Gut Reaction: Braves 5, Mets 2 (6/26/16)

The Mets lost to the Braves this afternoon at Turner Field 5-2, splitting their four-game series. They’re 2-5 over their last seven against the Braves. Come on, now.

• Bartolo Colon started this one, and the 43-year-old continues to defy expectations. Heading into today’s game he was 6-3 with a 3.00 ERA and 1.19 WHIP. He threw seven innings with a single blemish, a Freddie Freeman solo homer in the bottom of the first, dropping his ERA on the season to 2.86.
• The Mets’ 2011 first-round draft selection Brandon Nimmo made his major league debut and started in right field for the resting Curtis Granderson. He ended up 0-4 with a strikeout, but he looked pretty good at the plate.
• It was another snoozefest, similar to last night, with the Braves on top 1-0 through seven innings. After seven, the Mets’ bullpen decided that they’d had enough and some runs were going to be scored on this day. Antonio Bastardo came in to start the eighth, gave up a single to Ender Inciarte, balked him over to second, walked Freeman, then gave up an RBI single to Nick Markakis. He faced three batters and retired zero. Logan Verrett came on in relief and promptly gave up a three-run homer to Adonis Garcia, who also made two annoyingly great plays in foul territory in this one.
• The Mets made a bit of a show of it with a rally in the top of the ninth that fell short. They managed to score two runs off of Alexi Ogando before Arodys Vizcaino was brought in to shut that nonsense down. Poor Nimmo had to face him with two outs and ultimately struck out, but he held his own in the at-bat very nicely.
• The Mets start a very important series with the Nationals in Washington tomorrow night.