Wednesday, September 23, 2015 headlines: Verrett stumbles in the fifth as Mets lose to Braves 6-2
Mets fall to Braves, but so does magic number
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- Collins not worried about Clippards struggles
- Mets fall to Braves, 6-2, but magic number down to 6
- Logan Verrett falters in Mets 6-2 loss to Atlanta Braves | Rapid reaction
- Mets Logan Verrett isnt Jacob deGrom vs. Atlanta Braves
- Wisler, Braves stall Mets push toward NL East title, 6-2
- Mets align rotation: Mets confirm rotation for final road trip, line up aces for Nationals
- Jacob deGrom to make next start for Mets on Sunday, lining him up for Game 1 of the NLDS
- Jacob deGrom is proof Mets are handling Matt Harvey perfectly
Mets fall to Braves, but so does magic number ANTHONY DICOMO AND MARK BOWMAN, MLB.COM NEW YORK -- For the first time since he began subbing for the superstars in New York's rotation, Logan Verrett was unable to make the Mets forget about Matt Harvey and Jacob deGrom. Verrett gave up four runs in the fifth inning Tuesday at Citi Field, including a three-run homer to Hector Olivera, dropping the Mets to a 6-2 loss to the Braves. Combined with Washington's loss to the Orioles, which lowered the Mets' magic number to six, the defeat kept their National League East lead at 6.5 games with 11 to play. The Mets are a half-game back of the Dodgers in the race for home-field advantage in their potential NL Division Series matchup, after the D-backs defeated Los Angeles on Tuesday, 8-0. "For me, it looks like we're tight," manager Terry Collins said. "I don't know why. It's just the perception it looks like from the bench." "I don't think we're tight," third baseman David Wright said. "There's just going to be some games where we get outplayed, and tonight was one of them." Subbing for deGrom, whom the Mets pushed back in their rotation to lighten his workload, Verrett held the Braves scoreless until Jace Peterson homered to start the fifth. Five batters later, Olivera added a three-run shot to spoil Verrett's day. That made a winner out of Braves rookie Matt Wisler, who pitched into the eighth to snap a seven-game losing streak. "We aren't chasing a playoff berth, but we're here to play hard and we're not here to give games away," Olivera said through his interpreter, Alex Cotto. "We work hard and we're going to play hard. We're going to try to win every game that we can." MOMENTS THAT MATTERED Rookie settles in: Wisler appeared to be in trouble when he allowed Wright's solo home run and a Daniel Murphy double before recording his second out of the night. But the poised rookie gathered himself and retired 20 of the final 25 batters he faced, while notching a career-high eight strikeouts. He walked Curtis Granderson to open the eighth, and then anxiously watched as the Mets ended up scoring just one run after loading the bases with one out. More > Swing and a drive: For the first time since 2013, Wright homered to the opposite field when he took Wisler deep for a solo shot to right-center in the first inning. Wright also made a nifty play when he barehanded an Olivera grounder on defense in the third, firing across the infield diamond for the out. More > Fifth-inning power: Peterson opened the four-run fifth with his first home run since going deep on Aug. 2-3. But the big blow came from Olivera, whose three-run shot proved decisive and served as the second homer of his young career. Statcast™ projected Olivera's home run to land 418 feet away. This marked just the second time in the past 25 games that the Braves hit two homers in an entire game. "I don't even know when the last time it was we hit two home runs in one game, let alone in one inning," Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said. "That was a big four-spot there." More > SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS Murphy hit the 225th and 226th doubles of his career, passing Ed Kranepool for the second-most in franchise history. Wright is the Mets' all-time leader with 381 doubles. Wisler has produced a 2.25 ERA in the four starts he's made against New York teams (the Mets and Yankees). He has compiled a 6.85 ERA in his other 13 starts this year. IT'S NOTHING PERSONAL, A.J. Michael Conforto threw out A.J. Pierzynski in the sixth inning for his sixth outfield assist in 47 games. That is tied for the NL rookie lead with Washington's Michael Taylor, who has played in 128 games. Two innings later, he made a diving catch in left field to rob Pierzynski of a hit. WHAT'S NEXT Braves: Williams Perez will take the mound when Atlanta and New York conclude their three-game series on Wednesday at 7:10 p.m. ET. Perez has allowed three earned runs or less and pitched into the sixth inning in each of his three previous starts against the Mets. Mets: Bartolo Colon, who quietly leads the Mets in wins and innings pitched, will look to continue stating his case for the playoff roster when the Mets conclude their series with the Braves. Colon is unlikely to win a rotation spot