The New York Mets and Atlanta Braves have gone just three full days without opposing one another.
But both teams will look different Monday night when the Mets host the Braves in the opener of a four-game series between the longtime National League East rivals.
Paul Blackburn (0-1. 6.92 ERA) is slated to start for the Mets against fellow right-hander Spencer Schwellenbach (5-4, 3.26).
Both teams lost the rubber game of a three-game series on the road Sunday. The Mets were routed by the Philadelphia Phillies 7-1 several hours after the Braves fell to the Miami Marlins 5-3.
The Mets’ eighth loss in nine games dropped them out of a first-place tie in the NL East with the Phillies and magnified the offensive issues that have cropped up during the skid.
New York has been outscored 62-28 over the last nine games, a stretch in which the Mets are batting just .218.
The Mets made a move to address their offense on Sunday when catcher Francisco Alvarez was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse. Alvarez entered the season with 37 homers in 228 big-league games but was hitting just .236 with three homers in 35 games since returning from a broken left hamate bone.
The 23-year-old was just 3-for-18 over his last five games, though he went deep in his final at-bat Saturday night.
“There’s a lot of potential there and when he’s playing up to his potential, he’s got a chance to be a pretty special player,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said. “And we’re going to need him. We expect him to be back. But right now, we feel like it’s best for him to go down there and get reps.”
The Braves helped deepen the Mets’ slump by sweeping a three-game series in Georgia last week. But Atlanta’s hopes of making a run at the Mets and Phillies took a hit Saturday when ace left-hander Chris Sale was placed on the injured list with broken ribs.
The Braves juggled their rotation so that Sale, the reigning NL Cy Young Award winner, could pitch in both series against the Mets. But Sale was injured diving for a grounder by Soto in the ninth inning last Wednesday, when the southpaw came up one out shy of his first complete game since 2019.
Sale is 5-2 with a 1.23 ERA over his last 10 starts, a stretch in which he’s struck out 82 in 66 innings for the Braves, who trail the Phillies by 11 games and are seven games behind the Milwaukee Brewers in the race for the final wild-card spot.
Sale will likely be replaced in the rotation by 20-year-old Didier Fuentes, who became the youngest player in the major leagues when he debuted Friday.
“It’s a tough blow for us and (Sale),” Braves manager Brian Snitker said Saturday. “He was throwing so well. That’s a rough one.”
Blackburn took the loss against Sale and the Braves last Wednesday, when he allowed four runs (three earned) over 3 2/3 innings. Schwellenbach didn’t factor into the decision against the Mets last Tuesday after giving up four runs over seven innings in Atlanta’s 5-4, 10-inning win.
Blackburn is 0-1 with a 2.63 ERA in 13 2/3 innings over three career starts against the Braves. Schwellenbach is 2-0 with a 1.93 ERA in 28 innings over four starts against the Mets.