Brandon Nimmo wasn’t even supposed to play Sunday night. The outfielder tweaked his right side the night prior and manager Carlos Mendoza told him to take the day off. But Nimmo protested, insisting that he was able to play, going through several tests to show the coaches and trainers that he could play and, finally, summoning Mendoza to the batting cage to watch him swing without pain.
Mendoza relented, agreeing to use him off the bench if needed.
It’s a good thing he did.
Nimmo teed off on left-hander A.J. Minter (5-3) with one on and one out in the bottom of the ninth inning to help the Mets walk off with a 4-3 win over the Braves and avoid a sweep.
If Nimmo’s intercostal was still sore during that at-bat, you couldn’t tell.
“I don’t really feel anything right now,” Nimmo said. “I’m kind of coming off the adrenaline high, so I definitely didn’t feel anything for that at bat.”
Jeff McNeil led off with a bunt single and was moved over to second by Tomas Nido. On the sixth pitch of the at-bat, Nimmo connected on a cutter from Minter, sending it into the visitor’s bullpen. A night after nearly being no-hit, the Mets dug in and refused to be swept.
“We needed this one,” McNeil said. “We’re grinding. Everyone was team is grinding right now. So we’ll take any win where we can get it, and this is a big one.”
Mendoza was also ready to dig in and refuse Nimmo’s pleas to play. The manager didn’t want to risk further aggravating an injury when they were lucky enough to catch it early. A strained intercostal or oblique could lead to a lengthy injured list stint and Nimmo already has a history of muscle injuries.
But a trainer came out during batting practice and told Mendoza that Nimmo looked good swinging a bat in the cages. The outfielder had already passed a core test; swinging a bat was the last test he needed to pass. Mendoza watched him swing without favoring his right side.
“He came and watched me hit and he goes, ‘OK, you look like you’re moving pretty well.’ And I was like, ‘I feel good, so let’s have a conversation,'” Nimmo said. “So he went and talked with the trainer, Joe [Golia], and he said, ‘Hey, later in the game, what do you think?’ And I said, ‘If you need me, let’s do it.'”
Mendoza trusted Nimmo.
“It wasn’t an easy decision,” Mendoza said. “I said, ‘Hey, honestly, I’m not going to change my mind. But be ready from the fifth inning on.'”
DJ Stewart went 2-for-3 with a run batting from the leadoff spot for the first time this season in place of Nimmo, Pete Alonso went 2-for-4 with two RBI doubles and Francisco Lindor had two hits and scored a run.
Alonso’s two doubles came off right-handed Braves starter Bryce Elder. He doubled home Stewart in the third to tie the game at 1-1. After Atlanta went ahead 2-1 in the sixth, Lindor doubled off Elder to lead off and Alonso sent him home with a double to right-center field to tie the game at 2-2.
Elder allowed two earned runs on seven hits over 5 1/3 innings before being removed with one out in the sixth and Alonso at second. McNeil grounded out against left-hander Aaron Bummer to strand the runners. The Mets would strand runners in the seventh as well, while Atlanta went ahead in the eighth.
Zack Short grew up a Mets fan and realized a dream when he was named to the team’s Opening Day roster. But Sunday at Citi Field, the utility infielder scored both runs for the Braves, driven in by Marcel Ozuna both times. The first run was charged to right-hander Severino, who pitched well enough to give the Mets a chance to win.
Right-hander Adam Ottavino gave up the second single to Ozuna. After a stretch of nine straight appearances without an earned run, Ottavino has allowed four in his last four outings.
Severino pitched into the sixth inning, holding the Braves (24-13) to two earned runs on four hits, walking three and striking out four. He didn’t have his best stuff, but the damage was minimal.
“Every time you face a team like this and limit them to a couple runs, I think it’s huge,” Severino said. “We’re very good and I feel more confidence in myself.”
Edwin Diaz kept the game to within one run with a scoreless ninth to earn the win (1-1).
“Obviously, the Braves are a great team. We know that,” Nimmo said. But if you want to be the best, you’ve got to beat the best.”
The Mets (19-20) are in a stretch of 10 straight games against divisional opponents and a sweep this weekend dropped them below the Washington Nationals to put them in fourth place. They have a chance to beat the best and pick up some valuable wins this week with four games against the NL East-leading Philadelphia Phillies, starting Monday.
