It hasn’t been an easy season for the Atlanta Braves, but they may have scored their biggest win of the 2024 season on Tuesday.
With the NL East rival Mets in town for a three-game series, the Braves opened the series with a 5-1 victory that moves them just one game back of New York in the National League wild-card standings.
The Braves (86-71) were led by a fantastic pitching effort by Spencer Schwellenbach, who gave up just three hits and one run over seven innings of work.
Meanwhile, the Mets’ (87-70) Luis Severino was shelled for seven hits and four runs over just four innings of work. Atlanta put together a three-run third inning to grab a 3-0 lead, with an RBI coming from Michael Harris II, Ozzie Albies and Ramon Laureano.
Harris wasn’t done making noise at the plate, however, as a solo shot in the fourth padded the Braves’ lead.
Marcell Ozuna concluded Atlanta’s scoring in the fifth with a solo homer of his own. The home run was Ozuna’s 39th of the season.
Mark Vientos finally touched Schwellenbach in the seventh inning with a solo home run, but Joe Jimenez and Raisel Iglesias shut down New York over the final two innings to secure a pivotal victory for the Braves’ postseason hopes.
With a win in Wednesday’s contest, the Braves can even up the wild-card standings with their division rival. First pitch for Game 2 is scheduled for 7:20 p.m. ET on Wednesday, with another 7:20 p.m. first pitch scheduled for the series finale on Thursday.