Atlanta Braves vs. New York Mets Pick & Prediction SEPTEMBER 26th 2024

The Atlanta Braves are waiting patiently for an update on ace Spencer Strider, who landed on the 15-day injured list with a sprained ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow last Saturday.

Right-hander Allan Winans has been tabbed to start in place of Strider when the Braves continue a four-game series against the visiting New York Mets on Wednesday night.

Strider is being evaluated this week, and the Braves aren’t expected to learn more about his prognosis until the weekend.

“I don’t know what the treatment is gonna be,” Atlanta manager Brian Snitker said. “They’re in discussions right now as to what the next step is. That’s all I know.”

Winans (1-2, 5.29 ERA in 2023) made his major league debut with the Braves last season and started six games. The 28-year-old was recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett on Sunday.

A 17th-round draft pick in 2018 by the Mets, Winans started for Gwinnett on April 2 and allowed two runs in 5 2/3 innings against the Louisville Bats.

Atlanta bounced back from an 8-7 loss in the series opener vs. the Mets with a 6-5 win on Tuesday. Ronald Acuna Jr. played a key role in the victory with two hits, three runs and three stolen bases.

“When he gets on and gets everybody going, he can do a lot of good things on the basepaths,” Braves second baseman Ozzie Albies said. “Like you saw tonight, he stole three bags and scored three times.”

Atlanta also received a spark from left fielder Jarred Kelenic, who threw out Harrison Bader attempting to stretch a leadoff single into a double in the third inning. Kelenic has reached base safely in 10 straight games to begin his Braves career after spending the past three seasons with the Seattle Mariners.

New York will send left-hander Jose Quintana (0-1, 2.61 ERA) to the mound on Wednesday. He allowed one run on five hits over 5 2/3 innings in a no-decision against the Cincinnati Reds last Friday.

Quintana, 35, is in the final season of a two-year, $26 million contract after going 3-6 with a 3.57 ERA in 13 starts last year.

Marcell Ozuna is 10-for-22 with one home run against Quintana, who is 2-5 with a 6.75 ERA in eight career outings vs. Atlanta. Quintana has limited Braves first baseman Matt Olson to four hits in 18 at-bats.

Pete Alonso hit a three-run homer Tuesday to help New York attempt to rally from a 6-0 deficit. The Mets added two runs in the ninth inning before Alonso struck out with a runner at first base to end the game.

“I thought the fight was there the whole game,” New York manager Carlos Mendoza said. “For us to put the go-ahead runner on base in the ninth inning after we got down early, it shows a lot about this team. Offensively, I like what we’re seeing.”

The Mets’ offense will be without J.D. Martinez for a little longer while the designated hitter deals with lower back tightness.

Martinez, 36, was signed as a free agent after hitting .271 with 33 homers and 103 RBIs with the Los Angeles Dodgers last season. He received a cortisone injection Tuesday and hopes to make his Mets debut before the end of the month.

“We’ll see (in) how the next 48 to 72 hours he responds to the treatment, and then we’ll go from there,” Mendoza said. “But as far as at-bats and things like that, he feels really good timing-wise, mechanics. So I’m not too concerned about this.”

–Field Level Media