Atlanta Braves: 3 numbers that matter from Friday’s win over New York Mets

Kicking off a series that could go a long ways in deciding the winner of the National League East, the Atlanta Braves logged a 5-2 win over the New York Mets on Friday night at Truist Park.

Now tied atop the NL East, the Atlanta Braves and New York Mets each have five games left in the regular season, including two more against each other in Atlanta this weekend. New York still owns the tie-breaker over Atlanta, however, holding a 9-8 edge in the season series heading into Saturday’s game.

There were plenty of big moments in Friday’s showdown, but we picked three numbers that tell the story of how the Braves downed the Mets.

3 numbers to know from Friday’s Atlanta Braves win over the New York Mets

3 — That’s the number of times in his career that Atlanta third baseman Austin Riley has homered off Mets starting pitcher Jacob deGrom, including his second-inning home run that opened the scoring for the Braves on Friday night.

Only three MLB players have three or more home runs off deGrom in their careers, with Giancarlo Stanton leading the way with four and Freddie Freeman joining Riley in the three-homer club.

Riley has put together a solid career so far against deGrom, slashing .300/.333/.750 in 20 at-bats with three home runs and six RBI.

The number 3 was also meaningful for the Braves in another way on Friday night as Atlanta powered three home runs off deGrom to secure the win.

“[Jacob] deGrom is one of the best pitchers in the game, if not the best,” Braves first baseman Matt Olson, who had one of Atlanta’s three home runs, told media members after the game. “So, to be able to get a big win tonight in a park that was rowdy with a good atmosphere was a good start to the series. We still have some more to go.”

10 — That’s the number of consecutive starts that Atlanta left-hander Max Fried has put together allowing two runs or fewer, including Friday night when he scattered four hits and allowed just one earned run in 5.0 innings before having to leave the game after feeling ill.

The 10-game streak is tied for the second-longest of Fried’s career, behind the 13 he put together from July 28, 2018 to April 21, 2019.

Additionally, 10 has significance as a part of the 10-game streak as Fried retired 10 consecutive Mets between the last out of the second inning and when he left the game after the top of the fifth.

100 — That’s the number of home runs that Atlanta shortstop Dansby Swanson now has in his career after a sixth-inning homer off deGrom that traveled 441 feet and gave Atlanta a 3-1 edge.

Swanson is just the second primary shortstop in Braves franchise history to record 100 or more home runs, joining Jeff Blauser, who reached the milestone during the 1997 campaign.

“[The Mets] are obviously a great team,” Swanson said after the victory. “They have 98 wins and they’re one of the best teams in the league. So, it’s important to get off to a good start and I feel like we did that tonight.”