Mets avoid sweep with huge fifth inning to beat Braves
NEW YORK — If Mets fans weren’t well acquainted with Rafael Ortega before, they might be after Sunday night. The reserve outfielder who was called up from Triple-A Syracuse after the trade deadline went 3-for-4 with two runs scored and two RBI in the Mets’ 7-6 win over the Atlanta Braves on Sunday night at Citi Field.
The Mets went down 3-0 in the first inning but scored six runs in a wacky fifth inning to come back and prevent a four-game sweep by Atlanta (75-42). The inning started with Ortega singling off right-handed starter Yonny Chirinos and ended with Collin McHugh on the mound after the Mets batted around. Six runs were scored on four hits, three walks and a catcher’s interference. Omar Narvaez and Mark Vientos both walked with the bases loaded and DJ Stewart was initially awarded first base after being hit by a pitch, which was later ruled catchers interference.
Ortega had two hits in the inning, one against Chirinos (5-5) and a two-run single against McHugh that gave the Mets (53-65) a 7-3 lead.
But the league-leading Braves came back. Grant Hartwig took over for Kodai Senga in the seventh and left a meatball of a sinker right out over the plate for Sean Murphy. The catcher drove it 455 feet into the left field stands to cut the lead to 7-4.
Baseball’s home run leader Matt Olson hit his 43rd of the season in the eighth off Brooks Raley. The lefty came in to replace Hartwig with one on and one out. Olson is just about the toughest out in the NL and he managed to golf a sinker that was low and inside to bring the visitors back to within one run.
But Adam Ottavino shut the door in the ninth, retiring the side in order to convert his seventh save.
Senga (9-6) struggled through the first inning before settling in and holding the Braves scoreless over the next five. He allowed three earned runs on four hits, walked two and struck out seven over six innings. Getting him through six was a boon to a beleaguered bullpen, but it didn’t look like the right-handed rookie would get that far when he needed about 30 pitches to get through the first inning.
All three runs came in the first when Senga gave up a leadoff single, two walks and a one-out double to Marcel Ozuna with the bases loaded. He quieted the Braves after that, allowing only two more hits.
