The Mets fell behind early and the Braves poured it on in a 15-2 blowout win on Friday night. >> Box score
Seven things to know from Friday’s game
1. Making his first start since August 15, Steven Matz’s night got off to a shaky start in the first inning. Ronald Acuna Jr. doubled to lead off the game, followed by a Freddie Freeman single and an RBI single from Marcell Ozuna. Matz allowed four hits and walked a batter in the first inning, but he escaped a bases-loaded jam by striking out Austin Riley to end the inning.
The second inning wasn’t much better for Matz, as allowed a Nick Markakis single and walked Acuna, which led to Freeman doubling to right field, scoring two more to give the Braves a 3-0 lead. Ozuna then ripped a two-run home run into the second deck in left field, putting up and early five runs.
Matz was tagged for one more run in the top of the third on a Riley solo home run, and his night came to a close after 2.2 innings, allowing six earned runs on a whopping eight hits with three walks and five strikeouts. Matz’s 2020 ERA stands at 9.79.
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2. Franklyn Kilome, fresh off returning from the 10-day IL, took over for Matz. Travis d’Arnaud added to the Braves’ lead in the fourth, pulling a two-run home run off of Kilome to make it an 8-0 game. Markakis added to Mets’ misery, slamming a two-run double over Jake Marisnick’s head in center, making it a 10-0 Braves lead. Ozzie Albies then hit a two-run homer of his own to right-center, making it a 12-0 game.
Kilome went 1.1 innings, allowing six earned runs on just three hits, with two of them being home runs.
3. The Mets finally got on the board in the fifth inning. After Amed Rosario singled, Jeff McNeil pulled a double into the corner, and Rosario came all the way around from first to make it a 12-1 game.
Rosario had a nice night at the plate, finishing with three hits, including an RBI single.
4. Albies struck again in the sixth, this time off of Jared Hughes. Albies lifted his second home run of the game to give Atlanta a 13-1 lead. Hughes threw a career-high 60 pitches, going 3.2 innings.
5. In Max Fried’s first game back from the Injured List, the lefty went five innings, allowing one earned run on three hits. Fried, who is very much in the hunt for the NL Cy Young award, lowered his ERA to 1.96.
6. Robinson Cano was hit by a pitch in his left wrist in the fourth inning. He stayed in the game for another inning, but he was pulled from the game in the sixth inning, with Andres Gimenez taking over at second base.
7. In a 15-2 game going into the ninth inning, the Mets didn't want to use another pitcher, so Todd Frazier took the mound. Throwing a mix of fastballs and knuckleballs, Frazier pitched a 1-2-3 inning (the only by any Mets pitcher on the night), including a strikeout of Adam Duvall.
What’s next
The Mets and Braves face off again on Saturday at 7:07 p.m., as David Peterson pitches for the Mets against Atlanta’s Ian Anderson.