Braves win big in N.Y.
NEW YORK — Jacob deGrom was pulled after four dominant innings with a hyperextended right elbow, and the Atlanta Braves broke out against the bullpen to back a stellar start by Sean Newcomb and beat the New York Mets 7-0 Wednesday night.
DeGrom got 12 outs on 46 pitches and pitched smoothly through the heart of Atlanta’s order in his final inning. Yet he was replaced by Paul Sewald to begin the fifth. The Mets’ telecast showed deGrom marching frustrated back to the clubhouse, gloved hand on his head.
Atlanta also had an injury concern when shortstop Dansby Swanson was lifted in the sixth inning with a sore left wrist. The Braves said it was a precautionary measure.
Upstart Atlanta (18-11) overtook the Mets for first place in the NL East behind seven innings of two-hit ball from Newcomb (2-1). The 24-yearold retired the final 14 batters he faced, struck out eight and walked none on 97 pitches. Atlanta’s starters entered with a 2.67 ERA over their previous 23 games.
Sam Freeman and Peter Moylan wrapped up Atlanta’s three-hitter with an inning each.
Sewald (0-2) allowed an RBI single to Freddie Freeman in the sixth and a two-run homer to Ender Inciarte in the seventh. Newcomb lined a double off the left field wall a pitch prior to Inciarte’s shot to right.
Sewald gave up three runs in three innings, and Robert Gsellman gave up back-to-back homers to Johan Camargo and Ryan Flaherty during a fourrun eighth.
Freeman and Nick Markakis each had three hits and an RBI for Atlanta. Baby Braves Ozzie Albies and Ronald Acuna Jr. both went 0-for-5.
A night after the Braves blitzed Noah Syndergaard for three runs before the first out, deGrom chewed up Atlanta early. He struck out Albies on four pitches to lead off, used six more pitches to finish up the first and cruised through four without incident.
DeGrom had six strikeouts and allowed two hits, stretching his scoreless inning streak to 18 1/3. He struck out four straight and lowered his ERA to 1.87.
Swanson struck out in his first two at-bats before being replaced by Camargo in the field for the sixth inning.
Swanson, the first overall pick in the 2015 draft, is having a bounce-back season after a disappointing 2017, hitting .289 with two homers and 13 RBIs.