IGT - 9/20/14 - Mets @ Atlanta -- The Elimination Blues

[Frayed Knot]

Mets were mathematically eliminated despite the win on Friday night, so it only seems fair to beat the Braves again today and possibly eliminate them.
Can pass Miami with a win and get to within 1-1/2 game of the Braves.
Plus there's that who 'Run the table to get to 82 wins' thing still going for us.
I think last night was my first IGT win of the year.

Lineups to follow ... or not.

[Guest d'Kong76]

NY Mets at Atlanta
When: 7:10 PM ET, Saturday, September 20, 2014
Where: Turner Field, Atlanta, Georgia
SportsDirect Inc.

The Atlanta Braves finished fourth in the National League in runs scored en route to winning the NL East title in 2013, but this season has been a far different story. The Braves, who are on the verge of being eliminated from the NL wild-card race, host the New York Mets on Saturday looking to wake up an offense that is 14th in the NL in scoring and has plated runs in only six of the past 64 innings. The Mets captured the series opener Friday 5-0 as Daniel Murphy collected four hits.

Murphy, who has played the past eight games at third base, is 8-for-19 with three runs scored in his past four contests. The Mets have won five of their past six road games and can even the season series against Atlanta at nine wins apiece with a victory Saturday. Atlanta catcher Evan Gattis took batting practice Friday as he recovers from a kidney stone that has sidelined him for the past 10 contests, but the Braves sit seven games out of the final wild-card spot with nine games remaining.

TV:
7:10 p.m. ET, WPIX (New York), FSN South (Atlanta)

PITCHING MATCHUP:
Mets LH Jonathon Niese (8-11, 3.55 ERA) vs. Braves LH Mike Minor (6-11, 4.74)

Niese gave up two runs on six hits with seven strikeouts in losing Sunday to Washingon, his seventh loss in his past 10 decisions. Since July 21, Niese has posted a 4.40 ERA while allowing a .302 opponents� batting average, including a loss Aug. 28 to Atlanta in which he surrendered three runs in 7 1/3 innings. Niese has allowed only three earned runs in his past two starts, spanning 13 2/3 innings.

Minor showed remarkable improvement after the Braves skipped his turn in the rotation in early August, but he was shelled for five runs on eight hits in just 4 2/3 innings Sunday at Texas. He had allowed three earned runs or less in each of his six previous starts. Minor beat the Mets with seven innings of one-run, four-hit pitching Aug. 28, but has lost his past three outings.

WALK-OFFS:
1. Atlanta SS Andrelton Simmons went 3-for-4 Friday while playing on an injured left ankle that forced him to miss the final six innings of Wednesday�s game with Washington.
2. New York CF Juan Lagares (sprained right elbow) did not accompany the team to Atlanta and likely will miss next week�s series at Washington.
3. The Braves are 8-50 when scoring two runs or less.

[Guest d'Kong76]

[u:1r17lk79]ATL[/u:1r17lk79]
Bonifacio, RF
Gosselin, 2B
Freeman, 1B
Upton, LF
Johnson, 3B
Simmons, SS
Laird, C
Upton, CF
Minor, P

[Frayed Knot]

Eric Young Jr., lf
Daniel Murphy, 3b
Travis d'Arnaud, c
Lucas Duda, 1b
Wilmer Flores, ss
Curtis Granderson, cf
Eric Campbell, rf
Dilson Herrera, 2b
Jonathon Niese, lhp

[Fman99]

Another WPIX game so I'm rocking the iPhone/XM/Howie and some fill in for Josh. 3-0 good guys in the top of the 4th courtesy of a Duda sac fly and a two run dinger for Herrera.

Minor out after the first inning with shoulder woes of some kind.

[Guest d'Kong76]

I'd like a Casey Stengel bobblehead! No way I'm going to
that game though.

[Guest d'Kong76]

Fuck, Dilson popped something in his leg running to first.

[Lefty Specialist]

See ya next spring (hopefully), Dilson.

[Edgy MD]

What color are the numbers and letters on the back of the blue jersey. On TV, it looks like some sort of dull, tarnished copper.

It makes me sad.

[Guest d'Kong76]

Time to stretch...
[youtube:2z2bnhdr]hy-huQAMPQA[/youtube:2z2bnhdr]

[Guest d'Kong76]

CurtiBOOM!

[Edgy MD]

I'm telling you, give us a 200-game season, and we're the champs.

[Edgy MD]

Mets outfield has been bailing out Niese all night. They string together two hits by driving it by Tejada.

[Fman99]

Oh, enough of your fucking tomahawk chant already.

[Edgy MD]

Ms. Edgy (on the Tomahawk Chop): "It's definitely something that makes me embarrassed to be an American."

[Edgy MD]

There's Ruben.

[Fman99]

Oh, fuck you, Freddie.

[Edgy MD]

Way to work a walk vs. the lefty, Luke.

[Edgy MD]

Thanks for the interference, Braves fans!

[Edgy MD]

Mejia on the threshold of a big record tonight.

[Guest d'Kong76]

[Guest themetfairy]