New York Mets' Curtis Granderson hits a home run in his game against the Atlanta Braves, Saturday, Sept. 20, 2014, in Atlanta.ATLANTA - The slumping Atlanta Braves were shut down by Jonathon Niese and lost 4-2 to the New York Mets on Saturday night, damaging their flickering playoff hopes.
Atlanta has lost seven of eight to drop to 4-13 in September. Any combination of two Pittsburgh wins or Atlanta losses will eliminate the Braves from the NL wild-card race.
Niese (9-11) allowed two runs and seven hits in 7 1-3 innings. The left-hander also struck out five and walked one while improving to 1-1 with a 2.14 ERA in his last three starts.