The biggest series of the regular season for the Atlanta Braves will get underway Monday when they begin a three-game set against the New York Mets. To understand the magnitude, you must first understand how we got here. The Braves were an under .500 team and trailed New York by 10.5 games on June 1. Since then, they have gone 29-8 while New York is 18-16 to close the gap to just 1.5 games entering play Monday. Neither team is going to win the NL East this week, but the fact that Atlanta has the opportunity to move into first base is quite an achievement considering how their season began.
Monday’s game will feature a playoff worthy pitching matchup between Max Fried and Max Scherzer. After a couple of uneven outings to start the season, Fried has been lights out and has consistently given Atlanta an opportunity to win every time he has taken the mound. Fried had a 2.16 ERA and a 1.84 FIP in June. He’s been even better in July allowing just one run over his last 13 innings.
Scherzer was a big part of the Mets’ initial surge out of the gate before an oblique strain put him on the injured list for over a month. He returned on July 5 and dominated the Reds allowing just two hits while striking out 11 over six scoreless innings. Scherzer has a 3.88 ERA in 157 2/3 career innings against Atlanta. However, the Braves have tagged him with 17 hits and 10 runs over his last three regular starts against them dating back to the 2020 season.
Austin Riley had a game-tying home run and then delivered a walk-off single in the 12th inning of Sunday’s comeback win over the Nationals. Riley is hitting .448/.484/.862 with three doubles and three home runs on Atlanta’s current homestand. Dansby Swanson had three more hits in Sunday’s win and is hitting .342/.388/.557 with a 163 wRC+ since June 1.
Monday’s game is scheduled to get underway at 7:20 p.m. ET and can be seen on Bally Sports South.
Game Info
Game Date/Time: Monday, July 11, 7:20 p.m. ET
Location: Truist Park, Atlanta, Georgia
TV: Bally Sports South
Streaming: MLB.tv
Radio: 680 AM / 93.7 FM The Fan
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