Following a sweep in the first series of the season, the Braves got back to their winning ways against their NL East rivals this week, taking two out of three games from the Mets. After a rough start to the series, the lineup cranked out 23 runs (including 14 on rainy Wednesday afternoon!) in the final two games to lead them to victory.
Dillon Gee continued to give Atlanta fits in the series opener, limiting the club to just one run in a game they would eventually lose 6-1. Tommy Hanson pitched well for most of the night, but a hanging curveball to Ike Davis proved to be the difference as he sent it over the wall for three runs in a game that was tied 1-1 at that point. The Braves were unable to scratch across anything in the final innings against the Mets bullpen, ending a night of frustrations at the plate.
The Braves benefitted from some sloppy defense in game two, scoring five runs in the second inning to lead them to a 9-3 victory. Freddie Freeman showed signs of life for the first time all season after a dreadful start, and Juan Francisco hit his first homer with the team to provide a much-needed insurance run late. Randall Delgado was not spectacular by any means, but he got the job done working 5.1 innings of three-run ball.
Despite a poor performance from starter Jair Jurrjens on Wednesday afternoon, the Braves broke out the bats as they slaughtered New York by a score of 14-6. Freeman and Dan Uggla hit their first homers of the season, five players drove in two runs or more and Chipper Jones came on as a pinch-hitter to record yet another extra-base hit. This was a fun game to watch, and it really showed just how good this lineup can be when everyone gets going.
Atlanta is now 7-5 on the young season and are heading west to take on the Diamondbacks for a four-game series in Phoenix starting Thursday night.
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