Mets vs. Braves recap: Conforto, Reyes lead Mets’ offense in win

It’s just one game, but the Mets’ record at SunTrust Par is infinitely better than it was at Turner Field. Thanks to their offense and their bullpen, the Mets were able to bounce back from an awful loss in Washington on Sunday afternoon with a win that wasn’t exactly easy but never saw them trail, either.

The game could have been really easy if Robert Gsellman had been more effective. While the Mets beat up on Julio Teheran, a pleasant change of pace for them against the Braves’ ace, Gsellman slowly allowed Atlanta to get right back into the game. A 6-1 lead turned into a 6-5 lead by the time his baserunners were all accounted for after he was lifted with no outs in the bottom of the sixth inning. While he was a ground ball machine in the start, Gsellman didn’t strike anyone out after striking out just two opposing hitters in his previous start.

But those struggles didn’t do the Mets in, thanks in large part to the bats of Michael Conforto and Jose Reyes and a couple of nifty defensive plays from Travis d’Arnaud and Curtis Granderson.

On the defensive side, the Mets caught a break in the bottom of the fifth. With runners on first and second and two outs, Gsellman threw a pitch that went well wide of d’Arnaud’s glove, but the catcher recovered quickly as the ball bounced back to him off the brick backstop and ran at Teheran, who had been on second base, to end the inning. And in the bottom of the sixth, with runners again on first and second with two outs, pinch hitter Lane Adams hit a ball to center field that Granderson came in and caught on a slide to end the inning and keep the Mets’ lead intact.

At the plate, Conforto went 2-for-4 with a solo home run to lead off the game in the top of the first inning and a two-run single in the fourth. Reyes only had one hit on the night, but it was a solo home run that gave the Mets an important insurance run in the top of the eighth. That ball cleared the left field wall, which isn’t very tall, just high enough that Matt Kemp couldn’t get his glove on it. Addison Reed did, though, as he crouched and caught it in the bullpen.

And speaking of Reed, he was part of the Mets’ strong bullpen effort in the game. Although Josh Edgin and Hansel Robles each allowed one inherited runner to score, neither pitcher was charged with a run of his own. Jerry Blevins looked great in a scoreless seventh, and Reed gave up a leadoff single in the eighth but then leaned on his slider to retire the next three Braves hitters in order.

Last but not least, Jeurys Familia struck out the first batter he faced before allowing a single and inducing a game-ending double play.

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What’s WPA?

Big winners: Michael Conforto, +15.9% WPA, Jose Reyes, +12.4% WPA, Jerry Blevins, +10.8% WPA
Big losers: Robert Gsellman, -14.7% WPA
Teh aw3s0mest play: Jose Reyes hits a solo home run in the eighth, +13.6% WPA
Teh sux0rest play: Matt Kemp doubles to put runners on second and third in the sixth, -11.2% WPA
Total pitcher WPA: +17.2% WPA
Total batter WPA: +32.8% WPA
GWRBI!: Michael Conforto