in October, but could still pitch his way into the bullpen. Collins not worried about Clippard's struggles JOE TREZZA, MLB.COM NEW YORK -- The early returns on Tyler Clippard that followed his acquisition at the non-waiver Trade Deadline were so good -- the righty allowed one earned run over the first 20 appearances with his new team -- that perhaps the Mets should have anticipated some regression towards the mean. And perhaps the images of so many successful Clippard outings are why Mets manager Terry Collins can recall the growing list of negative ones in such detail. "He's just leaving balls in the middle of the strike zone and up, and he's being hurt by that," Collins said, shortly after reciting from memory several of the Clippard pitches opposing hitters have recently turned into big innings. Tuesday provided another example, and extended the scope of Clippard's struggles into a second week. The righty allowed two runs in the 9th inning of New York's 6-2 loss to Atlanta, giving him nine earned runs allowed over his last eight appearances. In that 8 1/3-inning span, Clippard has allowed four home runs. "I like the breaking ball there," Collins said. "He just hung it out over the plate." The breaking ball in question was a 1-2 splitter to Adonis Garcia, who doubled in Cameron Maybin and Michael Bourn to put the game out of reach. Garcia also tagged a Clippard changeup for a three-run home run on Sept. 12 in Atlanta. Clippard allowed a run in his next appearance before being shut down briefly with lower back tightness. Collins insists Clippard's health is not in question, but Clippard wasn't available for comment on Tuesday. "[The back] isn't the problem," Collins said. "You see the ball that Garcia hit in Atlanta. He got him into a good count and got a changeup up over the plate. The other day with the home run he left that ball right out in the middle of the plate. If he makes his pitch he may get a swing and miss. It might be ball two. But he'll have another pitch to live by." It's been a season-long endeavor for the Mets to build a reliable bridge to closer Jeurys Familia. With Addison Reed excelling in the 7th inning, Collins believes he has that now, finally, after exhausting through a parade of candidates that faltered for one reason or another. His recent struggles aside, Clippard maintains a veteran track record and secondary pitches -- his changeup, in particular -- that remain formidable. Which is why Collins longs to get him back on track -- and dreams of fortifying a three-inning link similar to the one Kansas City rode to last year's World Series. Mets fall to Braves, 6-2, but magic number down to 6 CHRIS ISEMAN, THE RECORD NEW YORK – The Mets entered this homestand winners of seven straight with a comfortable lead atop the NL East. For Terry Collins, there was no reason for his players to feel any pressure. Yet as the manager has watched his team struggle through its last eight games at Citi Field, he’s gotten the sense his troops aren’t as loose as they should be. “For me, it looks like we’re tight,” Collins said. “It’s just the perception it looks like from the bench.” The best of the Mets’ offense Tuesday night came and went with David Wright’s first-inning solo home run as they fell to the Braves, 6-2. Since returning to Citi Field the Mets are 3-5, and they’ll finish with a losing record on a homestand for the first time this season. Yet despite their defeat, the Mets (85-66) still had their magic number reduced to six, courtesy of the Nationals’ 4-1 loss to the Orioles. New York maintained its 6½-game lead atop the NL East. Starting in place of Jacob deGrom, Logan Verrett yielded four runs on five hits in five innings. He walked one and struck out three in his 75-pitch outing. Wright gave Verrett early run support with an opposite-field homer off Atlanta (61-91) starter Matt Wisler in the first. Verrett cruised through the early innings, but struggled in the fifth. The right-hander allowed a leadoff homer to Jace Peterson, then gave up an infield single to Michael Bourn. Wisler moved Bourn to second with a sacrifice bunt. With first base open, Verrett intentionally walked Nick Markakis to pitch to Hector Olivera, but it backfired. Verrett fell behind 2-0, then missed his location with a sinker and Olivera crushed it over the left-center-field wall for a three-run homer. “I liked the matchup against Olivera, but just missed with the pitch,” Verrett said. “Unfortunately with two guys on base, you can’t do that. It makes it hard to come back from that.” The Mets had chances to put a dent in their deficit, but couldn’t capitalize. They finished 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position. They loaded the bases with one out in the eighth, but had only pinch-hitter Michael Cuddyer’s sacrifice fly to show for it. Tyler Clippard allowed a two-run double to Adonis Garcia in the ninth to put the game further out of reach. It was another disappointing defeat during this homestand. The Mets lost their first two series to the Marlins