./Atlanta Braves/Getty Images
Spencer Schwellenbach dominated the Mets again but his relievers let him down in a major way. Despite Spencer Schwellenbach delivering another great performance for the Atlanta Braves against the New York Mets, Atlanta’s bullpen picked the worst possible time during this regular season to deliver one of their worst performances of the season. A 3-0 lead for the Braves after seven innings turned into a calamitous 8-7 loss.
This game started with Spencer Schwellenbach starting as he meant to finish — meaning that he retired the Mets in order to start things off as it surely appeared that he was ready to pick up exactly where he left off against this team last season. Schwellenbach wouldn’t give up a hit until the third inning, which is when Tyrone Taylor broke through with a broken ball (no, not bat) infield single that curved back into fair territory after starting out foul. Taylor then immediately stole second base and ended up at third with one out. Fortunately, Schwellenbach induced two more grounders to end the inning and end the scoring threat right there.
Atlanta’s lineup responded to Schwellenbach’s huge strand by getting things going in the very next frame. Michael Harris II led off the third with a single, which brought Ozzie Albies to the plate with Harris on first. Ozzie has been mostly mortifying to watch at the plate since making his return but this time, he was the one sparking dread in the hearts of the opposing pitcher. Tylor Megill threw Albies a hanging slider and despite the matchup being right-on-right, Ozzie didn’t miss it and sent it flying into the seats in left-center for a huge two-run homer. Atlanta sent seven batters to the plate in the third inning and while those two runs were the only runs they scored in that frame, that was enough for Spencer Schwellenbach to work with.
The Mets wouldn’t threaten again until the fifth inning, which is when Pete Alonso and J.D. Martinez combined for back-to-back singles to start the fifth inning. While Schwellenbach was able to strike out Tyrone Taylor to get an out on the board, Francisco Alvarez delivered a productive out to bring both runners into scoring position. After a quick meeting at the mound, Schwellenbach locked in and got Harrison Bader to ground out in order to snuff out another scoring chance for the Mets.
We wouldn’t see any more serious action until the sixth inning. Tylor Megill was out there for his third trip through the order and fortunately for the Braves, Ramón Laureano was able to make him pay for his third trip through the order by hitting a home run deep to center field in order to push the lead to 3-0. Atlanta ended the inning with two men on base but the most important thing was that Laureano was able to extend the lead while also running Megill from the game as well.
Spencer Schwellenbach got through seven innings and went out again for the eighth inning but a leadoff double after an 11-pitch battle with Tyrone Taylor ended his day and it was time for Joe Jiménez to make sure that Taylor stayed stranded at second. That didn’t happen, as Francisco Alvarez gave Jiménez a rude welcome to the game by hitting a soft grounder up the third base line for a double that put the Mets on the board. Pinch-hitter Starling Marte followed that up with a single to put runners on the corners and then Francisco Lindor hit one right up the middle to turn this into a one-run game while ending a rough outing for Joe Jiménez. Spencer Schwellenbach’s splendid start was suddenly in doubt, which was a crying shame because he came up huge today.
That meant that it was up to Raisel Iglesias to toss another six-out save. Iglesias couldn’t stop the bleeding, as Jose Iglesias kept New York’s line going by poking an opposite-field single to tie up the game at three runs apiece. The first out came at a price, which was Mark Vientos hitting a go-ahead sacrifice fly to put the Mets in front for the first time all day. Then things turned into a full-on collapse for the bullpen when Brandon Nimmo hit a homer to make it a six-run inning for the Mets with just one out.
Obviously, Iglesias was done after that but shockingly, the Braves were not done. Once it was Atlanta’s turn to bat, it was time to find a way to dig themselves out of a three-run hole. After the Mets made a bunch of changes, Phil Maton was the pitcher for New York to start the eighth and he immediately got things going for Atlanta by hitting Eli White with a pitch. Travis d’Arnaud got him over to third with a one-out single to put runners on the corners with just one out and Carlos Mendoza decided to follow Brian Snitker’s lead by bringing in his closer in the eighth inning.
Edwin Díaz entered the game looking to shut things down but Jarred Kelenic threw a wrench into those plans by hitting an RBI infield single that cut the deficit down to just two runs. Whit Merrifield entered into the game as a pinch-runner and stole second base, then he was joined on the basepaths by Michael Harris II following a walk. That brought Ozzie Albies to the plate against Díaz and on a 3-1 count, Ozzie smashed a fly ball that landed at the base of the wall in left field. Travis d’Arnaud scored. Whit Merrifield scored. Michael Harris II scored and Harris’s run made it a 7-6 game in favor of the Braves while Truist Park ascended into orbit.
With both Jiménez and Iglesias done for the game, that meant that it was up to Pierce Johnson to finish things off. Pierce got the first out but then Starling Marte got on with a single which was followed by Francisco Lindor hitting a home run to put the Mets back in front. The homer was all that Johnson ended up giving up but the onus was once again placed on this offense to deliver some more late-game magic after the bullpen’s collapse extended into another inning.
The Braves gave it a good shot in the bottom of the ninth, as Eli White singled with one out and then stole second base to get into scoring position. Unfortunately, Ramón Laureano was unable to get anything else going and then Travis d’Arnaud grounded out in order to ensure that the Mets would be going to the Postseason.
As insane as that game was, that still doesn’t change the formula for clinching a Postseason spot as far as the Braves are concerned. They still absolutely have to win one game today and they’ll be having Chris Sale going in order to help push them into the Postseason. It’s all coming down to this one final game and it’s coming just mere moments after the most insane game of the season so far.
