NEW YORK (AP) — Ronald Acuña Jr. homered, Spencer Schwellenbach pitched seven strong innings and the Atlanta Braves held off the New York Mets 3-2 on Monday night in the opener of a four-game series.
Michael Harris II and Sean Murphy each had an early sacrifice fly for the Braves, who beat starter Paul Blackburn (0-2) for the second time in six days and improved to 4-0 against the Mets this season.
Juan Soto hit a two-run homer that pulled the Mets within one, but he struck out against left-hander Dylan Lee with runners at the corners to end the eighth.
New York has dropped nine of 10, including a three-game sweep by its NL East rival in Atlanta last week.
Schwellenbach (6-4) allowed consecutive singles in the third for New York’s first two hits. The scoring threat ended when third baseman Austin Riley made a diving catch of Brandon Nimmo’s popup near the tarp in foul territory.