On a rainy Tuesday night, the New York Mets heard nothing but the sound of crickets each time they came to the plate as the Atlanta Braves shut them down, 3-0 with only one hit from the bat of Asdrúbal Cabrera.
Other than that, the Mets were quieted and ended the night with their 9th loss of the year and a tie in the three-game series against the Braves. The Braves notched their 7th win of the season with Matt Wisler on the mound, who allowed the New Yorkers just one hit in eight innings. All the Braves needed was the home run from rookie Mallex Smith, which was a triple at first until the replay showed that it did, indeed, hit the black part of the outfield wall, but they got two extra insurance runs in the 6th inning to seal the deal.
It was only the Mets third loss in 15 games and Matt Harvey seemed to struggle on what was a chilly night, which could, perhaps, be a factor in his pitching. However, it seemed that everyone was looking for a reason as to why Harvey is struggling.
“I don’t have all the answers, except not everybody is going to be good every night,” says Mets manager Terry Collins after Matt Harvey worked 5 ²/₃ innings — the third time in six starts he failed to complete six innings. “As it starts to get nicer and a little bit warmer, maybe then we’ll make a determination if the arm strength is going to come back or if it’s going to be one of those years where, due to all the innings last year, we’re going to see the effects of it.”
So Collins is blaming the innings from last year? He’s also maybe blaming the cold weather? Some people were questioning the illness that Collins said that Harvey had earlier on his performance too, but while everyone searches for answers, Harvey took another loss and now has a 2-4 record with a 4.76 ERA. The Atlanta Braves’ reliever Arodys Vizcaino had three Mets up and down in the 9th to complete the one-hit shutout. It is only the second time the Mets weren’t allowed any runs this season (the last time was April 9th).
The Mets struck out five times, with Walker being two of the whiffs and Granderson, Wright and Harvey sharing the rest.
Earlier in the evening, Jacob deGrom received his 2015 Wilson Defensive Pitcher of the Year Award prior to tonight’s game. He had a 1.000 fielding percentage last year and has not made an error in his major league career. The Award recognizes the top defensive player at each position by combining traditional defensive stats along with advanced metrics. Curtis Granderson and Eric Campbell went to P.S. 92 in Corona for the team’s annual Reading Rally. The Mets partner with the elementary school on a weekly mentoring program where employees read with students and share lunch throughout the year. Granderson and Campbell spoke to the students about the importance of reading.
The Mets will face the Atlanta Braves in the last of a three-game home series on Wednesday at 1 p.m. New York Mets lefthanded pitcher Steven Matz will face off against the Braves’ right hander Jhoulys Chacin. Since allowing seven runs in his season debut, Matz has gone 3-0 with a 0.93 ERA. He’ll face the Braves for the second time in three starts, after striking out eight over 6 1/3 innings of two-run ball April 23 in Atlanta.
Chacin hasn’t allowed more than three earned runs in any of his first four starts, but he hasn’t yet pitched into the seventh inning. His shoulder is sound, but there’s concern about his ability to go a third time through a lineup.
In another player note, a week after landing on the 15-day disabled list with a strained right rotator cuff, Mets catcher Travis d’Arnaud has no timetable on his ability to start throwing or returning to the lineup. “I can’t predict that,” manager Terry Collins said in an interview. “A lot of times you come in the morning, and if he’s feeling good a couple days in a row, they might start getting him on a throwing program. But right now, he’s still just getting treatment.”
