 to try and recover.'' Wright and Porcello were unlikely candidates for a pitchers' duel. They came in a combined 2-9 with a 6.45 ERA, but both entered the sixth working on a one-hit shutout.Wright (2-4), who walked 20 batters over 25 innings in his first seven starts this season and had never pitched beyond the sixth in 10 career starts, retired the first eight batters before Wilson Ramos doubled down the left-field line. The 24-year-old right-hander set down the next 11 before walking J. D. Davis.''I don't know that there's ever a bad time for a kid like that to find himself and get the confidence and get himself going,'' Snitker said.Will Smith entered and got Dominic Smith to hit into an inning-ending double play.The two-run double by d'Arnaud off Jeurys Familia provided insurance in the eighth. The catcher also singled in the sixth and finished the season hitting .479 (11 for 23) with three homers and 11 RBIs this season against the Mets, for whom he played from 2013-19.''You wish he was on your team,'' Nimmo said. ''You wish you didn't have to play him.'' The Braves added four more in the ninth, when Acuna delivered a three-run double and scored on Marcell Ozuna's double.Chris Martin walked one in the eighth and Mark Melancon allowed consecutive hits to Ramos and Nimmo before wriggling out of a jam in the ninth.Porcello (1-6) took the hard-luck loss despite allowing just three hits and two walks while striking out 10 over seven innings. The 10 strikeouts were his most since he whiffed 10 while pitching for Boston against Philadelphia on Aug. 14, 2018.The start was the 350th of Porcello's career. Only three pitchers who have debuted in the last 50 years - Felix Hernandez, CC Sabathia and Greg Maddux - have reached 350 starts at a younger age than Porcello (31 years, 268 days).UP IN SMOKEA fire broke out just beyond Citi Field during the Braves' four-run ninth inning. The smoke briefly enveloped the diamond in a charcoal-scented haze before sirens began echoing in the distance.ONE-HIT WONDERSThe singles by Ramos and Nimmo in the ninth cost the Braves a chance at another one-hitter against the Mets. Atlanta's last three one-hitters have come at the expense of New York, most recently on June 19, 2016, when Julio Teheran allowed a third-inning single to Michael Conforto in a complete game 6-0 win.TRAINER'S ROOMMets: RHP Dellin Betances (lat) threw an inning in a simulated game Saturday. New York manager Luis Rojas said he was waiting to hear how Betances felt before considering what the next step might be. Betances last pitched on Aug. 29. ... The Mets sent INF Victor Gonzalez to Baltimore to complete a trade for reliever Miguel Castro, who was acquired Aug. 31. They also sent RHP Steven Villines to Texas to complete a deal for RHP Ariel Jurado, who was acquired Aug. 29.UP NEXTBraves: RHP Huascar Ynoa (0-0, 5.30 ERA) is scheduled to make his second start since returning to the rotation and his fifth of the year overall when Atlanta heads home to begin a key series against the second-place Marlins.Mets: RHP Jacob deGrom (4-1, 2.09 ERA), who is seeking a third straight NL Cy Young Award but lasted only two innings Wednesday due to a hamstring spasm, is expected to return as New York opens a series Monday against Tampa Bay.---More MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/-Sports)
Clinging to wild-card hopes, Mets host Braves againThe New York Mets' playoff hopes looked pretty dim following a Friday night in which they lost by 13 runs and almost everyone else battling for the final National League wild-card spot won.But the Mets' picture doesn't look nearly as bleak following a Saturday in which they won and almost everyone else in the race lost.Such is life on the outside of contention looking in for the Mets, who will try to remain in the thick of things Sunday when they host the Atlanta Braves in the finale of a three-game series between the NL East rivals.Rick Porcello (1-5, 6.06 ERA) is scheduled to take the mound for the Mets against Kyle Wright (1-4, 7.20) in a battle of right-handers.The Mets evened the series Saturday, when rookie left-hander David Peterson earned the win by striking out a career-high 10 over six innings and Robinson Cano homered and collected three RBIs in a 7-2 victory.A lopsided 15-2 loss to the Braves on Friday, coupled with wins by three of the four teams ahead of them in the wild-card race (the Cincinnati Reds, St. Louis Cardinals and Milwaukee Brewers) left the Mets with a seemingly steep hill to climb.But the win by the Mets (24-28) on Saturday and losses by the Reds and Giants pulled New York within 1 1/2 games of Cincinnati, San Francisco and Milwaukee for the final wild-card spot."The fact that we can still compete for a spot makes every game important, which makes the atmosphere that much better," said Mets reliever Justin Wilson, who preserved a 3-1 lead in the seventh by getting hot-hitting Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman to hit into an inning-ending double play. "Down the stretch, the losses hurt a little bit more and the wins feel a little bit better just because of the situation that we're in." The situation isn't nearly as precarious for the Braves (30-22), though their NL East lead over the Miami Marlins shrunk to 2 1/2 games by virtue of the Marlins' 7-3 home win over the Washington Nationals.A second straight solid performance by Wright -- who earned his first big league win in his most recent start Sept. 13 by allowing four runs (three earned) over six innings as the Braves beat the Nationals 8-4 -- would both solidify Atlanta's playoff standing and provide more evidence he can be a member of a postseason rotation that needs reliable starters behind ace Max Fried and promising rookie Ian Anderson.Wright has a 7.46 ERA in 50 2/3 career innings."I know I'm capable and I know I have great stuff," Wright said following the win over the Nationals. "Sometimes I just have to get out of my own way. I feel like I'm getting back to that and pitching the way I can." Porcello took the loss Tuesday, when he gave up four runs over six innings as the Mets fell to the Philadelphia Phillies, 4-1. He is 0-4 with a 5.75 ERA in his last seven starts.Porcello is 3-2 with a 5.10 ERA in six career starts against the Braves. Wright is 0-1 with a 9.00 ERA in three games (two starts) against the Mets.--Field Level Media
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