Mets vs. Braves: 3 bold predictions for the series in Atlanta
Following the New York Mets has been a schizophrenic experience in 2023. At times the team has looked hopeless, giving up early runs and failing to get clutch hits. At other times the Mets have electrified fans with walkoff hits and sweeps of divison rivals. Which Mets team will we get in Atlanta against the Braves? Here are three bold predictions for this critical series.
1) Francisco Lindor finally gets it going for the Mets
The Mets' offense has been in a funk. Against the Blue Jays the team managed just five runs in three games, and it doesn't figure to get any easier against a Braves pitching staff that leads the National League in ERA. Outside of Pete Alonso and Starling Marte (plus an improbable two-homer game from Tommy Pham), few players on the Mets have looked comfortable in the batter's box.
Francisco Lindor has especially struggled lately, seeing his average dip down to .213 after recording only one hit in his last five games. Eight of his 12 plate appearances against the Blue Jays ended in a strikeout, but I think this is where he finally breaks out.
Lindor is a star, and you can't keep a star down for long. As his average shows, he hasn't recorded many hits for the Mets this year, but the hits he's gotten have been big, which is why he ranks sixth in the National League in RBIs.
Lindor is a passionate player, and I have no doubt that he's heard all of the criticisms against him from Mets fans. He'd love nothing more than to step up against the team the Mets are chasing in the NL East. I expect him to adjust his approach with an emphasis on making more contact, and in the process break out of his slump with at least four hits against the Braves.
2) Justin Verlander and Spencer Strider will have an old fashioned pitching duel
Thursday's rubber game in Atlanta features a fascinating pitching matchup. Justin Verlander, surefire Hall-of-Famer, will take the mound for the Mets, and he will face Spencer Strider, the young Braves ace that is the current NL Cy Young favorite.
At 40 years old, Verlander has 16 years on his counterpart. He won his first Cy Young when Strider was still in middle school. The veteran has been unable to put up back-to-back gems for the Mets though, alternating between allowing one and six runs in his last five starts.
This would mean Verlander is due for a stinker against the Braves, but we all know he's a better pitcher than that. Verlander's last bad start was in Colorado, which always comes with an asterisk, and his other one was against the Rays, who have arguably the best lineup in baseball.
Strider has been dominant in his short career, but the Mets have given him trouble. In six starts against the Mets, the mustachioed righty has an ERA of 5.03 with only 25 strikeouts, including a loss last August in which he infamously accused the Mets of being lucky against him.
The Mets' offense is in the pits right now though, so it may be the perfect time for Strider to face them. Verlander was on the losing end of a pitching duel with the Blue Jays' Chris Bassitt on Friday. Expect another one between Verlander and Strider on Thursday.
3) The Mets take two of three from the Braves
If you wanted to argue that the Braves were the best team in the National League, I couldn't dispute that. Top to bottom, their roster is stacked with talent. They have young guys on great contracts, the frontrunner for MVP in Ronald Acuna, and they've won the NL East five straight years.
The Mets have struggled to show it with any consistency, but they are a good team, certainly better than the .500 club we've seen to this point. Mets fans have grown increasingly frustrated with the team's inability to live up to its MLB-leading payroll, but let's remember it was just three weeks ago that they beat the Rays, baseball's best team, two out of three times in dramatic fashion.
For as good as the Braves are, they're only 15-14 at home. They took two of three at Citi Field when the two teams met in April, but I think the Mets can do enough to return the favor at Truist Park. Carlos Carrasco, Max Scherzer, and Justin Verlander are on the bump, and they've all been outstanding lately. Don't expect a ton of runs, but the Mets will take two of three to get above .500 and inch closer in the NL East.