ATLANTA, Ga. (WABC) — Dansby Swenson and Matt Olson homered for the third straight game, Travis d’Arnaud hit a two-run single in the third inning and the Atlanta Braves beat the New York Mets 5-3 on Sunday night to win a crucial tiebreaker in their season series .
The defending World Series champion Braves won a three-game series and moved two games ahead of New York in the New League East. Any combination of one Atlanta win or one Mets loss would give the Braves their fifth straight division title.
New York is playing its final games of the season against Washington, which is in last place in the division. Atlanta goes to Miami. Had the season ended in a tie on Wednesday, Atlanta would have won the NL East because the Braves won the season series 10-9.
The Braves have won five of the last six games in the series, outscoring the Mets 42-19 during that stretch. New York had a 10-game lead on June 1, but is now lower in the standings than at any time this season.
It was a lost weekend for New York, who came to Atlanta hoping to capture their first division title since 2015. Instead, aces Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer took losses Friday and Saturday before 15-game winner Chris Bassitt lasted just 2 2/3 innings. Sunday.
Swanson drove Basito deep to right-center in the first with his 25th homer, and Atlanta took charge with a three-run third. Bassitt (15-9) walked the bases loaded Olson before d’Arnaud singled up the middle, scoring Ronald Acuña Jr. and Austin Riley for a 4-3 lead. That haunted Basit, who was charged with four runs, three hits and three walks.
Olson connected on his 33rd homer to make it 5-3 leading off the sixth, his 410-foot shot landing in the seats in right-center. In his first year with Atlanta, Olson surpassed 100 RBI for the second straight season.
Charlie Morton advanced to first and second in the first, but gave up Daniel Vogelbach’s 18th homer to tie the game at 1 in the second. The righty struck out Francisco Lindor with runners on first and second to end the threat.
Jeff McNeil walked Morton hard in the third and Vogelbach followed with an RBI single to put the Mets up 3-1. Morton entered the game with 28 homers, sixth most in the NL.
Morton struggled throughout his start, giving up three runs and nine hits in 4 1/3 innings as the 38-year-old made his first appearance since signing a one-year, $20 million contract to remain with Atlanta next season.
Dylan Lee (5-1) relieved Morton and went 1 1/3 innings, leaving after a walk to Brendan Nimmo with two outs in the sixth. Colin McHugh came in and struck out Francisco Lindor.
Raizel Iglesias faced four batters in the seventh, AJ Minter faced the minimum in the eighth and Kenley Jansen picked up his third save of the series to pitch a clean ninth.
Jansen leads the NL with 40 saves in 47 chances.
The Braves’ bullpen, which posted a 1.70 ERA last month, has thrown 8 2/3 scoreless innings over the past two nights.
BIG NUMBERS
Atlanta leads the NL with 241 homers. And the Braves are coming off their first 100-win season since 2003.
TWO, IT’S DAMN HOT
McNeil is 3-for-5 and has multiple hits in five straight games. His batting average is .326, one point behind the Dodgers’ Freddie Freeman for the NL title. In 23 career games at Truist Park, McNeil is hitting .395 with 12 runs, nine doubles, two homers, seven RBI and four walks. … Jansen is tied with Hall of Famer Dennis Eckersley for eighth on the career hit list with 389. He is also the 10th closest to having four different seasons with at least 40 saves.
Training room
Mets All-Star RF Starling Marte (fractured right middle finger) has yet to start swinging or throwing. … Braves 2B Ozzie Olbiss (broken right little finger) is still wearing a cast. … Braves RHP Spencer Strider still hasn’t pitched as he gets treatment for a sore left oblique.
VISIBILITY
The Braves drew 42,713 for the regular season finale, the club’s 42nd sellout of the season. In general. that’s 3,129,931 for the season – the most tickets sold since 2000. In 2019, the team’s last full season before the COVID-19 pandemic, Atlanta scored 2,655,100.
FURTHER
Mets: RHP Carlos Carrasco (15-7, 3.95 ERA) will face Nationals RHP Corey Abbott (0-4, 5.11).
Braves: RHP Bryce Elder (2-3, 2.76 ERA) will face Marlins LHP Jesus Luzardo (3-7, 3.53).
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