Braves pitch 3rd straight shutout, defeat Mets
NEW YORK — Paul Maholm and the Braves bullpen combined to give Atlanta three straight shutouts for the first time in exactly a decade, and the NL wild-card leaders beat the New York Mets 3-0 Friday night.
Coming off two 1-0 wins over Colorado, the Braves’ staff stretched its scoreless streak to 28 innings. Atlanta last pitched three straight shutouts on Sept. 4-7, 2002, according to STATS LLC.
Jason Heyward hit his 25th homer in the fourth inning and Dan Uggla also connected.
This weekend marks Chipper Jones’ last trip to New York to play the Mets, an opponent he has often wrecked in the past. The Mets presented the retiring 40-year-old star with a pricey piece of 3-D artwork as part of his farewell tour, while the crowd responded with its usual boos.
Jones did little, going 0 for 4, including a strikeout with the bases loaded, and making a throwing error from third base. Fortunately for the Braves, they did fine without him making a contribution.
Maholm (12-9) worked around five hits and three walks in 5 1-3 innings. He evened his record at 3-3 since the Braves got him in a trade with the Chicago Cubs on July 30, including a three-hit shutout at Citi Field on Aug. 10.
Chad Durbin got one out in the sixth and Luis Avilan retired pinch-hitter Lucas Duda on a grounder with runners on second and third to end the inning. Jonny Venters and Eric O’Flaherty each pitched a scoreless inning and Craig Kimbrel worked the ninth for his 35th save in 38 chances.
Heyward put the Braves ahead with a drive off Jonathon Niese (10-9) that landed on the roof of the Atlanta bullpen.
Uggla opened the seventh with a double against Bobby Parnell. Catcher Kelly Shoppach had him picked off, but made a wild throw into center field. The error moved up Uggla, and he scored on a sacrifice fly by David Ross.
Uggla hit his 18th home run with two outs in the ninth.
NOTES: Damian Moss, Kevin Millwood and Greg Maddux were the starters when Atlanta threw those shutouts in 2002. ... Mets CF Andres Torres bruised his left knee making a diving catch on Martin Prado’s liner in the second and left the game. He was listed as day-to-day. ... Braves 1B Freddie Freeman was hitless in four at-bats and is an 0-for-15 rut. ... Mets SS Ruben Tejada got a day off for rest. Manager Terry Collins said Tejada might sit out again Saturday. ... The Braves were informed that Prado’s two-run double last Sunday against Philadelphia was changed by Major League Baseball executive Joe Torre to an error.