<img alt="New York Mets v Atlanta Braves - Game One" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/MLkoLWJLkuZxI9XzjJVh1e4htNk=/0x0:6620x4413/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73622496/2175029728.0.jpg">
Photo by Matthew Grimes Jr./Atlanta Braves/Getty Images
Spencer Schwellenbach dominated the Mets again but his relievers let him down in a major way. Despite Spencer Schwellenbach delivering another great performance for the Atlanta Braves against the New York Mets, Atlanta’s bullpen picked the worst possible time during this regular season to deliver one of their worst performances of the season. A 3-0 lead for the Braves after seven innings turned into a calamitous 8-7 loss.
This game started with Spencer Schwellenbach starting as he meant to finish — meaning that he retired the Mets in order to start things off as it surely appeared that he was ready to pick up exactly where he left off against this team last season. Schwellenbach wouldn’t give up a hit until the third inning, which is when Tyrone Taylor broke through with a broken ball (no, not bat) infield single that curved back into fair territory after starting out foul. Taylor then immediately stole second base and ended up at third with one out. Fortunately, Schwellenbach induced two more grounders to end the inning and end the scoring threat right there.
Atlanta’s lineup responded to Schwellenbach’s huge strand by getting things going in the very next frame. Michael Harris II led off the third with a single, which brought Ozzie Albies to the plate with Harris on first. Ozzie has been mostly mortifying to watch at the plate since making his return but this time, he was the one sparking dread in the hearts of the opposing pitcher. Tylor Megill threw Albies a hanging slider and despite the matchup being right-on-right, Ozzie didn’t miss it and sent it flying into the seats in left-center for a huge two-run homer. Atlanta sent seven batters to the plate in the third inning and while those two runs were the only runs they scored in that frame, that was enough for Spencer Schwellenbach to work with.
The Mets wouldn’t threaten again until the fifth inning, which is when Pete Alonso and J.D. Martinez combined for back-to-back singles to start the fifth inning. While Schwellenbach was able to strike out Tyrone Taylor to get an out on the board, Francisco Alvarez delivered a productive out to bring both runners into scoring position. After a quick meeting at the mound, Schwellenbach locked in and got Harrison Bader to ground out in order to snuff out another scoring chance for the Mets.
We wouldn’t see any more serious action until the sixth inning. Tylor Megill was out there for his third trip through the order and fortunately for the Braves, Ramón Laureano was able to make him pay for his third trip through the order by hitting a home run deep to center field in order to push the lead to 3-0. Atlanta ended the inning with two men on base but the most important thing was that Laureano was able to extend the lead while also running Megill from the game as well.
Spencer Schwellenbach got through seven innings and went out again for the eighth inning but a leadoff double after an 11-pitch battle with Tyrone Taylor ended his day and it was time for Joe Jiménez to make sure that Taylor stayed stranded at second. That didn’t happen, as Francisco Alvarez gave Jiménez a rude welcome to the game by hitting a soft grounder up the third base line for a double that put the Mets on the board. Pinch-hitter Starling Marte followed that up with a single to put runners on the corners and then Francisco Lindor hit one right up the middle to turn this into a one-run game while ending a rough outing for Joe Jiménez. Spencer Schwellenbach’s splendid start was suddenly in doubt, which was a crying shame because he came up huge today.
That meant that it was up to Raisel Iglesias to toss another six-out save. Iglesias couldn’t stop the bleeding, as Jose Iglesias kept New York’s line going by poking an opposite-field single to tie up the game at three runs apiece. The first out came at a price, which was Mark Vientos hitting a go-ahead sacrifice fly to put the Mets in front for the first time all day. Then things turned into a full-on collapse for the bullpen when Brandon Nimmo hit a homer to make it a six-run inning for the Mets with just one out.
Obviously, Iglesias was done after that but shockingly, the Braves were not done. Once it was Atlanta’s turn to bat, it was time to find a way to dig themselves out of a three-run hole. After the Mets made a bunch of changes, Phil Maton was the pitcher for New York to start the eighth and he immediately got things going for Atlanta by hitting Eli White with a pitch. Travis d’Arnaud got him over to third with a one-out single to put runners on the corners with just one out and Carlos Mendoza decided to follow Brian Snitker’s lead by bringing in his closer in the eighth inning.
Edwin Díaz entered the game looking to shut things down but Jarred Kelenic threw a wrench into those plans by hitting an RBI infield single that cut the deficit down to just two runs. Whit Merrifield entered into the game as a pinch-runner and stole second base, then he was joined on the basepaths by Michael Harris II following a walk. That brought Ozzie Albies to the plate against Díaz and on a 3-1 count, Ozzie smashed a fly ball that landed at the base of the wall in left field. Travis d’Arnaud scored. Whit Merrifield scored. Michael Harris II scored and Harris’s run made it a 7-6 game in favor of the Braves while Truist Park ascended into orbit.
With both Jiménez and Iglesias done for the game, that meant that it was up to Pierce Johnson to finish things off. Pierce got the first out but then Starling Marte got on with a single which was followed by Francisco Lindor hitting a home run to put the Mets back in front. The homer was all that Johnson ended up giving up but the onus was once again placed on this offense to deliver some more late-game magic after the bullpen’s collapse extended into another inning.
The Braves gave it a good shot in the bottom of the ninth, as Eli White singled with one out and then stole second base to get into scoring position. Unfortunately, Ramón Laureano was unable to get anything else going and then Travis d’Arnaud grounded out in order to ensure that the Mets would be going to the Postseason.
As insane as that game was, that still doesn’t change the formula for clinching a Postseason spot as far as the Braves are concerned. They still absolutely have to win one game today and they’ll be having Chris Sale going in order to help push them into the Postseason. It’s all coming down to this one final game and it’s coming just mere moments after the most insane game of the season so far.
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