Mets vs Braves Recap: Flores and Duda heroic as Mets win tenth in a row

It doesn't matter who the Mets' starting pitcher is. It doesn't matter if the game is at Citi Field or on the road. It doesn't matter if our heroes fall behind during the game. The Mets are going to win, and there's nothing you can do about it.

Tonight's 3-2 win against the Braves made it ten in a row for the Mets, encompassing 11 days and two full turns through the rotation. They aren't blowing teams away, but a combination of strong starting pitching, timely hitting, and stout relief work has led to a +23 run differential during this stretch. Seemingly everyone is contributing, with Wilmer Flores and Lucas Duda among tonight's stars.

Flores twice tied the game tonight. The first came on a line-drive RBI single in the second inning that made the score 1-1, and the second came on a solo home run in the seventh inning that made the score 2-2. The young shortstop now has an OPS of .819 and is helping Mets fans forget his shaky opening week.

Both Braves runs came against Mets starting pitcher Dillon Gee. The veteran Gee pitched poorly in his first two starts of the season, causing many to call for dropping him from the rotation for someone younger and more promising. However, he gave the Mets seven quality innings tonight, striking out three and walking one while allowing eight hits. Gee didn't miss bats like Matt Harvey or Jacob deGrom (just eight swinging strikes out of 102 pitches tonight), but it was a perfectly reasonable start for a fourth or fifth starter. Good job, John -- uhh, I mean Dillon:

Gee was supported by his defense. Flores was the middle-man on a nifty 1-6-3 double play started by Gee to end the fourth inning and Ruben Tejada showed some hops to snag a line drive off the bat of Nick Markakis. But neither could match the brilliance of Juan Lagares's catch to rob Jace Peterson opening the seventh inning:

. @juanlagares2 makes another stellar catch #Mets https://t.co/uLz3Lev4e5

— Bartolo Is The Man (@MetsKevin11) April 23, 2015

Put that near the top of Lagares's resumé of amazing plays.

With the game tied 2-2 entering the bottom of the eighth inning, Curtis Granderson drew a walk as a pinch hitter to open the frame. Next, Lagares poked one through the right side on a successful hit-and-run play, sending Granderson to third base. Lucas Duda followed with an RBI single to give the Mets a 3-2 lead they would not relinquish. Despite squandering a chance to give the bullpen some breathing room (due to a Michael Cuddyer double play), Jeurys Familia sent the Braves down one-two-three in the ninth inning to seal it.

Here are the current NL East standings for you to ogle:

The Mets go for eleven in a row on Thursday at 1:10 pm. The pitching matchup is Bartolo Colon vs Julio Teheran.

Three Stars of the Game

First Star: Wilmer Flores
Second Star: Lucas Duda
Third Star: Dillon Gee

SB Nation GameThreads

* Amazin' Avenue GameThread
* Talking Chop GameThread

Win Probability Added

(What's this?)

Big winners: Wilmer Flores +29.9%, Jeurys Familia +13.6%
Big losers: Michael Cuddyer -13.8%, Kevin Plawecki -7.1%
Teh aw3s0mest play: Wilmer Flores solo home run in seventh inning, +27.1%
Teh sux0rest play: Andrelton Simmons RBI single in second inning, -12.5%
Total pitcher WPA: +25.6%
Total batter WPA: +24.4%
GWRBI!: Lucas Duda RBI single in eighth inning