The New York Mets (85-76) defeated the Atlanta Braves (97-64) by a score of 3-0 on Saturday night at Citi Field in their 161st game of the season.
Pete Alonso set the MLB rookie home run record with his 53rd of the season off in the bottom of the third inning.
Pitching
Steven Matz (11-10, 4.21 ERA) got the nod in this game for the final time this season. The southpaw went out with a bang as he tossed six shutout innings and struck out seven Braves.
Matz struggled with control at times as he walked five batters (one intentionally) and hit Freddie Freeman with a pitch. Otherwise, he limited the Braves to a third-inning single and a fourth-inning triple.
Jeurys Familia came into the game in the seventh and only allowed one hit in a shutout inning. He has limited opponents to no runs, no walks and four hits in his last four appearances (four innings).
Brad Brach pitched the eighth and pitched a shutout frame, only allowing a single to Adam Duvall while also striking out Nick Markakis in the inning.
Edwin Diaz came in for a save situation in the ninth. He converted the save opportunity with a 1-2-3 inning.
Offense
The Mets hitters faced Mike Foltynewicz (8-6, 4.54 ERA) to start the game.
After the Mets were held hitless for the first two innings, Todd Frazier led off the third with a single. Rene Rivera then followed that up with a home run to left-center field to give the Mets a 2-0 lead. It was Rivera’s first homer since Aug. 15, 2018.
Later in the inning, Pete Alonso made history with a solo home run to center field. He surpassed Aaron Judge who had the previous record for most homers by a rookie with 52 in 2017.
The Mets only had four hits and two walks throughout the whole game, with Amed Rosario, Rivera, Alonso and Frazier collecting the hits and Brandon Nimmo and J.D. Davis collecting the walks.
On Deck
The Mets will send Noah Syndergaard (10-8, 4.30 ERA) to the mound as they play their season finale Sunday afternoon. The Braves will counter with Mike Soroka (13-4, 2.60 ERA), who will be limited as he prepares for the NLDS. First pitch is scheduled for 3:10 p.m., with coverage on SNY, WCBS 880 and ESPN Deportes 1050.
