Kyle Wright kept hitters off-balance and pitched a one-hit shutout through 6-1/3 innings, nabbing his second career victory as the Braves (31-22) beat the Mets 7-0 Sunday afternoon in New York.
One week after his first career win, Wright gave up just one hit, while walking one and striking out six, as the Braves scored six runs off the Mets' bullpen. Wright was pulled in the seventh inning, after walking J.D. Davis — just his second base runner of the game.
Wright is finding a rhythm at the right time, as the Braves make their final push of the regular season.
“It’s big for me, just being able to go out there and execute and do the things that I want to do," Wright said. "So hopefully keep this going into the next one, too.”
Prior to his consecutive wins, Wright largely struggled, beginning the season in the Braves' rotation and making four starts (going 0-3 with a 7.20 ERA, giving up 12 earned runs in 15 innings pitched) before being optioned on Aug. 20 and then recalled from the alternate training site Sept. 8.
After two good outings, though, success is becoming easier for him to replicate.
“Once you have a little success, you kind of realize that you can do this and at the end of the day it’s baseball," Wright said. "The guys you’re playing against are really good, but it is baseball and you’ve just got to go out there and compete and have fun with it.”
The Braves' bullpen of Will Smith, Chris Martin, Mark Melancon helped complete the shutout.
Braves manager Brian Snitker was happy with Wright’s outing, especially considering who he was facing.
“It’s very encouraging to see him kind of get that confidence and that was impressive today," Snitker said. "That’s a really good-hitting ball club that he faced with some dangerous left-handed hitters and I was really impressed.”
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Ronald Acuna went 2-for-3 and carried the Braves' offense with four RBI.
The game remained scoreless until Acuna’s solo shot gave the Braves a 1-0 lead in the top of the sixth inning. It was the only run they scored off Mets starter Rick Porcello, who struck out 10 and walked two, giving up three hits in seven innings pitched. In the eighth, an RBI double by Travis d’Arnaud, the former Met who has gone 26-for-70 (.371) this month, plated Acuna and Freddie Freeman, who had both drawn walks, as the Braves went up by three. They loaded the bases in the top of the ninth and Acuna capitalized with a three-run double scoring Ozzie Albies, Ender Inciarte and Dansby Swanson. A double by Marcell Ozuna later scored Acuna.
Eleven of Acuna’s 14 hits this month have been extra-base hits (three doubles, eight homers).
Mets relievers Jeurys Familia and Chasen Shreve combined to give up six runs (five earned) on three hits, and four walks.
“That’s kind of the key, really, I think, is you try to keep a game manageable, especially if you’re getting strapped by a starter," Snitker said. "Keep the game manageable and let’s try somebody else. Got some big hits today, Travis, added on by Ronnie, that was those two really, really nice at-bats.”
After going 0-for-11 with runners in scoring position in Saturday’s loss, the Braves went 3-for-10 in Sunday’s win. The Mets rarely got that far, going 0-for-3.
Sunday’s win marked the Braves' final away game of the regular season.
The Braves will begin a four-game series Monday against the Marlins as Huascar Ynoa (0-0, 5.30) matches up with Trevor Rogers (1-1, 6.00). They have no days off for this final stretch of the regular season, which ends Sept. 27.
