It was the best of games, it was the worst of games… which part do you want to talk about in this second tilt between the Braves and Mets?
When Aaron Blair is good, he’s very good. Exhibit A, 1st inning: groundout, groundout, foul out. 11 pitches.
When Aaron Blair is bad, things tend to come unraveled in a hurry. Exhibit B, 2nd inning: single, HBP, double, strikeout, RBI groundout, and pop out. 2 runs scored.
The Jekyll/Hyde thing continued: 1-2-3 inning in the 3rd; 3 hits and three runs in the 4th.
By the time Blair was removed in the 5th inning, the Mets had plated 8 unanswered runs, with 7 hits and 3 walks involved. It’s literally been that kind of on-again/off-again thing… but a thing he needs to continue to work through, for he didn’t have anything left to prove at AAA.
The Comeback Kids
More from Tomahawk Take
- Braves News: Braves 2023 rotation speculation, Correa deal on hold, more
- Atlanta Braves: Current Left Field Mix
- Atlanta Braves 2023 Preseason Top 30 Prospects List: 11-15
- Braves News: Braves sign Luplow, Atlanta’s shortstop plans, more
- Atlanta Braves Could Go With Six-Man Rotation in 2023
First of all, I am so ready for Flo Rida to finally get their concert over and done with.
Moving on.
Steven Matz was dealing. 1 single allowed through the first 4 innings, that erased by a double play.
By then the 5th inning happened.
A Jeff Francoeur double, then another “double” – this one by Yoenis Cespedes… kinda. As the ball (struck by Nick Markakis) was flying, it looked like Cespedes knew where it was.
He had no idea. It landed some 25 feet to hit right.
If Matz wasn’t a bit spooked by Frenchy’s shot, he was now.
By the time the dust had settled (highlighted by a Brandon Snyder 3-run Jack), the Braves had plated 6 runs and gotten back into the game.
To the 9th
No changes until the bottom of the last frame (another great bullpen outing!). A single by Tyler Flowers got things started. Erick Aybar was whacked near the elbow. 2 on, none out.
Then Metropolitan nuttiness ensued.
Chase d’Arnaud was called upon to bunt, but failed to get it on the ground… instead, it was half-lined/half-popped toward third base. It was close enough, in fact, for Wilmer Flores to make an awkward dive.
He ended up trapping the ball, but the runners were caught in no-man’s land. Once Flores got up, he ran to third base, tagging it, then fired to second base.
Two force outs, only d’Arnaud was left on base. Rally now on life support.
Jace Peterson was then the last hope – he struck out, but even that wasn’t entirely conventional.
The ball hit the dirt and got to the backstop. Jace nearly outran the throw to first, but first baseman James Loney made a miraculous grab of a wide, bounced throw. In the process, he fell toward second base while dragging his left foot across the bag to record the out.
Sometimes things just don’t quite go your way.
The Mets thus prevailed, 8-6… and are probably as relieved at that result as any team has been that has ever had an 8-zip lead.
Matz did not last long enough for the decision. Hansel Robles (2-1) got the W with Jeurys Familia pretty much lucking into his 25th save. Blair took the loss, he’s 0-5, 7.99.
We’ll try it again tomorrow.