The Mets started a new series against the Braves at Citi Field on Monday, after losing the weekend series to the Dodgers. The Braves had veteran Martín Pérez starting for them, while Mets rookie Zac Thornton was taking the mound in the midst of a great first season in the major leagues.
The night started with some adversity for Thornton. Ronald Acuña Jr. and Drake Baldwin led off with back-to-back singles, and a Matt Olson double play almost got Thornton through the inning, leaving a runner at third
with two outs. But Ozzie Albies hit a single to Francisco Lindor to drive in the game’s first run and put the Mets behind early. Thornton got a strikeout to end the inning but he had already put the Mets in a small hole early.
The Mets offense was clicking from the word go, so they weren’t down for long. A.J. Ewing led off for the Mets with a single, and Lindor hit a triple (that was very nearly a home run) to drive him in and tie the game. Pérez was able to stop the Mets offense there and get three consecutive outs to end the inning, but the Mets had shown some fight in the first inning.
The game was quiet for a little while, with both sides getting through their halves of the second inning without allowing a run. The Mets did the same in the top of the third, but Perez was not as lucky. Another Ewing leadoff single (and subsequent stolen base to put him on second) led to a Lindor home run (that nearly wasn’t) to put the Mets ahead by two runs. The Mets didn’t plate any more runs in the third but they had the lead.
Not for long, though, as an Olson walk to leadoff the fourth inning led to an Albies two run home run to tie the game. Thornton allowed a Michael Harris II single to follow the home run but settled down after and got out of the inning with the game tied once again.
Both teams were quiet for the next few innings, with Pérez eventually leaving the game after five innings. Connor Thomas, brought in to replace Pérez, immediately gave up a single to Tyrone Taylor (which maybe should’ve been ruled an error instead), and a Marcus Semien two-run home run to put the Mets back in front by two runs. He had a bit more traffic in the inning, giving up two more singles, but eventually got out of it without allowing another run to score.
Zac Thornton was pulled after getting the first out in the seventh, having allowed three runs on six hits and a walk while striking out five, adding to a stellar rookie season. Huascar Brazobán was brought in to relieve him, and got through the inning unscathed.
The Mets offense absolutely exploded in the bottom of the seventh. A Francisco Alvarez walk and Jared Young single put runners on the corners with no outs, and they were both driven in by Tyrone Taylor, who hit yet another home run to put the Mets up by five runs. After the bases were loaded with just one out, Bo Bichette drove in the Mets ninth run of the game with a sacrifice fly, adding even more insurance for a hopeful Mets win. Thomas got out of the inning after that, but the Mets opened up a wide lead with just two innings left.
The bottom of the eighth featured even more fireworks from the Mets lineup. They were able to load the bases with just one out, and Luis Torrens walked to drive in the Mets’ tenth run of the day. Then A.J. Ewing hit a sacrifice fly to drive in yet another run, putting the Mets up by eight runs. Francisco Lindor then hit his second home run of the game to put the Mets up by eleven runs and drive Thomas from the game in favor of Jorge Mateo (the infamous position player pitching). Mateo eventually got a strikeout to end the inning, but the Mets had to simply keep the Braves from scoring eleven runs in one inning.
Daniel Duarte pitched two scoreless innings to end the game, striking out three in those innings. The Mets beat a first place team for the second day in a row, more of a moral victory than one of any real importance given their place in the standings. Still, in a slog of a season, these games stick out as much needed bright spots. The Mets face the Braves again tomorrow, with Christian Scott taking the mound for New York and Chris Sale getting the ball for Atlanta.
SB Nation GameThreads
Box scores
Win Probability Added
Big Mets winner: Francisco Lindor, +28% WPA
Big Mets loser: Jared Young, -9% WPA
Mets pitchers: +7% WPA
Mets hitters: +43% WPA
Teh aw3s0mest play: Marcus Semien’s two-run home run in the sixth, +23.0% WPA
Teh sux0rest play: Ozzie Albies’ fourth inning game-tying home run, -19.6% WPA
