Megill, McNeil, McCann, Mets Take Series Finale from Braves

Once again, the Replace-Mets got the job done for the boys in blue and orange.

Now though, it’s pitchers – namely Tylor Megill and Corey Oswalt – instead of position players that are forced to make things work in Queens. That duo, paired with an offense that scored more runs Wednesday night than the last four games combined, salvaged the series with a 7-3 win over the Braves at Citi Field.

Megill, making his career debut, went 4 1/3 innings, allowed two runs, two walks and struck out four. He’s the first Met in 2021 to make his first MLB appearance as a starting pitcher.

Oswalt’s been up and down with the team the last few years, but also made his 2021 debut Wednesday. He went 2 1/3 innings and allowed just one run, effectively eating innings for a bullpen that desperately needed it.

Megill handled himself well in his first career inning, allowing a single to Freddie Freeman and nothing else. He touched 97 miles per hour with his fastball and mixed four pitches.

Kyle Wright, another youngster and former top five pick, started Wednesday for just the second time this season. After walking Francisco Lindor, Michael Conforto – playing for the first time after missing 34 games with a hamstring injury – laced a double into the right field corner to give the Mets runners on second and third with one out.

Alonso walked, but during his at-bat, a wild pitch brought in Lindor and moved Conforto to third. He would score on a Dominic Smith fielder’s choice. James McCann’s flyout to left ended the first with the Mets leading 2-0.

Megill took that lead and retired the side in order in the second. He picked up his first career strikeout by blowing a 97 MPH fastball by William Contreras for the third out of the inning.

Luis Guillorme’s double off the top of the fence gave the Mets a runner in scoring position with one out in the second. After Wright easily struck out Megill in his first career at-bat, Jeff McNeil ripped a single up the middle to score Guillorme.

Lindor delivered the keynote in the inning with a bullet of a home run to right, giving the Mets a 5-0 lead after two.

Megill cruised through the top of the third, picking up two more strikeouts along the way. Wright, on the other hand, didn’t make it that far, as Josh Tomlin replaced him to start the bottom of the frame.

McCann doubled and Guillorme reached on an error in the inning, but Megill couldn’t help his own cause, striking out to end the frame. He did his job where it counts though, working around a Freeman infield single to get through the middle of the Braves order in the fourth unscathed.

McNeil picked up another hit in the bottom of the frame, but Lindor struck out and Conforto grounded into a double play to end the inning.

Megill gave up his first and second career runs on one pitch in the fifth inning, as Ender Inciarte crushed a two-run homer off the facing of the second deck in right. After walking the pitcher Tomlin, Megill’s day came to a close.

Fans at Citi Field gave the 25-year-old a standing ovation upon his exit – save for some brief booing as he was checked by the umpires for sticky stuff on his way off the field.

Miguel Castro entered with one on and one out, and barely missed giving up a homer to Dansby Swanson that just went foul down the left field line. Two pitches later, Swanson scalded another ball, but Guillorme’s stellar glove turned what could’ve been a double into a fielder’s choice. Freeman followed with a dribbler into no man’s land that Castro couldn’t scoop up and Ozzie Albies walked to load the bases.

Castro snuck out of it though, getting Abraham Almonte to ground out to second and limit the damage to two runs in the inning.

Edgar Santana entered to pitch the fifth for the Braves and worked around a Smith single, striking out Alonso and McCann in the frame.

Oswalt came in to pitch in the sixth and promptly gave up a double to Austin Riley. A wild pitch got Riley to third and he scored on Ehire Edrianza’s infield single to cut the Met lead to two.

Edrianza, it should be noted, started for Ronald Acuna Jr., who was scratched with a sore back.

Oswalt was able to escape the sixth without any further damage, aided by Brave manager Brian Snitker, who opted to pinch hit starting pitcher Drew Smyly with two on and two out, resulting predictably in a strikeout.

Guillorme led off the bottom of the sixth against Tyler Matzek with a nifty drag bunt into the shift and was sacrificed neatly over to second on Oswalt’s bunt. Matzek came back from down 3-0 in the count to strike out McNeil, and Lindor grounded out to third to strand Guillorme.

The seventh was decidedly easier for Oswalt, who surrendered Freeman’s fourth hit of the day, but ended the inning in style with a pickoff of Albies at first.

Needing a little insurance, Conforto and Alonso reached on almost identically-placed singles to right center. After Smith struck out, McCann took his turn hitting a ball just to the right of second to single in Conforto and give the Mets a 6-3 lead headed to the eighth.

Oswalt struck out Almonte to start his third inning of work, but Riley tagged him for a double for the second time and Adrianza walked to end his day in favor of Edwin Diaz looking for a five-out save.

Diaz struck out pinch-hitter Pablo Sandoval and got Inciarte to fly out to left to end the eighth. He had a little pressure alleviated in the bottom of the inning, as a walk from Guillorme and singles from McNeil and Lindor gave the Mets another run and sent Diaz out for the ninth with a 7-3 lead.

That was plenty for Diaz, who sounded the trumpets with his second five out save of the season.

The Mets have a much-needed off-day Thursday before hosting the Phillies for four games in three days, starting with a double-header Friday. The Mets are set to start Taijuan Walker and David Peterson in the twin-bill.