New York-Atlanta: How Much Will The Schedule Be A Factor?
The New York-Atlanta battle for the NL East took an unexpected turn this past week. After taking two out of three from the Los Angeles Dodgers the Mets lead stood at three games. The Braves suffered a rare three game losing streak this season, including two tough losses to the St Louis Cardinals. Within the last four days the situation changed when the Mets lost two out of three to the Washington Nationals. They also lost the first game of their three game series against the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Meanwhile the Braves took two out of three against the Colorado Rockies. Atlanta swept the Florida Marlins and Oakland A’s, running their winning streak to seven games in a row. That begs the question of whether or not the Mets schedule will be a factor everyone thinks it is? New York’s offense struggled to score runs over the last two weeks, until the last two games, and the team placed Max Scherzer on the 15 day IL. Even with an easier schedule having him healthy for the stretch run feels like a must given that New York’s lead is just a 1/2 game.
The Last Mets-Braves Series Will Be Must See TV
Fans of the Mets and Braves circled September 30-October 2 months ago. The race between the two teams has been tight enough that everyone assumed it would come down to the final series between the two teams in Atlanta. Atlanta’s schedule, while not the toughest, still has a few challenging series. The Braves travel to the Seattle Mariners this weekend. There are also still six games left for Atlanta, home and away, with the Philadelphia Phillies.
Questions still linger for the Braves as to when Ozzie Albies and Mike Soroka might return. One or both of them returning for the team would be a huge boost. Vaughn Grissom has done a solid job replacing Albies. His two run homer started the Braves rally against the A’s today. Veterans who know what the pressure of a run towards and into the postseason are like are essential, especially for a team as young as the Braves. The team’s record since June 1 speaks for itself. Overtaking the Mets will take the best effort everyone on Atlanta can muster.
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