First place in the NL East is up for grabs this weekend as the top two teams in the standings lock up in Hotlanta. The New York Mets are on the road as they play the middle game of a three-game set with the Atlanta Braves Saturday night. New York split a two-game set at home against the Marlins as they earned a 5-4, 10-inning, walk-off victory in their most recent game Wednesday night. Atlanta missed a chance to sweep the Nationals on the road as they fell 3-2 in 10 innings in the finale of that set Wednesday night. This article was published prior to the conclusion of the opening game of the set at Truist Park Friday night.
New York found themselves in a hole in the late stages of the game against the Marlins before rallying to earn the victory and avoid a sweep. The Mets entered Friday night holding a one-game lead over the Braves in the NL East race. On Wednesday, New York trailed 4-0 after six and a half innings before scoring twice in the seventh and twice in the eighth before winning it in the 10th inning. Eduardo Escobar (run, five RBI) had three hits for the Mets while Jeff McNeil (run) added two in the contest. Escobar hit his 20th homer of the season in the seventh inning, tied the game with a two-run infield single in the eighth and won it with a RBI single in the 10th inning. Taijuan Walker didn’t factor in the decision as he threw five innings, allowing three runs on six hits with two walks and eight strikeouts. Drew Smith (3-3) earned the win as he threw a scoreless inning, allowing no hits or walks while st riking out two.
Max Scherzer toes the slab for the 23rd time this season for the Mets looking to deliver a win in this massive contest. He comes in 11-4 with a 2.13 ERA, a 0.881 WHIP, 24 walks and 169 strikeouts over 139.2 innings of work this season. Scherzer earned the win in his last start, which came against the A’s on the road Sunday. He threw six innings, allowing one run on four hits with one walk and seven strikeouts in a game the Mets won 13-4. In his last three starts, Scherzer is 2-0 with a 1.06 ERA, a 0.53 WHIP, two walks and 21 strikeouts over 17 innings of work. Scherzer logs his 31st career appearance and 29th start against the Braves in this contest. He comes in 13-9 with a 3.69 ERA, a 1.124 WHIP, 54 walks and 213 strikeouts over 178 innings of work against them. Scherzer is 5-3 with a 3.61 ERA, a 1.035 WHIP, 17 walks and 59 strikeouts over 47.1 innings of work in eight career starts at Truist Park.