Mets' offense stymied in 4-0 loss to Braves

· Yahoo Sports

The Mets dropped just their second game of the road trip on Tuesday night, losing to the Atlanta Braves, 4-0.

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Here are the key takeaways...

-- Locked in a pitcher’s duel with Braves starter Martin Perez, Nolan McLean appeared to have the upper hand as he didn’t allow a hit through the first four innings and was getting through Atlanta’s lineup efficiently and with relative ease thanks to the Braves’ aggressiveness at the plate.

-- Unfortunately, the Mets’ blistering offense came to a screeching halt and was unable to get past Perez, despite good career numbers up and down the lineup against the veteran, as the left-hander matched McLean’s zeros.

-- The game turned on a dime in the fifth inning when Met killer Ozzie Albies broke up the no-hitter, the shutout and the scoreless tie when he turned on an 0-2 fastball by McLean for a solo bomb leading off the frame.

The home run was Albies’ 20th of the season and his 25th career home run against the Mets in 119 games – the most he’s hit against one team. Albies also entered the day hitting a ridiculous .366 with a .869 OPS on an 0-2 count, far better than his career .201/.206/.295 slash line.

-- McLean quickly regrouped and retired the next three in order before going back out for the sixth and retiring the side. The right-hander’s night was done after that, following just 85 pitches (53 strikes), his only blemish being the home run, which was enough to give him the loss.

-- New York’s bullpen wasn’t as sharp as McLean with Jefrey Yan walking three in the seventh and throwing a wild pitch while allowing a run to score in 0.2 innings. Chayce McDermott came in to get the final out and after uncorking a wild pitch of his own, he got Austin Riley to fly out to deep center field with Luis Robert Jr. making a nice catch at the wall.

McDermott wasn’t so lucky in the eighth, allowing two runs to score on Matt Olson’s league-leading 35th home run of the season, which gave the Braves a 4-0 lead on just two total hits.

-- The Mets weren’t much better, tallying just four hits on the night – two from Carson Benge. Atlanta’s bullpen pitched three perfect innings in relief of Perez, who got the win.

Game MVP: Ozzie Albies

Albies' long ball against McLean was the big hit in this one.

Highlights

What's next

The Mets and Braves close out their series in Atlanta on Wednesday night with first pitch scheduled for 7:15 p.m. on SNY.

LHP Zac Thornton (3-2, 2.52 ERA) pitches for New York, opposed by RHP Tyler Mahle (3-9, 4.83 ERA).

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