Harris and Schwellenbach shine as Braves down Mets 5-1 in opener of pivotal series
Michael Harris II had three more hits, including a solo home run and an RBI double, and rookie Spencer Schwellenbach shut down the New York Mets again as the Atlanta Braves cruised to a 5-1 win in the opener of a pivotal three-game series
ATLANTA (AP) — Michael Harris II had three more hits, including a solo home run and an RBI double, and rookie Spencer Schwellenbach shut down the New York Mets again as the Atlanta Braves cruised to a 5-1 win Tuesday night in the opener of a pivotal three-game series.
“Felt good to come out swinging and get some runs early,” Harris said. “That’s what we did tonight. Pitching was phenomenal from Schwellenbach. We just have to come out and do the same thing the next two days.”
Marcell Ozuna added his 39th home run for Atlanta, which trails the Mets by one game in the National League playoff race with five remaining. New York (87-70) stayed a half-game ahead of Arizona (87-71) for the second of three wild cards, while the Braves (86-71) moved within a half-game of the Diamondbacks for the league’s last postseason berth when Arizona lost 11-0 to San Francisco at home.
Those three teams are competing for two spots that remain available, after San Diego punched its playoff ticket with a 4-2 victory at Dodger Stadium.