and Yankees, and now are in danger of losing another unless they win tonight. Given the way his team was hitting on the road, Collins is “shocked” by how much the Mets have struggled at the plate. “All of a sudden we’ve hit a wall. We aren’t swinging the bats very good,” Collins said. “We’ve just got to swing the bats better because we’re a better offensive team than the way we’ve played.” Wright didn’t agree with Collins’ belief that the team is tight. Instead, he said the Mets simply were outplayed by the Braves. “I don’t sense that anybody’s tight in here or feeling the pressure,” Wright said. “It’s playoff baseball; there’s going to be a little bit of pressure. We’re trying to make a push. But I don’t sense it carrying over to the field. “Everything we want to accomplish is right in front of us. That’s what we need to focus on. The way you do that is to win series and hopefully we can start [tonight].” Logan Verrett falters in Mets' 6-2 loss to Atlanta Braves | Rapid reaction MARIA GUARDADO, NJ ADVANCE MEDIA NEW YORK — All month long, the Mets have been caught in a difficult balancing act. As they enter the final stretch of the regular season, they've been torn between their desire to clinch a playoff berth as quickly as possible while also making it a priority to give their talented core of young starters extra rest in anticipation of a possible postseason run. The tricky part, however, is that the Mets haven't actually clinched anything yet, and that process has arguably been slowed by their decision to limit their top arms in late September. This difficult situation presented itself in the Mets' 6-2 loss to the lowly Atlanta Braves on Tuesday night at Citi Field. Rookie right-hander Logan Verrett, who was pitching in place of Jacob deGrom and making only his third major-league start, tossed four scoreless innings before faltering in the top of the fifth. A pair of home runs proved to be his undoing, as he surrendered a game-tying solo homer to Hector Olivera, followed by a three-run, go-ahead shot to Jace Peterson. Braves right-hander Matt Wisler, meanwhile, allowed a solo blast to David Wright in the first inning but then quieted the Mets' bats for nearly the rest of the night. Wisler was lifted after issuing a leadoff walk to Curtis Granderson in the bottom of the eighth. The Mets then loaded the bases with one out and pulled within two runs after pinch-hitter Michael Cuddyer's RBI sacrifice fly cut the deficit to 4-2. But Edwin Jackson induced an inning-ending groundout from Wilmer Flores to kill the rally. The Braves capped their scoring in the top of the ninth on Adonis Garcia's two-run double off reliever Tyler Clippard. HIGHLIGHTS: • Daniel Murphy finished 2-for-4 with two doubles, surpassing Ed Kranepool for second place on the Mets' all-time doubles list with 226. • Left fielder Michael Conforto recorded yet another outfield assist by nabbing A.J. Pierzynski at second after the Braves catcher tried to stretch a single into a double in the sixth inning. Despite playing in just 47 major league games this year, Conforto's six outfield assists are tied with Michael Taylor for the most among all National League rookies. IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: INJURY REPORT: • Juan Uribe was unavailable for Tuesday's game after suffering a deep bruise in his chest area while making a diving play against the Yankees on Sunday. X-rays and an MRI were both negative, but Uribe is still experiencing soreness, according to manager Terry Collins. • Carlos Torres is still dealing with a left calf strain and was also kept out of Tuesday's game. UP NEXT: The Mets play the final game of their three-game set with the Braves on Wednesday night at Citi Field. Bartolo Colon (14-12, 4.15 ERA) will take the mound and face Atlanta right-hander Williams Perez (6-6, 5.16 ERA). Mets' Logan Verrett isn't Jacob deGrom vs. Atlanta Braves MIKE VORKUNOV, NJ ADVANCE MEDIA NEW YORK -- For the first innings Tuesday night, the Mets surely had no regrets about starting Logan Verrett. How could Jacob deGrom have done any better than four shutout frames against the Braves. But Verrett came apart in the fifth, leaving his start just a shoddy impression of the Mets ace. Verrett took a 1-0 lead into the fifth but allowed a solo home run to Jace Peterson, then a three-run shot to Hector Olivera. It wasn't his last inning. He was done after five, with the Mets now trailing 4-1 at Citi Field. Verrett started in deGrom's place Tuesday. The Mets wanted to rest deGrom after seeing the All-Star show signs of fatigue as he struggled in his last few starts. He allowed five runs in six innings last week to the Marlins. DeGrom will next start Sunday in Cincinnati. Verrett has been a constant understudy for the Mets. He's made spot-starts in place of Matt Harvey this season and allowed just two runs over 13 innings. "He's a young guy who's getting the opportunity to pitch in the big leagues and so he's got himself mentally prepared to do that and to help out as best he can," Manager