Atlanta Braves Sweep Behind Unhittable Teheran
By Fred Owens
On a brilliant Sunday afternoon in Queens The Atlanta Braves Sweep The Mets
The Atlanta Braves entered today’s game sure of a series win and gunning for a sweep Their biggest gun was Julio Teheran and he blew the Mets away.
Much has been written about deGrom not being himself this year but he looked in fine form early, the only blemish a Freddie Freeman two out double in the first That double was Freeman’s 14th hit in his last 27 AB and his eighth extra base hit.
Julio Teheran was just as efficient quickly slicing through the op three in the Mets order in the first two frames. Un the top of the Braves gave him the lead when a deGrom slider hit Erick Aybar, Teheran sacrificed him to second, he moved to third when Mallex Smith drove Yoenis Cespedes to the warning track in center and Ender Inciarte singled to right scoring Aybar.
The fun wasn’t over as Freeman followed that with a two out single to left and Nick Markakis jumped on the hit train with a single to right center scoring Inciarte and sending Freeman to third.
All of this two out movement unsettled deGrom who walked Tyler Flowers on four pitches. A pitching coach visit seemed to settle him down and he wiggled out of trouble by coaxing Jace Peterson to ground out to first.
Teheran took the mound in the bottom half of the third leading 2-0 and promptly fell behind Michael Conforto 3-1 and gave up a single to left. He buckled down after the hit and struck out Kevin Pawlecki on three pitches and got deGrom and Curtis Granderson to lift easy fly balls to Inciarte in center.
Next: A quick look at the middle innings