Quick Recap: Braves 8, Mets 7 — Turner Field And The LOLpen Strike Again

The day began with the indignity of another FOX baseball broadcast, and it ended as so many other games this season have, and as so many games at Turner Field in previous seasons have, with the Mets' bullpen giving up some runs and another tick mark adorning the "L" column in the standings. R.A. Dickey had his second consecutive rough outing, allowing five runs in five innings. He managed to avoid a loss, again, owing largely to Braves starter Tommy Hanson's comparably uneven performance in which he allowed six runs in five innings and change.

Perhaps most surprisingly, the Mets held a 7-5 lead through the sixth and seventh innings and someone less disillusioned by the stench of past failures might have actually been optimistic about the likelihood of coming out of this game with a victory. Unfortunately, I made the mistake of reading the book before seeing the movie, and when Tim Byrdak, Pedro Beato, and Bobby Parnell — all members of the 2011 bullpen — conspired to relinquish the Mets' two-run lead and then some in the bottom of the eighth.

The Mets dropped to 46-42 with the loss, two-and-a-half games back of the Braves and six games behind the Nationals in the NL East. They'll try to avoid leaving Atlanta empty-handed when Johan Santana takes on Ben Sheets at 1:35pm on Sunday.

We knew it was over when...

R.A. Dickey was pulled for a pinch hitter after five innings and the LOLpen took over.

What else?

• David Wright went 0-for-5 with four strikeouts.
• Six batters drove in the Mets' seven runs, with Ruben Tejada knocking in two and Jordany Valdespin, Ike Davis, Josh Thole, Andres Torres, and Justin Turner plating one run apiece.
• Davis hit his thirteenth home run of the year, giving him the team lead and one more than Lucas Duda and Scott Hairston.
• Braves pitchers struck out fourteen and walked just two.
• Josh Edgin walked a batter but struck out the side in the sixth inning.

Game Thread Roll Call

Nice job by MetsFan4Decades; her effort in the game thread embiggens us all.