Terry Collins had said before the game. "And so we sent him down, he went down, knew what his role was gonna be, has come back and worked very hard to stay focused and pay attention and ask questions that's gonna help him get better." Wisler, Braves stall Mets' push toward NL East title, 6-2 ASSOCIATED PRESS NEW YORK — Matt Wisler wised up in a hurry. Tagged by David Wright's home run with one out in the first inning and a follow-up double by Daniel Murphy, the Atlanta rookie quickly found his rhythm. Wisler went on to end his nine-start winless drought and the Braves, boosted by a rare power show, stalled the New York Mets' push toward the NL East title with a 6-2 victory Tuesday night. "I feel good against them," Wisler said. "I think my stuff kind of matches up with their weaknesses. They're a really good hitting team, obviously, they're tops in our division and it's a battle every time against them. But I continue to have some good luck against them." Wisler (6-8) struck out a career-high eight and left after a leadoff walk in the eighth. The 23-year-old, who beat the Mets in his big league debut June 19, had been 0-7 in his last nine starts. Earlier this month, he lost to the Mets despite pitching well. "I had a good start and a really rough August, so I'm trying to learn from that and I feel better mentally the last couple of outings. I'm just really trying to attack hitters as best I can," he said. The Mets lost for the fifth time in seven games. They held their 6 1/2-game lead over Washington, whose loss to Baltimore cut New York's magic number to six for clinching the division. Down 4-1, the Mets loaded the bases with one out in the eighth. Edwin Jackson, Atlanta's fourth pitcher of the inning, gave up a sacrifice fly to pinch-hitter Michael Cuddyer and got Wilmer Flores on a grounder to protect the lead. Pinch-hitter Adonis Garcia lined a two-out, two-run double in the ninth off Mets reliever Tyler Clippard. Jace Peterson led off the Atlanta fifth with a home run and Hector Olivera launched a three-run shot later in the inning off Logan Verrett (1-2). Atlanta is last in the majors, by far, with 90 home runs. Olivera's tiebreaking homer came after an intentional walk to Nick Markakis with two outs. "The bottom line is, we aren't chasing a playoff berth, but we're here to play hard and we're not here to give games away," Olivera said through a translator. The Mets had won five in a row against Atlanta, and Wright put them ahead again with a solo homer in the first. But other than Murphy's two doubles, New York rarely dented Wisler in finishing 0 for 8 with runners in scoring position. The Braves won for just the eighth time in 35 games. They have the second-worst record in the majors after trailing the Mets by only 1 1/2 games a few days before the All-Star break. TRAINER'S ROOM Braves: Markakis started after missing two games because of stiffness in his upper back and neck. ... C Christian Bethancourt is still day to day after bruising his left wrist on a play at the plate Sunday. TERRY TIME Even with the Braves struggling, manager Fredi Gonzalez is secure — in July, the team extended his contract through 2016. New York manager Terry Collins has a club option for next season and Gonzalez said Mets management should take care of his counterpart now. "Do the right thing for T.C.," Gonzalez said. UP NEXT Braves: RHP Williams Perez (6-6, 5.16 ERA) is 2-0 in his last three starts. The no-decision was against the Mets, when he pitched six innings and gave up three runs. He made his big league debut this year and has one save, which came vs. the Mets. Mets: Bartolo Colon (14-12, 4.15) has won all four of his starts vs. the Braves this season. Three Atlanta hitters have caused him trouble — Andrelton Simmons (11 for 20), Freddie Freeman (9 for 20) and Nick Swisher (7 for 15 with two homers). Mets align rotation: Mets confirm rotation for final road trip, line up aces for Nationals ADAM RUBIN, ESPN NEW YORK NEW YORK -- New York Mets manager Terry Collins confirmed the team's rotation for the final road trip of the season. After Bartolo Colon pitches Wednesday's homestand finale against the Atlanta Braves, here is how things line up: At Cincinnati Thursday: Steven Matz Friday: Noah Syndergaard Saturday: Matt Harvey Sunday: Jacob deGrom At Philadelphia Tuesday: Jonathon Niese Wednesday: Colon Thursday: Matz That, of course, lines up Syndergaard, Harvey and deGrom to face the Washington Nationals during the final series of the season if those games are meaningful. Harvey's outing in Cincinnati is expected to be abbreviated -- perhaps even shorter than the five innings he went in his Sunday start against the New York Yankees. DeGrom, who was skipped on Tuesday night, will be pitching for the first time since Sept. 15 when he takes the mound in Cincinnati. Jacob deGrom to make next start for Mets on Sunday, lining him up for Game 1 of the NLDS KRISTIE ACKERT, NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Jacob deGrom will make his next start for the Mets on