Mets nearly no-hit in 4-1 loss to Braves in Christian Scott's Citi Field debut
Christian Scott had another strong start in his Citi Field debut but the Mets were one out away from being no-hit as they fell to the Atlanta Braves, 4-1, on Saturday afternoon.
Here are the takeaways...
-Scott's first inning on Saturday went better than his first start. It took the young right-hander just nine pitches to get through the top of the Braves batting order 1-2-3, which included strikeouts of Ronald Acuna Jr. and Austin Riley.
Scott struggled in the third inning. He fell behind 2-0 on Michael Harris II and gave up a single, and then 2-0 on Orlando Arcia who turned on an inside 94 mph four-seamer and sent it 412 feet just inside the left field foul pole to give Atlanta a 2-0 lead. He'd give up an RBI single to Harris II in the fourth, but Scott was very effective.
The young right-hander took the mound in the seventh, but gave up a leadoff walk and a single before Mendoza pulled his starter.
Scott went 6+ innings (91 pitches/55 strikes), giving up three runs on six hits, two walks while striking out eight batters.
-On the other side, Max Fried dominated the Mets. The left-hander pitched seven no-hit innings. Unfortunately, the 30-year-old was taken out after 109 pitches. Like many no-hitters -- and no-hit bids -- Fried was helped by some masterful defense. Harris II took a J.D. Martinez hit away in the seventh when the DH launched a 408-foot drive to center that the outfielder ran down. The ball came off of Martinez's bat at 105.4 mph.
Fried was masterful, going seven innings, and giving up just three walks, no hits and no runs.
-In relief of Fried, the Braves bullpen pitched into trouble in the eighth. Harrison Bader and a pinch-hitting DJ Stewart were walked by Joe Jimenez, but the right-hander came back to strike out Tyrone Taylor and Starling Marte to end the threat.
-Closer Raisel Iglesias struck out Francisco Lindor to start the ninth. He broke Pete Alonso's bat to get the second out but Martinez launched his first home run as a Met on the first pitch he saw. The ball went 386 feet over the right-center field wall. It would have been a home run in 23 of 30 parks.
The Mets would get the next two batters on to bring up Brett Baty as the tying run, but the third baseman flew out to end the game.
-Brandon Nimmo, who came in with a seven-game hitting streak, had to leave the game early after irritating the muscle between his ribs. The outfielder finished 0-for-1 with a walk, but his hitting streak came to an end.
-Jarred Kelenic was in the starting lineup on Saturday. Six years after being drafted by the Mets, Kelenic made his Citi Field debut as well.
Kelenic finished 0-for-4 with a strikeout.
Game MVP: Max Fried
Fried is the easy pick after not allowing a run through seven innings.
Highlights
What's next
The Mets and Braves finish their three-game series on Sunday night. First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 p.m.
Luis Severino (2-2, 2.93 ERA) will be on the mound against Bryce Elder (1-1, 5.28 ERA).