Sunday in Cincinnati, a move that appears to line him up for Game 1 of the NLDS. Terry Collins announced that deGrom — who was skipped Tuesday night in place of Logan Verrett — will start the series finale against the Reds next Sunday, a day after Matt Harvey makes his next start. That will line up deGrom for the season finale against the Nats (an abbreviated start unless it’s a must-win of course) and for the first playoff game. Steven Matz and Noah Syndergaard will pitch the first two games of the four-game series against the Reds on Thursday and Friday. The Mets enter Tuesday with a 6.5 game lead over the Nats in the NL East and trail the Dodgers - their first-round opponent if they get there - by just a 1/2-game for homefield advantage in that series. DeGrom is being skipped Tuesday to limit his innings and keep him fresh for the postseason. The Mets have already skipped a start by Noah Syndergaard and are also limiting the innings of Harvey, who is pitching his first season after missing 2014 due to Tommy John Surgery. That path reared its ugly head Sunday night when Harvey pitched five innings of shutout ball against the Yankees, only to see the bullpen allow 11 runs in the next four innings. Jacob deGrom is proof Mets are handling Matt Harvey perfectly KEVIN KERNAN, NEW YORK POST There are lessons to be learned from the Matt Harvey Experience and all the Mets have to do is look back at Jacob deGrom, who is lined up to start Game 1 of the NLDS. DeGrom missed the 2011 season after Tommy John surgery following the 2010 season. In 2012, deGrom pitched 111 ¹/₃ minor league innings. That was his first year after Tommy John surgery. The previous year at Stetson University, and his first year of minor league ball with the Mets, the right-hander totaled 108 ¹/₃ innings. In 2013, deGrom pitched 147 ²/₃ innings. In 2014, deGrom built up to 178 ²/₃ innings, 38 ¹/₃ were in the minors, and the Mets shut him down at the end of the season as he won Rookie of the Year honors. Manager Terry Collins said, at the time, it was clearly the right thing to do — he was in the same territory Harvey is at right now. “Matt is doing a great job,’’ deGrom told The Post Tuesday night as the Mets dropped a 6-2 decision to the lowly Braves at Citi Field but still managed to have their magic number drop to six because of the Nationals’ 4-1 loss to the Orioles. This season deGrom is at 181 innings. Still, there is a price to be paid for skipping starters and Logan Verrett started in deGrom’s place and surrendered a four-run fifth to the Braves, giving up two home runs. “We have to play better,’’ Collins said. “All of a sudden we’ve hit a wall.’’ Collins said deGrom will start Sunday against the Reds, which puts him in line for Game 1 against the Dodgers in the playoffs, as expected. Like deGrom, Harvey has already given one elbow to the campaign, so no more talk please about Harvey not stepping up a year after missing the season. Harvey is at 176 ²/₃ innings, yet there is nothing but Harvey Hysteria because the Mets are headed to the postseason. In 2014 they were headed nowhere. The postseason rotation is being set with deGrom, Noah Syndergaard, Harvey and Steven Matz expected to be the Big Young Four starters for the first-round matchup against the Dodgers. If the series starts in L.A., Syndergaard gets Game 3 at Citi Field. If the series starts at Citi Field, Syndergaard would start Game 2 with Harvey starting Game 3 at Dodger Stadium. “Doing what we are doing now with Jake, I like the status of the pitching staff. I think the rest is going to help Jake,’’ Collins said. “Skipping Noah, he’s come back and has thrown the ball really well. I think it made a big difference and hopefully in two weeks they are going to show it.’’ Of course, the Mets have to get there first and not collapse. There is still work to be done. “They built me up year after year and it was good,’’ deGrom said of the pitching plan. “I think last year, when they shut me down at the end, big picture, it was a smart move. We weren’t in a race, it was my first time pitching that late in the year and that was the most I’ve pitched in my career.’’ “Matt looks good when he is out there, so I think he’ll be fine.’’ Harvey said Tuesday that when his number is called in the postseason: “I’ll be ready to go.’’ That’s really all the Mets need to hear. Limiting Harvey’s innings is the right thing to do as long as Harvey makes that playoff start. That’s imperative. Sandy Alderson is acting as a steward — which is the right thing to do. The Mets, Harvey, his agent Scott Boras and Dr. James Andrews are on the same page now. Pitching coach Dan Warthen predicted 185 innings for Harvey back in spring training. The Mets are heading to the playoffs a year earlier than they anticipated. This is a reverse Murphy’s Law for the Mets — what could go right has gone right. At this stage, I’m all for Harvey having a three-inning start next time out. Just be ready to punch-in against the Dodgers. 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